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Se analizan los efectos de las interacciones, directas e indirectas, entre agricultores y otros actores relevantes en el intercambio de informacion y conocimiento para la innovacion agricola. Los datos se obtuvieron al preguntar a 120 agricultores «¿de quien aprende y/o a quien recurre para obtener informacion o conocimiento de cuestiones tecnicas y productivas en torno a su unidad de produccion?». Se emplean indicadores del analisis de redes sociales para proponer lineamientos que permitan catalizar la innovación agricola. Los resultados confirman la importancia de los vinculos indirectos, pues estos permiten que los agricultores alcancen mejor informacion de fuentes externas. Se recomienda que los programas encaminados a promover la innovacion agricola consideren la interaccion preexistente en las redes de los agricultores.

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This article adopts a systemic approach to address the problem of the operationalization of relationships between actors conducive to food self-sufficiency in urban areas. Through the use of Social Network Analysis (SNA), the literature on urban agriculture was analyzed, detecting eight key trends and topic areas. This information was used to design a generic recursive organizational structure with the identification of the key roles and functions for management and governance in the multi-level and multi-stakeholder relationships of a sustainable urban self-sufficient food production system, inspired by the principles of complexity management and organizational cybernetics. Methodologically, this is the first application that combines the exploratory capability of SNA and the recursive structure of the Viable System Model (VSM) to propose applicable organizational structures in any urban area, suggesting a new route for the study and application of systemic thinking in the development of urban agriculture schemes. However, due to the conceptual nature of this work, this study opens a discussion on how we can rethink interactions to seek continuous adaptation in food self-sufficiency, provide tools that foster inclusion, and adapt to every context to support the relevant actors and academics in urban agriculture.

Home gardens are often conceived as a panacea to contribute to the problem of food insecurity in poor rural and urban households. However, systematic reviews indicate weak evidence of significant impacts on families. This way, there has been an intense discussion about their effectiveness. This research aims to generate knowledge about the relevance of assuming food production in home gardens as an alternative to the home consumption. Two questions drive this paper: what number of home gardens, supported by three different government programs, persists? Moreover, what factors explain their permanence? Our sample constituted 261 beneficiaries, and the collection of data was through face-to-face field surveys and in situ visits to the vegetable garden granted. We show that less than 7.5% of gardens remain in right conditions after two years of establishment. The pleasure and need to produce, family involvement, urban/rural location, and the technology provided are determining factors for permanence. The results support the argument that the high rate of home gardens that fail is related to the primacy of politics in considering the problem of food security as a “lack of assets” to produce. Thus, this suggests that there is a weak link between the problem, policies, and the politics.

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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent of the urban tourism literature that uses the systems approach to outline its research trajectory and detect its trends. Urban tourism is a complex phenomenon whose complexity increases at the very moment it interacts with complex environments. To deal with this kind of issues, urban tourism-related authors have used different approaches, with the systems approach being one of the best alternatives for its understanding and study. Design/methodology/approach A systematic literature review was conducted using two sets of keywords related to urban tourism and systems approach. Scopus, ScienceDirect and Web of Science databases were used for the peer-reviewed literature search. After filtering processes were applied, 29 publications were retained for the analysis. Findings This paper provides a significant overview of the existing publications regarding this topic. A theme of common interest and trends for future investigations were detected. Based on the findings, future works to be developed with the use of the systems approach, and its tools are proposed. Originality/value This review gives promising evidence on that the use of the systems approach for future urban tourism studies is a viable alternative to the application of other dominant approaches, to manage the complexity, diversity and dynamism of the urban tourism and of its environment, which is nowadays addressed as Smart. Then, the paper seeks to foster the use of systems approach and its systemic tools for the understanding and study of urban tourism as a complex system.

Purpose -This paper aims to contribute to deepening insights on social media in agricultural research by presenting a case study on how a research and education centre in Mexico connected, communicated, and interacted in a research and education community on Twitter.Design/methodology/approach -By using a Social Network Analysis (SNA) approach, 1585 tweets were analysed. The data was gathered using NodeXL. Afterwards, SNA was performed through the igraph R package.Findings -The dynamic of virtual interaction around an agricultural research and education centre shows that different roles are needed to connect and foster the interaction on Twitter, as well as to spread information broader. While some accounts are functioning as creators of information, others act as consumers and diffusers of it, and a few more accounts play both roles.Practical Implications -To increase the size and strengthen the interaction of a network on Twitter, it is advisable to have the support of other accounts and to promote its use among potential users. This requires capabilities to develop a social media strategy and pro-actively engage new followers.Theoretical Implications -Through a SNA approach, it is possible to understand better the functions of weak and strong ties in virtual settings, i.e. the former to extend the network, and the latter to strengthen it. These ties can enhance information dissemination and enable exchanges on social media.Originality/value -This paper applies SNA as a theoretical and methodological framework to demonstrate that the interactions among users are different when a whole network is analysed, and when it is divided into the mentions and retweets networks. By doing this, hidden patterns are revealed.