Innovation has become the promising concept to overcome problems and enhance agricultural performance in agricultural research and policies. In the past, innovation was mainly seen as being developed by science or enterprises, and only recently the focus has shifted from a linear to a systemic perception, acknowledging that innovation is a dynamic process that implies the participation of a diversity of stakeholders. Consequently the role of multiple stakeholders, including farmers, in the innovation process receives more attention. Farmers’ experimentation is the process by which farmers informally conduct trials or tests that can result in innovations suitable for their specific conditions. Although the role of farmers experiments in the innovative process is increasingly acknowledged, literature on the creative process that leads to farmers’ experiments and innovations is missing in farming systems research. The aim of the authors is discussing this missing link, focusing on how motivations, learning processes and specificities of the workplace farm may influence the creativity of farmers.
Paper presented at the 12th European IFSA Symposium, Workshop Innovation, knowledge and learning processes: 1.5 Pathways towards sustainability in the agricultural knowledge and innovation system: The role of farmers' experiments and innovations, Newport (UK), Harper Adams University, 12-15 July 2016.
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Le semis direct est un système de production fondé sur le non-travail du sol. Il intègre une série de pratiques agricoles qui permettent de protéger les sols cultivés de l’érosion, de réduire les consommations de carburants, voire d’augmenter les rendements....
This paper investigates the introduction of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in Canino's area (Italy), from an agricultural innovation system (AIS) perspective focusing on the roles of the innovation actors and the innovation impact pathway. The IPM research in Canino was conducted with a wide range of actors including research, advisory...
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