Scaling up innovations in smallholder agriculture: Lessons from the Canadian international food security research fund

Scaling up food security innovations in low-income rural environments has often failed to achieve substantive and lasting results. This poor performance can be attributed to dominant, linear approaches associated with spreading innovations which entail technology research and development and subsequ...

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Main Authors: Shilomboleni, Helena, Owaygen, Marwan, Plaen, Renaud de, Manchur, Wendy, Husak, Laura
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Elsevier 2019
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/101492
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author Shilomboleni, Helena
Owaygen, Marwan
Plaen, Renaud de
Manchur, Wendy
Husak, Laura
author_browse Husak, Laura
Manchur, Wendy
Owaygen, Marwan
Plaen, Renaud de
Shilomboleni, Helena
author_facet Shilomboleni, Helena
Owaygen, Marwan
Plaen, Renaud de
Manchur, Wendy
Husak, Laura
author_sort Shilomboleni, Helena
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Scaling up food security innovations in low-income rural environments has often failed to achieve substantive and lasting results. This poor performance can be attributed to dominant, linear approaches associated with spreading innovations which entail technology research and development and subsequent transfer to farmers. Such approaches tend to overlook complexity elements and non-linear processes in smallholder agriculture, including multiple stress factors such as climate variability and economic risks that make the uptake of new agricultural innovations more unpredictable. This article presents programmatic lessons from the Canadian International Food Security Research Fund (CIFSRF) on scaling up. It considers projects that: i) deployed successfully pilot-tested innovations to reach and benefit large numbers of beneficiaries; and projects that ii) used innovations as an entry point to catalyse systematic change in the food and agricultural sector. The paper also outlines several key scaling up principles that can encourage better understanding of relevant socio-ecological dynamics and complexities in intervention areas as a way to support innovations (at scale) that can contribute to more sustainable system outcomes. Finally, the paper reflects on how predominant definitions of impact at scale, centered around rather narrow indicators around economic growth and technology transfer, might consider more holistic goals that encompass integrated agricultural interventions that advance sustainable agri-food system outcomes.
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spelling CGSpace1014922025-03-11T12:14:31Z Scaling up innovations in smallholder agriculture: Lessons from the Canadian international food security research fund Shilomboleni, Helena Owaygen, Marwan Plaen, Renaud de Manchur, Wendy Husak, Laura climate change agriculture food security Scaling up food security innovations in low-income rural environments has often failed to achieve substantive and lasting results. This poor performance can be attributed to dominant, linear approaches associated with spreading innovations which entail technology research and development and subsequent transfer to farmers. Such approaches tend to overlook complexity elements and non-linear processes in smallholder agriculture, including multiple stress factors such as climate variability and economic risks that make the uptake of new agricultural innovations more unpredictable. This article presents programmatic lessons from the Canadian International Food Security Research Fund (CIFSRF) on scaling up. It considers projects that: i) deployed successfully pilot-tested innovations to reach and benefit large numbers of beneficiaries; and projects that ii) used innovations as an entry point to catalyse systematic change in the food and agricultural sector. The paper also outlines several key scaling up principles that can encourage better understanding of relevant socio-ecological dynamics and complexities in intervention areas as a way to support innovations (at scale) that can contribute to more sustainable system outcomes. Finally, the paper reflects on how predominant definitions of impact at scale, centered around rather narrow indicators around economic growth and technology transfer, might consider more holistic goals that encompass integrated agricultural interventions that advance sustainable agri-food system outcomes. 2019-10 2019-06-06T16:37:44Z 2019-06-06T16:37:44Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/101492 en Open Access Elsevier Shilomboleni H, Owaygen M, De Plaen R, Manchur W, Husak L. 2019. Scaling up innovations in smallholder agriculture: Lessons from the Canadian international food security research fund. Agricultural Systems 175:58-65.
spellingShingle climate change
agriculture
food security
Shilomboleni, Helena
Owaygen, Marwan
Plaen, Renaud de
Manchur, Wendy
Husak, Laura
Scaling up innovations in smallholder agriculture: Lessons from the Canadian international food security research fund
title Scaling up innovations in smallholder agriculture: Lessons from the Canadian international food security research fund
title_full Scaling up innovations in smallholder agriculture: Lessons from the Canadian international food security research fund
title_fullStr Scaling up innovations in smallholder agriculture: Lessons from the Canadian international food security research fund
title_full_unstemmed Scaling up innovations in smallholder agriculture: Lessons from the Canadian international food security research fund
title_short Scaling up innovations in smallholder agriculture: Lessons from the Canadian international food security research fund
title_sort scaling up innovations in smallholder agriculture lessons from the canadian international food security research fund
topic climate change
agriculture
food security
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/101492
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