Climate-smart agriculture and non-agricultural livelihood transformation

Agricultural researchers have developed a number of agricultural technologies and practices, known collectively as climate-smart agriculture (CSA), as part of climate change adaptation and mitigation efforts. Development practitioners invest in scaling these to have a wider impact. We use the exampl...

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Autores principales: Hellin, Jon, Fisher, Eleanor
Formato: Journal Article
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: MDPI 2019
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/164706
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author Hellin, Jon
Fisher, Eleanor
author_browse Fisher, Eleanor
Hellin, Jon
author_facet Hellin, Jon
Fisher, Eleanor
author_sort Hellin, Jon
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Agricultural researchers have developed a number of agricultural technologies and practices, known collectively as climate-smart agriculture (CSA), as part of climate change adaptation and mitigation efforts. Development practitioners invest in scaling these to have a wider impact. We use the example of the Western Highlands in Guatemala to illustrate how a focus on the number of farmers adopting CSA can foster a tendency to homogenize farmers, instead of recognizing differentiation within farming populations. Poverty is endemic in the Western Highlands, and inequitable land distribution means that farmers have, on average, access to 0.06 ha per person. For many farmers, agriculture per se does not represent a pathway out of poverty, and they are increasingly reliant on non-agricultural income sources. Ineffective targeting of CSA, hence, ignores small-scale farming households’ different capacities for livelihood transformation, which are linked to the opportunities and constraints afforded by different livelihood pathways, agricultural and non-agricultural. Climate-smart interventions will often require a broader and more radical agenda that includes supporting farm households’ ability to build non-agricultural-based livelihoods. Climate risk management options that include livelihood transformation of both agricultural and non-agricultural livelihoods will require concerted cross-disciplinary research and development that encompasses a broader set of disciplines than has tended to be the case to date within the context of CSA.
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spelling CGSpace1647062024-12-22T05:44:57Z Climate-smart agriculture and non-agricultural livelihood transformation Hellin, Jon Fisher, Eleanor Agricultural researchers have developed a number of agricultural technologies and practices, known collectively as climate-smart agriculture (CSA), as part of climate change adaptation and mitigation efforts. Development practitioners invest in scaling these to have a wider impact. We use the example of the Western Highlands in Guatemala to illustrate how a focus on the number of farmers adopting CSA can foster a tendency to homogenize farmers, instead of recognizing differentiation within farming populations. Poverty is endemic in the Western Highlands, and inequitable land distribution means that farmers have, on average, access to 0.06 ha per person. For many farmers, agriculture per se does not represent a pathway out of poverty, and they are increasingly reliant on non-agricultural income sources. Ineffective targeting of CSA, hence, ignores small-scale farming households’ different capacities for livelihood transformation, which are linked to the opportunities and constraints afforded by different livelihood pathways, agricultural and non-agricultural. Climate-smart interventions will often require a broader and more radical agenda that includes supporting farm households’ ability to build non-agricultural-based livelihoods. Climate risk management options that include livelihood transformation of both agricultural and non-agricultural livelihoods will require concerted cross-disciplinary research and development that encompasses a broader set of disciplines than has tended to be the case to date within the context of CSA. 2019-03-31 2024-12-19T12:54:13Z 2024-12-19T12:54:13Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/164706 en Open Access MDPI Hellin, Jon; Fisher, Eleanor. 2019. Climate-smart agriculture and non-agricultural livelihood transformation. Climate, Volume 7 no. 4 p. 48
spellingShingle Hellin, Jon
Fisher, Eleanor
Climate-smart agriculture and non-agricultural livelihood transformation
title Climate-smart agriculture and non-agricultural livelihood transformation
title_full Climate-smart agriculture and non-agricultural livelihood transformation
title_fullStr Climate-smart agriculture and non-agricultural livelihood transformation
title_full_unstemmed Climate-smart agriculture and non-agricultural livelihood transformation
title_short Climate-smart agriculture and non-agricultural livelihood transformation
title_sort climate smart agriculture and non agricultural livelihood transformation
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/164706
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