Thailand was one of the largest agricultural commodities exporters in the world but Thai farmers are still facing a problem of poverty and low productivity. The root of the problem is believed to be the lack of holistic development approach and effective integrated management of agro-food chain of farmers. It is believed that an improved agricultural education system could be a tool to develop the country's agricultural sector. Entrepreneurship education could be a way to enhance the farmers' competitiveness, reduce poverty and help in social and economic development. This article reviews the issues of the country's agricultural education in the past as well as a new model of agricultural education introduced to undergraduate students that combined the integrated knowledge from upstream to downstream of agricultural value chain with incorporation of social engagement learning into the program and curriculum.
This paper examines higher education efforts linking United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) and agri-food system sustainability given reports of stagnant movement for SDG2 in Southeast Asia and lack of data for effective monitoring or evaluation to realize the
2030 Agenda
. It discusses Thai contexts amid a growing global movement in academic theory, policy and practice to mainstream SDG knowledge and implementation across campuses presenting one case to illustrate broader concerns. Chulalongkorn University policies, faculty awareness, curricula, research, sustainability reporting and partnerships about SDGs have contributed to SDG2 objectives from different disciplines and academic units. However, some faculty still lack understanding of SDGs generally while SDG2 has not been an institutional priority. The university has made welcome progress since a 2017 policy promoting SDGs but still needs to strengthen SDG2 data collection, teaching, research and community outreach capacities including links to government and international reporting to address complex agri-food system sustainability challenges. Comparative studies could also help while critically debating SDG deficiencies and promoting socioeconomic, ecological, agri-food system, community and campus sustainability.
The agricultural sector has played a significant role in Thailand's national economy and is a major source of income for many Thais. Yet globally, and for much of South East Asia, agriculture is one of the greatest contributors to environmental problems. At the same time there have been many debates about Thailand's unsustainable agricultural system and the role of education in addressing such concerns.
To illustrate broader issues and challenges this paper analyses related themes at an institutional level, while examining specific policies and concerns about sustainability among Thailand's nine government‐designated National Research Universities (NRUs). This paper reviews courses and programmes in sustainable agriculture (SA) offered by each NRU, research funding and budget allocations intended to contribute to sustainability and environmental awareness.
Also, this study employs SWOT analysis to demonstrate strengths and weaknesses of sustainability and education in Thai NRUs. The results of this study suggest that national education plans and policies on SA learning and research to support NRUs seem unclear and there is still a lack of comprehensive SA courses and programmes with solid support from most Thai universities and the government. This paper is a first step to systematically document and explain the state of higher education about and for sustainable agriculture reflected in policies and practices of Thai universities and their implications for national development.
Floods have caused major losses and damages to people, infrastructure, and the environment. This study aims to assess the risk perception of households prone to riverine and flash floods and the perceived damages to infrastructure and livelihoods. Data were collected from 382 households through a questionnaire survey and analyzed using chi-squared and t-tests. Overall, risk perception was higher for riverine floods. Similarly, ‘flood coping capacities’, ‘livelihood disruption’, ‘change in lifestyle/adjusting to floods’, and ‘change in the relationship’ were also high for riverine floods and statistically significant (p-value < 0.05). The ‘likelihood of future flood damages’ perception was higher for flash floods (mean values: 0.913 vs. 0.779), while the ‘infrastructural damages’ showed the same results. The perceptions of ‘livelihoods’ and perceived ‘economic loss’ were greater for riverine floods (p-value < 0.05). The perceptions of ‘livestock damages’ and ‘household damages’ were higher for flash floods.
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