FAO.org

The complex and dynamic nature of environmental problems requires flexible and transparent decision-making that embraces a diversity of knowledges and values. For this reason, stakeholder participation in environmental decision-making has been increasingly sought and embedded into national and international policy. Although many benefits have been claimed for participation, disillusionment has [...]

The need to increase agricultural sustainability has induced the government of India to promote the adoption of integrated pest management (IPM). An evaluation of cotton-based conventional and IPM farming systems was conducted in India (2002–2004). The farmers managing the IPM farms had participated in discovery-based ecological training, namely Farmer Field [...]

Overcoming challenges to ecosystem health calls for breaking down disciplinary and professional barriers. Through reflection on a research and development project to address pesticide-related concerns in northern Ecuador, this article presents challenges encountered and accommodations made, ranging from staff recruitment, through baseline assessments and community education activities, to mobilising for [...]

Our objective in this study is to determine why resource-poor farmers in Togo (declined to) adopt recommended practices that were promoted through a multi-organizational project on soil fertility management. We examine the processes and outcomes related to the adoption process. The project was undertaken in three villages in the Central [...]

The purpose of this curriculum is to guide farmers in learning the principles and practices of the Push-pull technology so that they can apply them on their farms. Push-pull is a knowledge-intensive technology, and there is a need to have a curriculum to guide the process of acquiring knowledge and [...]

Implementation of Farmer Field School (FFS) extension approach in disseminating knowledge and skills on management technologies for crop production, crop pests, soil and water conservation (CPSWC) has had proven successes. To replicate its successes, FFS was extended to smallholder dairy production as an alternative to the conventional extension approaches (NFFS) [...]

Public policy in developing countries has failed to invest in educating farmers on how to deal with variable agro-ecosystems and a changing world. Here we present an assessment of a participatory training approach in changing crop protection by farmers from chemically dependent, to more sustainable practices in line with the [...]