The technopolitics of agronomic knowledge and tropical(izing) vegetables in Brazil
This article critically analyzes the social and political factors behind the advancement of technoscientific development in modern Brazilian agriculture. In the second half of the 20th century, Brazil underwent a rapid industrialization in the agricultural sector by more than doubling productivity i...
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | Inglés |
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Elsevier
2024
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| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/155097 |
| _version_ | 1855539476160315392 |
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| author | Nehring, Ryan |
| author_browse | Nehring, Ryan |
| author_facet | Nehring, Ryan |
| author_sort | Nehring, Ryan |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | This article critically analyzes the social and political factors behind the advancement of technoscientific development in modern Brazilian agriculture. In the second half of the 20th century, Brazil underwent a rapid industrialization in the agricultural sector by more than doubling productivity in key global commodities and a widespread migration of people from rural to urban areas. Most observers point to the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) as the technological engine that drove the industrialization of Brazilian agriculture. Existing approaches to analyze technoscientific development tend to overlook the role of the environment and individual scientists in enacting change. I argue that, especially in the case of agriculture, technoscientific development hinges on the extent to which the environment is disregarded or embraced by those who have the institutional support and capacity to innovate. To support my argument, I draw on two contrasting cases of crop development spearheaded by Embrapa scientists: the tropicalization of the carrot and participatory research on non-conventional vegetables. Through those two cases, the article demonstrates how the general and specific, the transnational and local, and the industrial and agroecological are all key contrasting factors for understanding technoscientific development in agriculture. This research is based on extensive interviews and participant observation at Embrapa’s vegetable research center near Brasilia, Brazil. |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | CGSpace155097 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2024 |
| publishDateRange | 2024 |
| publishDateSort | 2024 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| publisherStr | Elsevier |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1550972025-10-26T12:50:34Z The technopolitics of agronomic knowledge and tropical(izing) vegetables in Brazil Nehring, Ryan agricultural research carrots food systems politics technology tropical zones vegetables This article critically analyzes the social and political factors behind the advancement of technoscientific development in modern Brazilian agriculture. In the second half of the 20th century, Brazil underwent a rapid industrialization in the agricultural sector by more than doubling productivity in key global commodities and a widespread migration of people from rural to urban areas. Most observers point to the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) as the technological engine that drove the industrialization of Brazilian agriculture. Existing approaches to analyze technoscientific development tend to overlook the role of the environment and individual scientists in enacting change. I argue that, especially in the case of agriculture, technoscientific development hinges on the extent to which the environment is disregarded or embraced by those who have the institutional support and capacity to innovate. To support my argument, I draw on two contrasting cases of crop development spearheaded by Embrapa scientists: the tropicalization of the carrot and participatory research on non-conventional vegetables. Through those two cases, the article demonstrates how the general and specific, the transnational and local, and the industrial and agroecological are all key contrasting factors for understanding technoscientific development in agriculture. This research is based on extensive interviews and participant observation at Embrapa’s vegetable research center near Brasilia, Brazil. 2024-12 2024-10-02T17:52:48Z 2024-10-02T17:52:48Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/155097 en Open Access Elsevier Nehring, Ryan. 2024. The technopolitics of agronomic knowledge and tropical(izing) vegetables in Brazil. Environmental Science and Policy 162(December 2024): 103911. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103911 |
| spellingShingle | agricultural research carrots food systems politics technology tropical zones vegetables Nehring, Ryan The technopolitics of agronomic knowledge and tropical(izing) vegetables in Brazil |
| title | The technopolitics of agronomic knowledge and tropical(izing) vegetables in Brazil |
| title_full | The technopolitics of agronomic knowledge and tropical(izing) vegetables in Brazil |
| title_fullStr | The technopolitics of agronomic knowledge and tropical(izing) vegetables in Brazil |
| title_full_unstemmed | The technopolitics of agronomic knowledge and tropical(izing) vegetables in Brazil |
| title_short | The technopolitics of agronomic knowledge and tropical(izing) vegetables in Brazil |
| title_sort | technopolitics of agronomic knowledge and tropical izing vegetables in brazil |
| topic | agricultural research carrots food systems politics technology tropical zones vegetables |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/155097 |
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