Participatory approaches have been discussed as alternatives to and complementary elements of more conventional research on sustainable land use and rural development in upland areas of Southeast Asia. Following a brief overview of the history of participatory approaches (Sect. 9.1), this chapter discusses the potential and limitations of applying Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) tools to field research practice in Vietnam (Sect. 9.2) and of involving stakeholders in priority setting, modeling and environmental valuation in the Southeast Asian uplands (Sect. 9.3).
The paper sets out the general concepts and principles of the Agricultural Innovation Systems approach, and its application to agricultural research and development, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. It is intended for those interested in applying new approaches to research with farmers, NGOs and the private sector that lead to developmental outcomes.
This chapter outlines the role of a well-functioning agricultural innovation system in ensuring good use of public funds, and higher responsiveness to the needs of ‘innovation consumers’ through improved collaboration between public and private participants, including across national borders. A well-functioning agricultural innovation system is key to improving the economic, environmental and social performance of the food and agriculture sector.
This chapter analyses the functioning of the Brazilian agricultural innovation system. It discusses the role of the different actors and describes governance mechanisms to define priorities and evaluate performance. It analyses trends in agricultural R&D expenditure and sources of funding, the role of intellectual property protection in fostering knowledge markets, and outlines mechanisms used to facilitate knowledge transfers, including collaboration at the national level and the adoption of innovation at the farm or firm level.
Brazilian agriculture is a success story. The country that until the 1960s systematically received food donations from abroad. and up to the 1980s was still a large food importer, had its agriculture profoundly changed. The traditional agriculture that prevailed in Brazil until the 1970s was progressively transformed in the following decades into a modern and highly competitive agriculture based on science.
This chapter documents the learning process within the framework of innovation of soil fertility management practices that emerged from the implementation of Participatory Extension Approach (PEA) as part of service delivery reorientation within the Limpopo Department of Agriculture in South Africa.The chapter gives a narrative description of what transpired during the interaction between researchers, extension officers and farmers, the processes involved, the lessons and the conclusion.
The central question in increasing productivity and generating incomes in African agriculture is how to move from technology generation to innovations that respond to constraints of agricultural production along the value chains. This question was considered in the context of subsistence agriculture, smallholder production systems, inefficient marketing and investments by the private sector, a preponderance of public interventions, and inadequate policies.
In the Amazon, slash and burn is the most common technique used by American-Indians, small farmers and even big ranches to transform forests into rural landscapes. The basis of food subsistence for diverse populations (rice, corn and bean), slash and burn is also a must for the plantation of cocoa, coffee, palms and pastures. The Amazonian rural landscape is currently dominated by pastures, occupying around 80 % of the deforested surface.
En este capítulo se describen las experiencias logradas en el proyecto conducido por Embrapa (a través de Embrapa Caprinos y Ovinos y Embrapa Semiárido) e ICARDA (2004-2008) en dos núcleos de intervención, en las comunidades de Boa Vista-Quixadá y Boqueirão, localizadas en los estados de Ceará y Pernambuco, respectivamente, además de las lecciones aprendidas que se espera sean de utilidad a iniciativas y esfuerzos similares en otras áreas de la región
The objective of this chapter is to describe the processes and experiences of forming country project teams, partnership models and approaches to reach farmers in Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi. This will improve understanding of methods of setting up sustainable partnerships that exist beyond donor-funded projects