TheCampesino-to-Campesinoagroecology movement of ANAP in Cuba: social process methodology in the construction of sustainable peasant agriculture and food sovereignty

Abstract

Agroecology has played a key role in helping Cuba survive the crisis caused by the collapse of the socialist bloc in Europe and the tightening of the US trade embargo. Cuban peasants have been able to boost food production without scarce and expensive imported agricultural chemicals by first substituting more ecological inputs for the no longer available imports, and then by making a transition to more agroecologically integrated and diverse farming systems. This was possible not so much because appropriate alternatives were made available, but rather because of the Campesino-a-Campesino (CAC) social process methodology that the National Association of Small Farmers (ANAP) used to build a grassroots agroecology movement. This paper was produced in a 'selfstudy' process spearheaded by ANAP and La Via Campesina, the international agrarian movement of which ANAP is a member. In it we document and analyze the history of the Campesino-to-Campesino Agroecology Movement (MACAC), and the significantly increased contribution of peasants to national food production in Cuba that was brought about, at least in part, due to this movement. Our key findings are (i) the spread of agroecology was rapid and successful largely due to the social process methodology and social movement dynamics, (ii) farming practices evolved over time and contributed to significantly increased relative and absolute production by the peasant sector, and (iii) those practices resulted in additional benefits including resilience to climate change.

Forty research issues for the redesign of animal production systems in the 21st century

“…This collective dimension questions the way extension services are currently organized and whether this organization effectively helps scale up agroecological practices and systems (I39). As reported by Rosset et al (2011), conventional top-down agricultural research and extension services have shown a negligible ability to develop and achieve broad adoption of agroecological practices, whereas rural social movements had significant success. We must also acknowledge the role of education (including schools) in the promotion of agroecological APS, and the role of media that can rapidly spread knowledge about environmental-friendly practices and give a positive image of the farmers that adopt them.…”

Addressing the Knowledge Gaps in Agroecology and Identifying Guiding Principles for Transforming Conventional Agri-Food Systems

“…This is often characterised as a conflict between peasant agriculture and modern agri-business [2]. For example, Rosset et al [14] (p. 162) argue that agroecological practices avoid reproducing the agri-business model thereby avoiding the reproduction of "the forces of exclusion and the destruction of nature, which define the larger conflict".…”

“…The crisis, by which farmers could no longer access chemical or technological input, plus the leadership and communality provided by the state and the ANAP produced the pre-conditions for the widespread adoption of the Campesino-a-Campesino (CAC) methodology. Throughout the 1990s, the CAC was quickly taken up as a "revolutionary mass organisation" [14] (p. 172), and by 2000, agroecology based on the CAC methodology had spread territorially to become a national movement.…”

“…); focusing on diversity, rotations and polyculture to enhance beneficial interactions; using native seeds, plants and livestock; and using holistic techniques for fertilisers and pest control such as introducing natural predators of pests. Agroecological principles centralise farmer knowledge, which is often viewed as an inherently political means of challenging top-down food institutions and corporate interests [12][13][14]. They promote small-scale agriculture in which peasants are empowered, e.g., with secure land tenure, community seed banks and appropriate credit policies [5].…”

Toward thick legitimacy: Creating a web of legitimacy for agroecology

“…People may also engage in peer-to-peer exchanges and audits of knowledge. [9] There are numerous examples of farmer-led groups, from Landcare in Australia to the Latin American campesino-a-campesino movement (Sobels et al, 2001;Bell, 2004;Holt-Giménez, 2006;Rosset et al, 2011). In many cultures, peers are more culturally familiar and credible than technical experts.…”