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

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agroecology and the struggle for food sovereignty
campesinos . . . can’t stay isolated,” he goes on to describe how inherently out of touch
agronomists are as well. Researchers cannot “truly involve [themselves] in the
campesino process if [they don’t] want to act like a campesino” by actually working the
land, he says. Nevertheless, for León, the perceived benefits of an alliance with academia
have so far outweighed the perceived risks.
Risk-taking by social movements reflects the general sense of urgency in the countryside
of the Americas so evident in our workshop. Such urgency is not necessarily
felt as personally by academics. For academics to effect positive change, they must
give heightened sensitivity to the fundamental inequalities inherent in collaboration
with small farmers’ movements. Efforts should be made to seize on commonalities
and points of collaboration.
yale school of forestry & environmental studies