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Communication for rural innovation: rethinking agricultural extension
AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS Agricultural Systems 84 (2005) 359–363 www.elsevier.com/locate/agsy
Book reviews
Communication for rural innovation: rethinking agricultural extension, Cees Leeuwis with contributions from Anne van den Ban, third ed., Blackwell Science, Oxford, UK, 2004, 424 pp, price US$49.99 (soft back), ISBN 0-632-05249-X The book takes a new look at agricultural extension with emphasis on fundamental changes in theory and practice of extension and development communication to cope with the realities of the 21st century. It is divided into six parts that start with rethinking of extension; the relations between human practice, knowledge and communication; innovation as a process of network building, social learning and negotiation; media, methods and process management; organization and interorganizational issues and closes with an epilogue. Each topic/subject starts with a discussion on the underlying theory, strengths and weaknesses, current thinking and grey areas. The author has tried to make each chapter interactive by posing questions for discussion at the end of each chapter. This is further refined in the epilogue where potential conceptual research issues within the field of communication and innovation are presented for those interested in MSc and PhD programmes. The book starts with an excellent ex pose of the challenges facing agricultural extension, which stem from the challenges for farmers and agriculture at large. These range from familiar subjects such as food production, food security, sustainability, intensification, income generation to topical themes such as poverty alleviation, globalization and market liberalization, multi-functional agriculture, food safety and chain management, and knowledge intensity. The book argues that one way to overcome the challenges is to reinvent the practice of agricultural extension. The book takes a holistic look at the farming, policy and research arena, service providers, actors and stakeholders and goals and aspirations of individual farmers and their place in society. Apart from an in-depth look at the origins of extension as a communication for innovation, it looks at communication strategies, the politics involved and calls for more consideration of the processes involved. The chapter on understanding human practices in farming points out the importance of knowledge and perceptions in shaping the development of innovations. Here common procedures such as evaluation and risk in the midst of farmersÕ aspirations are considered at length. Further elaboration of knowledge and perceptions and their pivotal role in the process of change, especially why knowledge disputes arise between different actors, is carried out in chapter six.
360
Book reviews / Agricultural Systems 84 (2005) 359–363
Knowledge and perceptions take centre stage in this work, because of the complexity of change and development. Three communication models are explored: the objective relying on extension as messengers; the subjective which is receiver oriented and the societal network or negotiation which recognises wider conflicts – for resources political influence, and even power, normally ignored by other models. Part three dwells with using communication to organise change through network building, social learning and negotiation with emphasis on a more interactive approach to communication. The book reviews the theory of classic adoption and diffusion of innovations and proposes improvements, putting more emphasis on using communication to facilitate the processes of change, through network building, social learning and negotiation. Social and individual learning are compared as well as the role and expertise of insiders and outsiders and different intervention approaches, stressing that insights into the processes should provide the basis of and organization in the change process. Part four is a well-done piece on the potential communication forms and media and the management of interactive processes. In addition to comparisons, relationships between approaches, strategies, media and methods for communication from interpersonal communication to the internet are also discussed. It is here that intervention might be needed for problematic situations where normal participatory approaches may not be effective. Whether one is advising or supporting knowledge exchange, demonstrations and experiments, interviewing rapid appraisals, socio-technical problem tree analysis, public debates and participation, conflicts should be minimised while also taking into consideration that divergent views are not being stifled. Part five looks at organizational issues starting with cooperation, practical issues in effective networking and ends with a look at agricultural knowledge and information systems, cooperation across scientific disciplines – differences between social and natural sciences and how organizational structure, incentive and reward systems easily obstruct cross-disciplinary cooperation. The Agricultural Knowledge and Information Systems (AKIS) perspective and Rapid Appraisal of Agricultural Knowledge Systems (RAAKS) methodology to analyse and enhance systems in a participatory manner are discussed at length along with economic theory on knowledge markets using subtractability and excludability and their implications to public and private forms of communicative interventions. Due to the socio-technical and multi-dimensional nature of innovations, blending of social and natural sciences in cross-disciplinary co-operation is deemed necessary. This book is apt for those interested in fostering change through adoption and adaptation of innovations and technologies in agriculture and natural resource management. It is suitable for extension agents, biophysical and social science researchers and policy makers. It will appeal to those who wish to advance learning in communication, knowledge and social change at the university level. The main lessons from this book are the need to: forge linkages and form networks within and across different organizations, recognise and aim for win–win situations for all players and actors, and to be aware of opportunities for change.
Book reviews / Agricultural Systems 84 (2005) 359–363
361
Michael Waithaka International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) PO Box 30709, Nairobi Kenya E-mail address: [email protected] doi:10.1016/j.agsy.2004.10.002
Mavi, Harpal S., & Tupper, Graeme J., Agrometeorology: Principles and Applications of Climate Studies in Agriculture Binghamton, NY. The Haworth Press, p. 364, price US$59.95 (hard back), ISBN: 1-56022-972-1 Although technological advances have helped lessen its overall impact during the past century, weather and climate remain among the most important uncontrollable variables involved in agricultural production systems. The authors of this book aptly note at the beginning of the text that the multi-faceted field of agricultural meteorology or agrometeorology is an interdisciplinary holistic science, cutting across several different branches of the biological and physical sciences. With this in mind, the book was designed and written to serve as a multi-purpose reference source for some of the many themes encountered in the discipline. The target audience includes researchers, students, and professionals in the field of agrometeorology and related disciplines. The authors of the book are well-qualified to develop such a text. The first (Mavi) is an agricultural meteorologist by training with lengthy academic, government, and professional consultant experience. The second author (Tupper) is an agricultural scientist by training with specialization in the application of spatial or geographic information systems in agriculture and broad international experience. The book is organized into 11 chapters, beginning with introductory topics and concepts followed by a series of applications and techniques, then ending with a discussion of climate change and the potential impacts on agriculture. In general, the writing in the book is fairly well organized and easy to understand. I found only a few minor typographical errors. There is one consistent potential source of confusion in the writing. Even though the title of the book includes the term, ÔagrometeorologyÕ, it also contains a great deal of climatological information. The authors do not make the typical distinction of short-and long-term temporal scales in the terms, ÔweatherÕ, ÔmeteorologyÕ, and ÔclimateÕ and use the terms interchangeably throughout the text. In terms of reader level of expertise, this book is suitable for a wide range of backgrounds including novice. While not essential, readers would likely benefit from some previous training in the agronomic and/or atmospheric sciences. Many of the examples and references used in the text are taken from Australia, which is logical given the authorÕs backgrounds and experience. The Australian flavor of the book affords the opportunity for readers from other parts of the world to learn about some of the unique and innovative agricultural production problems and techniques associated with a water-limited environment.
Book reviews
Communication for rural innovation: rethinking agricultural extension, Cees Leeuwis with contributions from Anne van den Ban, third ed., Blackwell Science, Oxford, UK, 2004, 424 pp, price US$49.99 (soft back), ISBN 0-632-05249-X The book takes a new look at agricultural extension with emphasis on fundamental changes in theory and practice of extension and development communication to cope with the realities of the 21st century. It is divided into six parts that start with rethinking of extension; the relations between human practice, knowledge and communication; innovation as a process of network building, social learning and negotiation; media, methods and process management; organization and interorganizational issues and closes with an epilogue. Each topic/subject starts with a discussion on the underlying theory, strengths and weaknesses, current thinking and grey areas. The author has tried to make each chapter interactive by posing questions for discussion at the end of each chapter. This is further refined in the epilogue where potential conceptual research issues within the field of communication and innovation are presented for those interested in MSc and PhD programmes. The book starts with an excellent ex pose of the challenges facing agricultural extension, which stem from the challenges for farmers and agriculture at large. These range from familiar subjects such as food production, food security, sustainability, intensification, income generation to topical themes such as poverty alleviation, globalization and market liberalization, multi-functional agriculture, food safety and chain management, and knowledge intensity. The book argues that one way to overcome the challenges is to reinvent the practice of agricultural extension. The book takes a holistic look at the farming, policy and research arena, service providers, actors and stakeholders and goals and aspirations of individual farmers and their place in society. Apart from an in-depth look at the origins of extension as a communication for innovation, it looks at communication strategies, the politics involved and calls for more consideration of the processes involved. The chapter on understanding human practices in farming points out the importance of knowledge and perceptions in shaping the development of innovations. Here common procedures such as evaluation and risk in the midst of farmersÕ aspirations are considered at length. Further elaboration of knowledge and perceptions and their pivotal role in the process of change, especially why knowledge disputes arise between different actors, is carried out in chapter six.
360
Book reviews / Agricultural Systems 84 (2005) 359–363
Knowledge and perceptions take centre stage in this work, because of the complexity of change and development. Three communication models are explored: the objective relying on extension as messengers; the subjective which is receiver oriented and the societal network or negotiation which recognises wider conflicts – for resources political influence, and even power, normally ignored by other models. Part three dwells with using communication to organise change through network building, social learning and negotiation with emphasis on a more interactive approach to communication. The book reviews the theory of classic adoption and diffusion of innovations and proposes improvements, putting more emphasis on using communication to facilitate the processes of change, through network building, social learning and negotiation. Social and individual learning are compared as well as the role and expertise of insiders and outsiders and different intervention approaches, stressing that insights into the processes should provide the basis of and organization in the change process. Part four is a well-done piece on the potential communication forms and media and the management of interactive processes. In addition to comparisons, relationships between approaches, strategies, media and methods for communication from interpersonal communication to the internet are also discussed. It is here that intervention might be needed for problematic situations where normal participatory approaches may not be effective. Whether one is advising or supporting knowledge exchange, demonstrations and experiments, interviewing rapid appraisals, socio-technical problem tree analysis, public debates and participation, conflicts should be minimised while also taking into consideration that divergent views are not being stifled. Part five looks at organizational issues starting with cooperation, practical issues in effective networking and ends with a look at agricultural knowledge and information systems, cooperation across scientific disciplines – differences between social and natural sciences and how organizational structure, incentive and reward systems easily obstruct cross-disciplinary cooperation. The Agricultural Knowledge and Information Systems (AKIS) perspective and Rapid Appraisal of Agricultural Knowledge Systems (RAAKS) methodology to analyse and enhance systems in a participatory manner are discussed at length along with economic theory on knowledge markets using subtractability and excludability and their implications to public and private forms of communicative interventions. Due to the socio-technical and multi-dimensional nature of innovations, blending of social and natural sciences in cross-disciplinary co-operation is deemed necessary. This book is apt for those interested in fostering change through adoption and adaptation of innovations and technologies in agriculture and natural resource management. It is suitable for extension agents, biophysical and social science researchers and policy makers. It will appeal to those who wish to advance learning in communication, knowledge and social change at the university level. The main lessons from this book are the need to: forge linkages and form networks within and across different organizations, recognise and aim for win–win situations for all players and actors, and to be aware of opportunities for change.
Book reviews / Agricultural Systems 84 (2005) 359–363
361
Michael Waithaka International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) PO Box 30709, Nairobi Kenya E-mail address: [email protected] doi:10.1016/j.agsy.2004.10.002
Mavi, Harpal S., & Tupper, Graeme J., Agrometeorology: Principles and Applications of Climate Studies in Agriculture Binghamton, NY. The Haworth Press, p. 364, price US$59.95 (hard back), ISBN: 1-56022-972-1 Although technological advances have helped lessen its overall impact during the past century, weather and climate remain among the most important uncontrollable variables involved in agricultural production systems. The authors of this book aptly note at the beginning of the text that the multi-faceted field of agricultural meteorology or agrometeorology is an interdisciplinary holistic science, cutting across several different branches of the biological and physical sciences. With this in mind, the book was designed and written to serve as a multi-purpose reference source for some of the many themes encountered in the discipline. The target audience includes researchers, students, and professionals in the field of agrometeorology and related disciplines. The authors of the book are well-qualified to develop such a text. The first (Mavi) is an agricultural meteorologist by training with lengthy academic, government, and professional consultant experience. The second author (Tupper) is an agricultural scientist by training with specialization in the application of spatial or geographic information systems in agriculture and broad international experience. The book is organized into 11 chapters, beginning with introductory topics and concepts followed by a series of applications and techniques, then ending with a discussion of climate change and the potential impacts on agriculture. In general, the writing in the book is fairly well organized and easy to understand. I found only a few minor typographical errors. There is one consistent potential source of confusion in the writing. Even though the title of the book includes the term, ÔagrometeorologyÕ, it also contains a great deal of climatological information. The authors do not make the typical distinction of short-and long-term temporal scales in the terms, ÔweatherÕ, ÔmeteorologyÕ, and ÔclimateÕ and use the terms interchangeably throughout the text. In terms of reader level of expertise, this book is suitable for a wide range of backgrounds including novice. While not essential, readers would likely benefit from some previous training in the agronomic and/or atmospheric sciences. Many of the examples and references used in the text are taken from Australia, which is logical given the authorÕs backgrounds and experience. The Australian flavor of the book affords the opportunity for readers from other parts of the world to learn about some of the unique and innovative agricultural production problems and techniques associated with a water-limited environment.