Agroecology and the Struggle for Food Sovereignty ... - Yale University

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128 agroecology and the struggle for food sovereignty 2 As seen in the Green Revolution: increased use of inputs, economy of labor, and improved seeds. Who are these new farmers? Catherine Murphy, from FLACSO in Cuba, explained that the new farmers with whom she has worked are urban residents of Havana. These urban farmers began farming out of necessity – spurred by a food crisis in Cuba during the early 1990s, sparked by the sudden decline in food imports when the Soviet Union collapsed. Murphy sees many positives from this upsurge in urban farming. She emphasized that opportunities for policymakers and academics to provide support to new farmers should not be overshadowed by current trends of rural “crisis” and farmer exodus. Jose Montenegro, from CIDERS (Centro Internacional para el Desarrollo Rural Sostentable), noted that in Central California, many new farmers are immigrants and the children of immigrants. The children of established farmers seem less likely to take up farming. Montenegro suggested that the choice to farm in California appears not to be financially based. While stable employment might be less of a financial risk than farming, Montenegro said many new farmers feel more comfortable farming than working other kinds of jobs. They value the way of life, with its senses of independence and ownership. Montenegro pointed out that while farming might not be as financially stable as wage labor, the latter may not be good enough to make it more appealing than farming on one’s own. He suggested that when 17 wage laborers are living in a two-bedroom apartment – a situation he has observed in Central California – this must surely be an indicator of the limited opportunities wage labor provides. Montenegro’s mention of the feeling of independence brought on by farming turned the discussion to one of the central themes of the workshop: sovereignty. Avery Cohn, also from the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, asked if sovereignty, such as the kind Montenegro’s new farmers say they feel as farmers instead of wage laborers, is antithetical to rural development. Mary Gable of World Hunger Year said that if development is defined as the extension and expansion of economic interests controlled by the elite, then sovereignty and development do not mix. As evidence, she suggested that communities’ relative lack of power to mobilize against powerful economic interests indicates just how dependent these communities are on those interests. Gable’s point sparked a conversation about new farmers in terms of resistance. Cohn reminded the group of a question prevalent throughout the workshop: What happens when the new becomes old, or when the marginalized becomes the norm? A great deal of advocacy for the rights of small farmers seems to arise in the form of resistance to the corporate and statist push to “modernize” agricultural production. 2 To counter the modernization stance, movements of small farmers often work to establish the value of alternative practices. Because social movements speak out against this myopic “modernist” vision, these groups are often perceived as advocates for traditional farming practices, even though they may also advocate practices that embrace many new methods and actors. The groups are challenged to draw a distinction between the modern or new form of agriculture they advocate, and the modernist agricultural discourse a government produces. Anand emphasized the need to see beyond the dichotomy of the powerful and the marginalized. He yale school of forestry & environmental studies
new farmers 129 suggested that sometimes social movements representing marginalized people, such as laborers or agriculturalists, can marginalize minority groups within the movement themselves. The discussion closed with Jose Montenegro emphasizing the importance of a sensitive, just process by policymakers and academics to engage multiple stakeholders about the complex issue of new farmers. He urged the group to engage society, and not just farmers or consumers, and to do so by creating space for people to feel comfortable sharing views and perspectives in participatory processes. This is essential to creating a sense of ownership of the vision for agriculture throughout society. yale school of forestry & environmental studies
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Report Number 4 Agroecology and the
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Agroecology and the Struggle for Fo
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eakout session reports Food Soverei
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2 agroecology and the struggle for
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mcafee 9 Sustainability and Social
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mcafee 11 organizations or depicted
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mcafee 13 industrial agriculture, n
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mcafee 15 Producing Food or Produci
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mcafee 17 ● Major international d
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mcafee 19 Agroecology is not a mono
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mcafee 21 ● Land reform of a kind
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zimmerer 31 An Expanding Interface
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zimmerer 33 The Mesoamerican Biolog
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zimmerer 35 constellation of areas
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levins 37 A Whole-System View of Ag
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levins 39 Equity Versus Sustainabil
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levins 41 ● Small-scale to large-
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levins 43 commodities. The more fav
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levins 45 study is bigger than we i
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levins 47 rather, they would like t
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levins 49 lic office is auctioned o
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case study: food sovereignty in the
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case study: food sovereignty in the
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Page 171 and 172: participants 165 Jean Marc von der
Page 173 and 174: esources 167 Resources Farmer-to-Fa
Page 175 and 176: esources 169 ATTRA - www.attra.org
Page 177 and 178: esources 171 Just Food - www.justfo
Page 179 and 180: esources 173 International Institut
Page 181 and 182: cover photo captions 175 Cover Phot
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