Rethinking Research on Land Degradation in Developing Countries

Abstract

This paper critically reviews the three main approaches to land degradation and conservation-the classic, populist and neo-liberal. The implications of these paradigm shifts are examined in terms of research needs. Next, the paper discusses the role of science and technology, and the origins and substance of differences in the perception, evaluation and diagnosis of degradation. Focus is then shifted to analyzing how farmers and pastoralists make decisions about resource use and management, and a research approach is suggested for analyzing decision-making. Two case studies illustrate the approach. ix 4 Chapter I-Changing Paradigms in Land Degradation Research identification of the problem as serious, indicating that soil conservation and land reclamation are urgently needed; technical measures requiring the cooperation of the community are recommended; and plans are implemented through a combination of encouragement, persuasion, and subtle threats sometimes backed by more coercive powers. Key points are the lack of any account of the position of the participants (the natural resource users themselves), and the reliance on experts. The typical response to failures with this approach has been to find "escape hatches" (Clay and Schaffer 1984), blaming unfavorable weather, lack of cooperation by different government departments, lack of political will, or lazy and uncooperative farmers. However, the view from another paradigm instead sees classic soil conservation intervention failure in terms of five major problems:

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