Building knowledge
In this issue of the LEISA Magazine we look at how knowledge about LEISA concepts is currently generated, shared and used by a variety of people working towards improved livelihoods in rural areas.
We argue that the generation of knowledge is a process which is and needs to be ongoing, but that further steps also need to be taken to exchange, make the knowledge available, and most importantly, to act on this knowledge.
LEISA is not only about technical issues, but also about the empowerment of farmers, social fairness and economic viability. Examples covering these spheres are included, as are articles on experiences of building knowledge through farmer experimentation, innovation and participation from China, Guatemala and Ethiopia among others.
LEISA Magazine • 22.3 • September 2006
Table of contents:
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4 - 5written by ILEIA editorial teamIn this issue of the LEISA Magazine we look at how knowledge about LEISA concepts is currently generated, shared and used by a variety of people working towards improved livelihoods in rural areas. We argue that the generation of knowledge is a process which is and needs to be ongoing, but that further steps also need to be taken to exchange, make the knowledge available, and most importantly, to act on this knowledge. LEISA is not only about technical issues, but also about the empowerment of farmers, social fairness and economic viability. Examples covering these spheres are included, as are articles on experiences of building knowledge through farmer experimentation, innovation and participation from China, Guatemala and Ethiopia among others.
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6 - 8Using participatory maize research in Mexico as an example, this article analyses how and why research organisations encourage farmers' involvement and participatory research - what is the purpose of participatory research in development and how can it be managed to best empower farmers.
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9 - 11written by Andreas Wilkes , Shen ShicaiIn Gongshan County, Yunnan, China,livestock plays a central role in villagers’ livelihoods. But many villages experience problems in animal raising, so in 2003, the Centre for Biodiversity and Indigenous Knowledge began implementing a project in order to address technical issues in animal husbandry. Participatory Technology Development was used to look for technical solutions to common problems, but this article describes how it also led to an improvement in the skills of service providers. It has encouraged grassroots technicians to become more involved in extension work in the rural areas, and has helped reorient the local agencies’ service delivery to the real needs of the farmers
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12 - 13Working closely with farmer groups of different sizes in Central America, the project described in this article was aimed at rehabilitating degraded pastureland. Various participatory processes were followed, to encourage farmers to examine thier situation and prioritise problems to work on. The learning process is described and analysed, and questions about how best to collaborate with farmers are posed.
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14 - 15written by Paul Van Mele , Florent OkryThis article describes a project in West Africa aiming to find ways to get local innovations accepted into the formal research and development agenda. Representatives from four countries gathered and documented local innovations, which were then short-listed by everyone involved. This process of joint validation and ranking by participants with different backgrounds brought some very interesting learning points, as well as giving recognition and value to local innovations, which is a crucial step in the process of them being institutionalised into the formal research and development system.
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16 - 17Potato is an important food crop in Nepal. But average yields are very low, and successful production faces many difficulties: bacterial wilt disease, for example, can result in losses of up to 90 percent. In 1993, UPWARD started a research project aiming to help farmers manage this disease, recognising that technical solutions alone are not enough. So an integrated, community managed strategy was piloted, with interesting implications and results for the community involved. Since then, further efforts to scale up the learnings have employed the Farmer Field School approach. By involving the national government and different NGOs, these efforts have been successful in reaching more farmers.
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18 - 19written by Mark LundyLearning Alliances are processes undertaken by a range of organisations who come together to share and adapt good practices in research and development in specific contexts and on specific topics. Diverse partners provide, and require different information and knowledge, which can be shared and improved upon by working together. An example from Central America is described.
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20 - 21written by Hans Peter ReindersThis article is a good example of how participatory processes can often bring unexpected but equally useful and interesting results. Farmers near Iquitos, Peru, began some PTD with beans, but after two years, the trials highlighted very different issues within the community.
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22 - 23Raising pigs is a common income-generating activity in Vietnam, and this long term collaborative project looked at improving sweet potato feeding systems. Various PTD activities were carried out, during which time the farmer-to-farmer training approach was decided upon to scale up the project.
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24 - 25written by Ronald Samuel Lutalo , William CritchleyEvelyna Tibemanya decided to try using tephrosia to keep ticks off her pigs. After coming up with an effective recipe, she has since shared her innovation with many others, and her idea has spread locally, partly through the community based library that she runs. Supported by external organisations, these types of innovations are being brought to the attention of local and national government, universities and policy makers.
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26 - 27written by Viktor JanevThe author describes how he discovered farmers in his home country were experimenting and innovating, often using skills or knowledge from previous jobs. Three examples are presented and although many farmers did not identify themselves as \"innovators\", they are indeed improving their livelihoods through their own experimentation and having to adapt to changing local and national circumstances.
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28 - 29written by Yohannes GebreMichael , Hailu ArayaAt an exhibition in Mekelle, Ethiopia in 2006, smallholders\' farming technologies were displayed side by side with \"modern\" technologies developed by research or private enterprises. The reactions of agronomists, professionals and the smallholders to the different types of tehcnologies proved to be very instructive in discovering what different people are interested in, and are looking for in a technology.
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30 - 31written by Petra Bakewell-StoneCreating a shared vision is one way of building the capacity of organisations or communities to adapt and thrive. This article describes how a vision for the organic sector in Tanzania was arrived at, through bringing the main stakeholders together in a workshop.
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32 - 34One of the most effective ways to address farmers’ needs is through a farmer-to-farmer extension approach that also encourages farmer experimentation. This is clear from Practical Action’s work in Peru. The Kamayoq are farmers selected by their communities, who receive specific training and then return to their villages to train neighbouring farmers. They work with other farmers to develop solutions to local agricultural and veterinary problems, generally following a Participatory Technology Development approach. Positive results also include an increase in selfconfidence among the Kamayoq and those working with them, something which further encourages local experimentation.
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35 - 35written by Ruth Ayikaikai TagoeThis Field Note describes how a field extentionist from the Ministry of Agriculture in Ghana started to identify and catalogue farmer innovations in southern Ghana. More than 50 cases were gathered, which were then ranked, and the ten most interesting cases were visited for further information and photos. These were then presented in the catalogue, and many of the farmers also attended exhibitions to share their innovations.
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40 - 40written by Hailu Araya , Sue EdwardsThe success of a nearby project stimulated a farmer in Ethiopia to also rehabilitate his land by building check dams and planting trees in the gully. After three years the farmer, Woldu GebreWahid, had made significant improvements and then went on to improve other areas of his farm - looking for water, and then testing irrigation techniques to make best use of the available water. One success can set off a chain of innovations.
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