FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
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Agriculture and
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Agroecology for Food
Security and Nutrition
Barbara Gemmill-HerrenFood and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
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• In the recent past: summary of the International Symposium on Agroecology for Food Security and Nutrtion
18-19 September, 2014
• In the future: plans for 2015 and beyond
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Goals of the International Symposium on Agroecology for Food Security and Nutrtion
18-19 September, 2014
• Provided a forum for taking stock of the current state of science and
practices of Agroecology,
• Facilitated exchange of information on agroecology activities in the
context of the FAO Strategic Framework;
• Produc(ing) scientific proceedings and other information material
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Participation
Private sector
Academia
Presenters
Civil Society
IGOs, foundations, media
Government representatives
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From Hainzelin presentation; Inspired from Wezel et al, 2009
Agroecology
Scientific Disciplines
Ecology of
plots, fields,
herds
Ecology
of
Food systems
Ecology
of
agrosystems
Environ-
mentalism
Rural
Development
Sustainable
agriculture
Technologies
Social MovementPractices
5
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Key points from Opening Plenary
• 97% of all the farms in the
world are family farms (500
million households)
• 70% of the active farmers are
women
• They produce about 50% of the
food consumed by humans,
farming on 20% of the land
• The world produces 2720 Kcal
of food per person per day
(1800-2100 are required)
From Tittonell presentation
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Key points from Opening Plenary
Problems with the current food
system:
Breaking vicious cycles of food
insecurity and turning them into
“virtuous” circles and synergies
Healthy soils are linked to healthy
crops and healthy diets. There is a
variable crop response to nutrient
inputs. Where soils are degraded
there is usually a poor response to
fertilizers. This applies to 25 percent
of soils worldwide. Farmers cannot
afford to use fertilizers if they are not
effective. Creating socio-ecological virtuous cycles
From Mapfumo presentation
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Key points from Opening Plenary
Systems approaches: Systems need to fit the reality of farmers. The local
context must be of greater importance: a shift from “ready-to-use” to “custom-
made” cropping systems put the producers at the center of local innovation
systems, to combine technologies and traditional knowledge.
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Adapted from M. Griffon 2013
Natural
ecosystem
Conventional
intensified
farming
systems
Agro-
ecological
farming
systems
Uniformization
Simplification
Degradation
Regulated
dynamics
Natural
dynamics
Traditional
farming
systems with
no input
Diversification
“Complexification”
“aggradation”
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Key points from Opening Plenary
Up scaling of Agroecological approaches are based on enhancing interactions,
between functional biodiversity on farms (beneficial insects, etc.) but also
between people.
Smallholders and communities can be empowered through agroecology to
expand their production frontiers.
AfJARE Vol 8 No 1 Mashavave et al.
7
The network structure for non-participant farmers (Figure 2) had fewer dense connections
(ties) compared to that for participant farmers (see Figure 1), suggesting weak collaboration
within the network. Still, intergenerational knowledge was the most outwardly projected
source of information. Within this network type, farmers’ knowledge is usually viewed as
‘know-how’ and not acceptable by scientific research standards (Hagmann et al. 1998). Other
less common sources of information were universities and direct research, as evidenced by
their projection and few connections. Extension was viewed as the medium through which
research-based knowledge was passed on to farmers, as evidenced by the lack of direct links
between the farmer and research. Innovation dissemination was mainly through
national/private extension agents (Roux et al. 2006) or farmer unions. There were few spaces
along the value chains where farmers, extension agents and other agro-service providers met
regularly to collectively develop/share new knowledge and strategies. This subsequently
limited the farmers’ ability to realise economies of scale and hindered the farmers from
developing stable relationships with suppliers or traders. Currently, exchanges with local
farmers were mostly incidental and consisted of informal dialogue devoid of sufficient
information to constitute ‘purposeful interaction’. Generally, farmer-to-farmer interactions
were along dimensions such as age, religion and gender, a characteristic known as homophily
in social network analysis (McPherson et al. 2001; Leonard et al. 2008).
Note: Black circles indicate sources of ISFM information and knowledge, while grey squares indicate platforms
for access to and sharing ISFM information)
Figure 2: Structural layout for non-participant smallholder social network in Chinyika,
Makoni District, Zimbabwe
Besides extension meetings, other identified platforms for access to and sharing of
information included field days, agricultural shows, external workshops and Master Farmer
Training Programmes being run by the national extension agency, AGRITEX. However,
Master Farmer Training Programmes were the most isolated platform for access to and
sharing of information and knowledge. Information on extension meetings would be
conveyed through village chairpersons by verbal communication, mobile phones and/or
school children. The composition of participants at field days was mostly farmers from within
the community, with very few outsiders, hence such activities were rarely conducted in this
particular area. Farmers in this network failed to organise themselves towards production and
AfJARE Vol 8 No 1 Mashavave et al.
6
Note: Black circles indicate sources of ISFM information and knowledge, while grey squares indicate platforms
for access to and sharing ISFM information)
Figure 1: Social network structural layout for learning alliance participants in
Chinyika, Makoni District, Zimbabwe
The most outwardly projected platforms were exchange visits with local farmers
(exch_visit_local,; external workshops (ext_workshops) and extension facilitated meetings
(extn_meetings), suggesting that these platforms for access to and sharing of ISFM
information were less preferred among these farmers. Learning centre-based meetings
(lc_based_meetings) for joint learning on ISFM and climate change included participatory
action planning (PAP) meetings, which usually are conducted during the pre-season months
of September or early October, followed by the implementation of planned activities as the
season commenced. Joint monitoring and evaluation then followed during the mid-season and
post-season periods, from January to July/August. The activities generally proceeded through
an iterative cycle of learning–action–reflection. Studies have shown that repeated interactions
strengthen social coherence and trust within the group (e.g. Borgatti & Cross 2003). It is also
much cheaper and easier to organise training and agricultural extension services for groups of
farmers than for individual farmers (Hagmann et al. 1998). Field days drew participation
from diverse groups within and outside the community, where ISFM and climate change
information and knowledge were shared through poetry, songs and drama. Key informant
interviews revealed that, as a result of depressed agricultural production, field days and
agricultural shows had become non-existent before the inception of SOFECSA initiatives in
the year 2007, and this could be attributed to declining soil fertility. In particular, maize grain
yields were less than 2 t/ha.
Beside field days and learning centres, the farmers also interacted through seed fairs,
exchange visits with local farmers and agricultural shows. Recurrent interactions within
learning alliances were also found to foster broader comprehension of key ISFM issues,
improved collaboration for better solutions, as well as promote a market-oriented culture
among smallholder farmers. These collective actions provided an opportunity for the farmers
to pool scarce resources, as well as to reduce transaction costs in the acquisition of requisite
ISFM inputs by cutting out middlemen. In addition, the collective acquisition of inputs
increases the farmers’ bargaining power, which can contribute to lower production costs.
Without innovation
platforms/learning centres
(Zimbabwe)
With innovation platforms/learning
centres (Zimbabwe)
From Mapfumo presentation
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
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Key points from Opening Plenary
Enabling conditions:
There is a need for enabling
environments in favour of Agroecology:
for transition policies for family
agriculture, incentives for ecosystem
services, etc.
Agrobiodiversity, a key component of
resilience, must remain accessible to
small farmers as their a capital for
future adaptation.
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Key points from Scientific Session on Ecological Approaches
• Addressing global challenges in
achieving food and nutrition security
through Agroecology by re-introducing
biological complexity
• Agroecological systems are complex
and knowledge intensive
• Caring for the environment should be a
means to achieve other goals (not an
afterthought). There are win-win
opportunities to close yield gaps and
environmental gaps.
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Belowground interactions, and root zone management in intercropping
systems in China have been shown to influence yields up to 50%
From Zhang presentation
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From Kasina presentation
Yields of pollinator-dependent crops can be increased by more than 40% in diverse
smallholder system with wild pollinators; but this same increase is not possible in large
monocultures with only managed honey bees
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agroecological
conventional0
200
400
600
800
NicaHonds
Guate
Number of mudslides
After Hurricane Mitch,
Central America
From Nicholls presentation
Key points from Scientific Session on Building Synergies
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Species name Jan Feb Mar April May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Vit C Vit A
Lantana camara
Carica papaya + +++
Mangifera indica + +++
Musa x paradisiaca
Eriobotrya japonica +++
Morus alba (+)
Tamarindus indica
Syzygium spp. +++
Annona reticulata (+)
Psidium guajava +++ +
Punica granatum
Casimiroa edulis (+)
Vangueria madagascariensis
Citrus limon +
Citrus sinensis +
Vitex payos +++
Persea americana
Passiflora edulis +
Pappea capensis
Balanites aegyptiaca (+)
Carissa edulis
Available species 2 4 6 4 4 5 4 2 3 1 2 2
Hunger
gapFruit tree portfolio
in Machakos,
Kenya for vitamin
supply:
Vitamin A and
C supply possible
year-round, where
farms are diverse
From Prabhu presentation
Key points from Scientific Session on Building Synergies
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Key points from Scientific Session on Building Synergies
• Viable food systems need the involvement of
diverse groups in food social programmes
(alliances, wider coalitions, partnerships)
• Integrated crop-livestock systems address
many synergies
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Key points from Scientific Session on People and Economics
From Vanloqueren presentation
Nitrogen-fixing trees and shrubs in
Zambia
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Key points from Scientific Session on People and Economics
• Chronic health issues due to loss
of traditional diets and farming
practices
From Miller presentation
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Key points from Scientific Session on People and Economics
• The connections between agroecology, markets and the private sector
need to be further investigated and developed. Alternative markets may
help to reconnect producers and consumers.
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
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Key points from Scientific Session on People and Economics
• Horizontal (farmer to
farmer) communication and
exchange is a powerful
mechanism for uptake and
spread of agroecological
practices
• Local knowledge of
biodiversity and use, that of
women, is as important as
that of men and that
emphasis should be put on
the knowledge generated
and maintained by women
Reference tree
Before After
From Rosset presentation, above, and Salgado presentation, below
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
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Agroecology in Practice: Africa, Asia, Latin America & Worldwide
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Agroecology in Practice: Africa, Asia, Latin America & Worldwide
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
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Key messages identified by many speakers during the Symposium were:
• That various understandings of Agroecology exist;
• The importance of agroecological approaches in achieving
food security and increasing resilience to climate change;
Most losses in resilience are unintended consequences
of a narrow focus on efficiency, and a neglect of
diversity
• The strong linkages between Agroecology and Family
Farming;
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
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Key messages identified by many speakers during the Symposium were:
• The need for increased research including farmer-to-farmer
and farmer to scientists platforms
• That there are no “one size fits all” solutions but rather that
agroecological approaches will be location specific
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
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Key messages identified by many speakers during the Symposium were:
• The existence of a great number of agroecological practices
used by farmers around the world, that provide significant
benefits for agricultural production and producers’
livelihoods, as a basis for any scaling up of Agroecology
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
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Key messages identified by many speakers during the Symposium were:
• The lack of an overview of agroecological practices and a
proposed global “census” on Agroecology;
• Challenges to mainstream Agroecology remain, but
speakers indicated their readiness to strengthen
Agroecology;
• The need for FAO to continue to provide a forum for
dialogue and to facilitate technical and knowledge-based
input.
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What next in 2015 and beyond?
• Planning of three regional meetings on Agroecology in Latin America,
Africa and Asia
o Latin America: in Brasilia in June
o Africa: in possibly Senegal, in September
o Asia: tbd
• Collecting elements to strengthen the evidence base for Agroecology
• Work on farmer-researcher networks and other relevant mechanisms to
strengthen the link between Agroecology and traditional and local
knowledge
• Work on policy mechanisms (supporting EOA in Africa, TEEB, SEEA-Agri,
CBD focus on agriculture and biodiversity)
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Articulation of policy measures to
enable implemation of
agroecological approaches:
Including:
• Including agroecological
inputs in FAOSTAT
• accounting for natural capital
• connecting consumers with
producers; local food systems
• local government policies
• alternative seed legislation
• support for pollination services
• governance of ecosystem
services by indigenous and
local communities
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Valuing Ecosystem Services: How do these integrate across a landscape?
In the Philippines…
Food
Water
Fodder
Carbon
Sequestration
Erosion
prevention
Biological Control
Maintenance
of soil fertility
Recreation
and Tourism
Diet diversity
Genetic diversity
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
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Production Systems
Maintenance
of soil fertility
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The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity for
Agriculture (TEEB-Agri)
Th
e e
colo
gis
ts’ id
ea
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The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity for
Agriculture (TEEB-Agri)
Th
e a
ccounta
nts
’ id
ea
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Systems of Environmental-Economic Accounting,
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
Cas
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cari
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In
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ia, G
uat
emal
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Au
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nd
Can
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gu
idel
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un
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d
evel
op
men
t
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National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans
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THANK YOU