In Search of Sustainable Land Use and Food Security in the Arid Hillside Regions of Central America: Putting the Horse Before the Cart

Abstract

This article is based on a 2003 case study of the Special Program for Food Security in two dry, upland regions of Honduras and Nicaragua. In particular the research sought to identify factors influencing farmers' interest in various "best practices" being promoted as alternatives to the use of fire in cropping and ranching systems. The economic feasibility and/or affordability of several of these practices are questionable in light of most farmers' priorities, risk concerns, or limited resources. The technical feasibility of several of the practices is unclear, at least in the marginal agroecological environments in which most of the farmers in these regions operate. The study highlights the weaknesses of agricultural development initiatives designed without a sufficient understanding of existing agricultural strategies and their purposes. It also reveals the limitations of technological approaches to problems of food insecurity and land degradation, and the need for broader, more integrated rural development strategies. The findings support critiques regarding the biases of many development professionals that may prevent them from giving sufficient attention to local knowledge and perspectives.

Soils and food sufficiency. A review

“…Several studies conducted in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and South Asia (SA) have documented the long-term and positive impacts of using INM techniques for improving soil fertility (Alemu and Bayu, 2005;Smaling and Dixon, 2006). The use of fire must be minimized because of numerous adverse impacts on ecosystem processes (Shriar, 2007).…”

“…The strategy is to develop agricultural systems which balance the positives and negatives of farming and to protect the production capacity and wellbeing of the land (Pollock et al, 2007). Several technological options relevant to achieving these goals include: agrobiodiversity (Thrupp, 2000), conservation agriculture (Hobbs et al, 2007) and social/political factors which determine farmers' interest in adopting recommended practices (Shriar, 2007). Recommended practices are those that enhance eco-efficiency or the sustainable use of resources in farm production and land management (Wilkins, 2007;Pretty, 2007).…”

The Afro-Brazilian Collective Land: Analyzing Institutional Changes in the Past Two Hundred Years

“…In Latin American countries such as Honduras and Nicaragua, for example, governmental programs aiming to replace the practice of using fi re to clear land with new technologies to improve soil conservation and food security have been unsuccessful as a result of failing to consider local knowledge and local realities (Shriar 2007). Costa Rica and Brazil have similar histories of land speculation (Alston, Libecap, and Mueller 1999), in which slash-and-burn techniques are used to clear land (deforest) to enhance its economic value as a result of government incentives (Schelhas and Sanchez-Azofeifa 2006).…”

Win-win scenarios at the climate–development interface: Challenges and opportunities for stove replacement programs through carbon finance

“…Scenarios where ''everyone wins'' are considered a rhetorical tool for placating local concerns in order to advance a single privileged agenda, while leaving certain populations by the wayside (Redford and Stearman, 1993;Cooke and Kothari, 2001;Hickey and Mohan, 2004;Tsing, 2005;Olsen, 2007;Hirsch et al, 2010). ''Pro poor '', ''intermediate'' and ''appropriate'' technologies, presented as affordable, efficient, and simple to use (Patterson et al, 2007;Shriar, 2007), may in fact emphasize centralized knowledge over indigenous perspectives and deprioritize investments in low-cost technology programs (Baker and Edmonds, 2004;Grieve, 2004;Schenk Sandbergen, 1991). Others suggest that technology-based development programs, from tubewells to transgenic seeds, generate clear patterns of uneven development (e.g.…”