This document provides an edited compilation of chapters written by various authors on the history and experiences of farming systems research (FSR). The chapters cover the origins and evolution of FSR, its applications in technology development, institutional commitments to FSR in various countries, the professional dimension of FSR including training and international associations, and future directions and issues for FSR. The document aims to capture the lessons learned from FSR efforts globally over several decades.

2. Ef/!t<.f/ 11,
M. Collinson
Plll~l!>~f,~<i
1111
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
rtiii1
CAB1 P ~ l I ~ l i s i l i i ~ y

3. ( M (ollinson and FA0 LOO0
A c,~t,dog~rc
recorti tor thi I ~ o o k rivriilahle from the British Library, London, UK.
is
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A h~storOi t,irmlng s,stenls rescclrch/ ccjited by M.P. Collinson.
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I hc des~griatroris'de~ve~lopcti' 'ticvclop~ng'
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I
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1 the development process
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4. Contents
Contributors' Biographies vi
;bbreviations and Acronyms X
xii
('1iaptc.r 1 Introduction
Ilrlki, ('ollrrraorr
I';R'I' I: FSK - IINI)ERS'I'ANI)IN(;I:AKMI<RSAN11 TIIEIR FARMING
tldilorial Irltroduction
Xlik(, C'ollirrsorr
C'h;lptcr 2 FSR: Origins and 1'c.rspectivc.s
2. I My iriiIi:~tiorlinlo VSl< i11 I,t~tin
~"iilicrica
(;c,rrrrctrr f:sc,ol~trr
2.2 1 pcrsonal Ilislory in 1:SK
1
I'i,l(,r- Ililclc~l~rirrril
1.% 'I'hc cvol~rtion l:SI<-l: in Asia through thc mid 19 70s:
of
a vicczr lrom IKKl
t
Kii~lrrrrtl Irrrr~~oorl
2.4 1:SK: ;I personal c~volulic~r~
1)trvitl n'orrrrtrrr
2 . 5 My 1:SII origins
,Mikc C'ollirr.sorr
5 FSK - Understanding Farming Systems
5 I PSR's expanding c o n c e p t ~ ~li-tirnework
al
Kohi~~-t f ltrrt
3.2 t.:volvirlg typologics for agricultural R K; U
,2fikr, C'ollirrsorr
3.3 'l'hc dcveloprnt.nt of' diagnostic methods in FSR
jolrri l~rrrrirrqtor~

5. iv Contents
3.4 (;elder analysis: malting women visible a n d improving social analysis
tliltrr!/ Sirfrs I:c81dsti,irr
3.5 Kelating proble~ns and causes in FSR planning
Kri1)c~l.t 'l'ripp
P:KI' 11: THE iPPI,I<'ATIONS OF FARMING SYSTEMS RESEARCH
t:ditorial Introduction
1iki' c'iill~~r~i~rr
('liaj>tcr 4 FSR i n 'l'echnology C h o i c e a n d 1)evelopment
4. 1 'l'lic~al~plic,atior~ I'SII to tc.chnology cic~cloprncnt
of
1lll . ~ l l ~ i I f l 11111/ /<il!/~'r
i! kjl-k/l,l/
1 1 l ~ : x ~ ~ c ~ r iiri ~ ~ i c ~ e ~ l.'SlI in ~ c ~ ~ i i - ; ~ rC ~ iI ~ J . ; I
c :~ppl!ing L ic
1.1. . s l l l l l ~ ~ l ~ / i l l l li l/l / / . h'illli/'llf-il
PART 111: 1NS'I'II'l"I'IONI1. COMMITMENT '1.0I'tRMIN<; SYS'I'EMS
KESEARCkf
1:ditorial Introcluctior~
Mikc, C'ollirrsorr
('llapter h FSK: S o m e Institutional E x p e r i e n c e s i n N a t i o n a l
Agricultural K e s e a r c h
1 . 1 'I'hc Systcrns Rcscarch 1)cpartmcnt at INlt,
I. l<orrrrc~rrrtriri~al.
ct
2 Senegal's cxp'rimcrltal units
~Wic~/rc,/ l<i~~riiit-C'[~ttirr
0.3 'I'm~entyyears of systems research in s o ~ ~ ~ hlali -- nh e Silasso
c~ t
FSK cxpcricncc
CVilli,rtr Stoop ct al.
6.4 'I'lic ir~stitutionalimtion I2SRin cast a ~ southern if'rica: a n ovcrvicw
ol' ~ d
Stuart A. l<i~ctrr rM. ('rcJtrs!j Ntliyoi
ctrrtl
Chapter 7 S o m e D i m e n s i o n s o f t h e O r g a n i z a t i o n o f FSR
7. 1 Institutionalizing l:SK it1 'l:rnxar~ia: a case s t ~ ~ d y
Arrrr Strc~rrrl
7.2 Inslitutionalixi~igFSK in %;~mbia: stakeholder perspective
a
Stlrrrrt A. KcJ(iircrrrd M.('rc,rr.s!/ :Yrli!li)i
7.3 Costs of on-farm research: ;I comptrrison of' experiences
in six countries
l-;1011 tl. (;iIl)(,rt
C'haptcr 8 T r a i n i n g f o r FSR
8.1 'I'hc history of' 1:SK training in east, central a n d
southern Africa
l'oirriicll~A~rczndaju!~usc~kt.m~~

6. Contents v
8.2 Orienting research to agricultural development:
t h e ICRA training programme
Iiii.11nrcl1I ~ w k i ~ t s
8.3 A note: t h e story behind t h e 'guidelines'
Il7illiirrr1CZl Slrilnc~r
PART IV: FSR: THE PROFESSIONAI, DIMENSION
Editorit~l Introduction
1l4ik(~ ' ~ / / i l l ~ i ~ l l
~
Chapter 9 T h e Regional a n d International Associations 25 1
9.1 'I'en ycars in t h e making: the Association for [:arming 251
Syslcrns Rcsc;lrch and lixtension
tltrl n/ltrc~Artlrrrr
9 . 2 1:armirlg Systerns I<csearch a n d lixtcnsion in I,;~tinArncrica 26 1
jrrlio /. Ri,rrlrylrc;
'1, 3 An o~crvicw FSK-ll a r ~ d
of 12SR-I1 r~ctworlis ill'rica
in 277
1rtrt1c~.s
Oltrkosi
9 . 4 'I'l-lc Asian Farming Systems ilssociation 2Xh
Niirlrtl KrrrlwiJi~rir
Cl-~aptcr 0 FSK a n d t h e Prol'ession;~l1)isciplines
I
10.1 1:arni r~~anagc.rnc.nt the farming systems approach
and
1)avitl Norr,rtrrr
1 0 . 2 Anthropology, sociology a n d I'SIt
('orrstirrrc.c~ R/Ii,C'orkl(,
,/I.
1 0 . 3 Agronomy a n d 12SIX ;I rcluct;~ntrnarri;~gr~;
-
I'c,Li,r fliltl(~l~rirrrtl 1)c~rrrris
rrrril Koi,rrc,,i{
PAKT V: CUTTING ED<X MIIrI'HOI)S,AIZIDIN<; ISSllliS ANI) 'I'HE
1:IITIIKE FOR FSK 319
liditorial Introcluction 5 19
ilfliki~C'ollir~sor~
C'liaptcr 1 1 At t h e Cutting Edge
1 1 . I I lolism a r ~ d1:SK
Toon virrr llijk
1 1 .L 'I'he (;IS :ul~drcrnolc sensing contribution to the clahor-ation 01' sysleni
hierarchies in 1:SR
l~~(iristo
Mirilrrcltr
1 1.3 1:SK from a modelling pcrspcctive: experiences in 1.atili ilmerica
A.
Kohi~rto Qlriroz ct al.
1 1.4 Moving participatory plant breeciing forward: the next steps
Lolrisc~ A.
Spcrlirlg r~rrd]rli.ylrc~lirrr ilslrly
11 . 5 Agroecosystcms analysis: a systerns application cz'ith a future?
Clivt2Liglltfbc~l
11.6 Water quality, agricultural practices a n d changes in farming a n d
agrarian systems
).I? DcqJor~tainr~s al.
et
Chapter 1 2 T h e Future of Farming Systems Research
Mikr Collinson and Clivc 1,ightfi)ot
Index 42 1

7. Contributors' Biographies
EDITOR A N D COMPILER I - C W ~ ~ I I - ~ ~ I ~ C1.1-0111 < i l l p:irt 01 llic. z~o~-lcl.
~I-
I I ~ I I I I Il; x , ~ ~ o i ~I c , : ~
( c,ir:i(l.fr
hlike Collinsori. 'l'hc l i i - l till-111 ( ' L . O I ~ O I I IJ ~ ~ l.. Bcrdegui.. I%;~sccl ('hilcl, Julio has
I ~ io in
;ippointcd into t l ~ cI%rilisli 1.olonial ;rgric~~ilt~iriilheell ~ l i c ('oordinalor ol' I<lhllSI! the,
rcsc;~rc,h sc,r,ic,cs I l Of,( I. Ililic z,or-l,cd z , i t l l Inlcxrn:~tio~~aI Syslerns Network. since
I:;ir~nir~g
I-cso~ir~~e-poor /fric;~r~ f:~r~iiel-s 2 5 yctirs. I'rolii
for its li)undation in 1 ')X(,. I 3 c l ~ ~ c .1992 i i ~ ~ d
n
1915. ;is rcgior~;ll cconomisl will1 ('ISlMYl: l i c ~ 1 9 9 5 hc was Ilic 'l'echnical 1)irecior of Chile's
lic~lpcclhuilcl capacity l i ~ ror~-kirtiirc~sc~al-c.h ,it11 igric.ullural 1)cvc~loprncnt Instit~rtc~ (INl)il').
syslems perspcclivc~in the agricull~~r-;il rcsc;rrch Julio is the co-cdilor of four boolts O I I dil'li.rcr11
instit~rlionsof caslcrr~and soulhc~rncl'ric;i. Ilct ;ispcct of I:SI<-ll. ;ind is the o1vlic.r i111c1 illilllilgcl-
rc,lircd lo Ihc Ill< i r ~1 0 9 0 a1ic.r 9 years as social ol' a seed ;rnd vcgctablc prodticit~g 111-111.
scicncc3 adviscv- i r ~ ( h e sc.crel;~ri;~l of 111c 1:rrrrril: I~crdegucirr c u ~ ~ ; i . c lr
('or~sullalirc(;roup li)r Inlcrnaliorlal igricull~rr;~l Joseph I~onncniaire, Jacques Brossier
I(c~scw-ch (('(;I,K), irl W;ishinglon. I)('. and I%. Iluhert. 111 Ihree arcLscienlists with
I:rrr(ril: miltccollir~son1 (tuconipuserve.c~o11l S v s t c ~ n c s.graircs cl 1)cvclopmcnt (S;I)). I l ~ c
unique ;lgral-ian systc~ms division of I N l < i i l l
CONTRIBUTORS I:raiicc. lacqucs I%rosaicrIvas ;L co-orgai~izcr of
111c I <JL)4l l o ~ ~ l ~ ~ c .,I:SKl~Sy111posiu111
llicr ;111ci
I'onniah Anandajayasekeram. / I ~ ; I I I ~ ; I . as is ('hair of thc INK/ Kegional I<csc;ircl~
he is ~rnivc~rsally I.;I~OM,II ill I i r n ~ i n gsyslcrns ('c>~itrc Ilijon. 13. I l ~ r h c r tis a vc~lc~rinariarl
of
rcse;irc.ll circlcs, h:is directed I:SIi training pro- a ~ ~ d c p a r t l ~ ~ c ~ l l
;I d chief i r ~ INlii. joscph
grammes and ;idvised on nretliods a r ~ d ilistil~i- 13or111cmaireis a n anirn:rl tiusb:rnclry special-
tional capacity huil(lirlg in ifrica since I9X2. ist, a ~~rol'c~ssor IINI:S/I) a n d a 'cliargc dc
in
I lc, ,us a I'ast I'rcsidcnt (11' the Sotrlhcrn misioil' n,ith IhK/.
ifric;rn issociition k)r I:SI<-I<irnd the iril~nedi- I:r~rtril:brossier(rr dijon.inra.fr
:rlc, 1':ist I'rcsider~l of Ilic global /ssoci;itio~~ ~ r li
l!irrniing Systems Kesearchlllxtensiori I/1~SKII:). Cornelia Hutler-Flora and Charles Francis.
I:rr~rril:pananda(rufarrnw.co.x, ('or-nelia is I)ircctor of the North Central licgionirl
('enter ti)r Rural I>cvclopmcnt. mhich conducts
Michel Henoit-Cattin. Michc.1 is in chargc of' research ;ind extension programmes in rural dc~1c.l-
the international scientilic cxchangc~s CIKAI). opn~cntin the 12 niidmcstern ~rnericar~
in stales.
in Xlo~ltpcllier.1:rancc. ;In agronomist ,it11 a and is I'rofessor of Sociology at Iowa State
State 1)octorate in econornic's he h a s ,orlied for llniversity. Charles is ilgronomist and Director o f
3 0 ycars on agricultural development problems the Center for Sustainable ilgricultural Systems.
;it the farm, regional iind national levels in llniversity of' Nebraslia, 1,incolri. Cornelia and
France, illgeria, Ivory Coast and Senegal. He C'h;trlcs have pioneered the application of a systems
now supervises theses in these topics by young approach in extension in the irnerican Midwest.

8. Contributors' Biographies vii
and n7:rs a member ol' the ISNAR team examin-
ing national programme experience with FSR in
the mid 1980s.
J.P. Deffontaines, Jacques Brossier, M.
I:rr~(ril:elonsni(roaol.corn
Barbier, M. Benoit, E. Chia, 1.1,. Fiorelli, M.
Gafsi, F Gras, H. Lemery and M. Roux. The
. Robert Hart. While worlting at CA'I'III, I h b , a n
authors are niernbers of the S/1) researcl-1 1c;lrn ecologist. proposccl thc rn~rltile~el systems hier-
in INRA responsible for the Vittel study. I<rossicr krrchy now accepted as a conceptual framework
and L)el'k)nt;riries had scicntitic responsibility l'or l i ~ r1:SR. IIc is currently the Ilircctor of the
the study. 1.1'. I)cfli)ntaincs is the father of 'gco- IlSill)-l'~lnded global S u ~ t a i n a b lAgriculturc~ ~
agronomy' concerned with spati:tl connections and Natur;tl Kc~sourccManagement (SANKIIM)
of furriling systc~ris and played 21 leading role in ('olI;rborativc Itc~sc;~rcl-1 Support I'rogr;rni coor-
the establishment of lhc SAI) dcpartrncnl in diriatr~dby the Ilnivcrsity of (icorgia.
INRI in 1979. 1,criicry is a sociologist spccializ- I:rt~rril:rdIiart(ci~archcs.~1gi1.e~1u
ing in klrmers' bchaviour and social nctworliing
Richard Ilarwood. 'l'lic li)undcr ; ~ n dIlcad ol'
ol'
it11 a li)cus o n thc tr;~r~sli)rrrratior~ proles-
II<Kl's ilsian ('roppirig Systerris I'rograrrr l'rorii
sion;~lpracliccs rcl;rti~iglo a g r i c ~ ~ l t u r c . is ;I
lie
I C)hT lo 1 9 7 2 . Kicliarcl clevclopcd thc isi;tn
professor i r i IINI1SAIl, Ilijon. Koux is a n animal
C'roppirig Systc~riis N c t ~ ~ o r l iAt Kodale, lie
.
specialist, arld a professor in I:NIIS/Il, 1)ijori.
dircctcd thc Kcsc;~rcli('cntcr and ils inlc~gratcd
I<arbicr. ('hit1 ;rrrd (;al'si are c~cotioniists.I3erioit
syslcnrs studies until 1 9 8 5 . 11s 1)ircclor of
ilnd I:iorclli arc agronoriiists. (;r;ls M'ilS r c ~ s ~ ; ~ r c I i c ~ r
isi:~ri l'rogr;~riics li)r Wir~rocli Iri1erri:rtiori;rl
in l~iologicalpcdology at C'NItS. 111e Ilrrivcrsily of
fro111 1 9 x 5 to IC)')O. Ilc supl~ortcd i ~ r n l i r ~ g
l sys-
'iaricy arid OI<S'I'OM.110 is n o w rctircd.
tems projcscts i l l Indonc~sia. N c p t l a n d the,
I'liilippir~cs. ('trrrcrrtly the ('.S. Moll C'Ii;rir 01'
John Ilixon. john is I'rogr;~rnnic C'oordirl:rtor, Suslainahlc igric~llttrrc at Mic1iig;rn State
Farm-l,evcl /gricultur;rl Itcscarch Mctl~odsli)r Ilr~ivcrsity,lie is also a mcriibcr of the ('(;IAl<
1;. . . rid Southcrn il'ric;~. l l ; ~ r ; ~ r c .
,is1 Zimbabwe. 'I'cclinic;~ltd~isory('omrnittc~c.
I lc hirs n,orlc~tl I'urming syslenis rcsci~r-ell ~ n d 1;rrrrril: r-Ir:~rm~ooclf~r o t . r ~ ~ s t ~ . c ( l ~ ~
in ; pil
tlc~vc~loprnc~it more I l i i ~ r l 25 ycirrs. l1;11l'of
li)r
~Iiiclilias bee11 spc.111in I:lliiopi;~. Iran. hcpi11. Itichard liawkins. I!ollocz,ing his 1'111) studies
I'liailand and %in~h;~hwc. n,as also I>ascd in
Ilc3 or1 rr~t~ize gr-ovIl~I I I ( ~yieI(1 i r r tlrc K e ~ i y :liigli-
; ~
Iiomc li)r sevcr;rl yeill-s implcmcntirlg 1!;O's 1;11icI~. l<ic~li;~r(lsprrrl I 0 ycars 011 1 3 1 < projc:cts
i l l C'crilr-ill ;rr~er-ic.;~(C'II'I'II;). Ncpi~l iiricl ]ir,i~.
h ~ r r n i ~ syslcrrrs prograrnmcx.
lg
l'rrrrril: jolin.dixon(trfi~rrnc~sa.co.m I<ic11;11-d spc3~ill i c ~li~slI 0 yetars puttirig tliis
Ii;rs t
cxpcricrrcc lo gootl use, lirst 21s C'oor-dir~;rlorof
German 1:srobar. (;crrn;r~l is tllc I<csc;~r-cli lhe 1C71<: irrglopl~or~c 11-:1irrirlg~ r o g r i r ~ ~i rri ~ ~ i e
I)~rc,c.tor of the Intcrrrationd Nolcz,or-l or1 I-cscarcli li)r dc~,c4opmc~nt. irnd more rccently
I arming Systerlis Kcsc,arch I/lctl~odology (I<IM- t i t i I ' o s g ~ - r c i ~ ('oIICgc i l l h1cxic:o.
~te
ISI'), based in ('liilc. A C'olor~~hiarr rcscarclier. 1:rrlrril: rhavlins(irinSosel.nel.riix
c;crman trairictl ;IS a n /gric~rlt~rral I:conornist
,~nd I:SK practitioner ;lnd lias vorliccl in several I'eter Ilildebrantl and Ilennis Keeney. I'clcr
; o ~ ~ n t r i e as rcse;~rcl~e~-,
s project designer arid is I'rokssor. 1:ood ancl Kcsource 1:conomics
,icl~isor r~;rliorralrescarch and rural tlcvclop-
to I)cbp;rrlmenl. I~istittrle I:ood ancl Agricult~rral
of
Scicriccs. Ilriivcrsitv 01' I'lorid;~.(;;rincsvillc. I le
lias ~ , o r l c ~in f;lrrning systc~nis rcsc,arch for
d
john Farrington. John hc:~ds the liural I'olicy more, tIi;ln 2 5 ycilrs, inclucling 1 3 yc,;rrs in
c ~ ~ l I~ri~irori~iic~rit
d (;roup ;it the Overseas C'olornhia. I:I Sillvador a n d (;uatcrnala. tic has
l)c,elopnlcrit Iristitute, I,ondori, lilt, anci is 'isiting coordin;rtctl tlie Ilriivc~rsityol' 1210rida I:arriiing
I'rokssor at the igricullur;rl Ilxtension arld Kur-;rl Sys1c.m~ l<csearcli-l:xtt.risio~i I'rogriun for l 5
l)c,elopment 1)cpartment of Kcwding I lni,ersity y a r s arid was tlie l i ) ~ r n d i ~ iI'rcsitl'nt of thc
g
I rrriril: j.f:irrington((r odi.org.uk glohi~l 12ssociation for 1:arniing Sysleriis
Kescarcli-l:xtcnsio~i. Ilcnnis liccny, a pas1
Elon Gilbert. A Visiting Research I:cllo~~ with I'resitient of the ~ m e r i c a nilgronomy Society is
the O,erseas Ilcvelopment Institute, IIlon is a n currently Ilircctor of the 1,copold ('enter for
,igricultural economist with more thtiri LO Sustainable igric~rlture,Iowa State Ilniversity.
!ears experience in Sub-Saharan ilfi-ica and. 1:rrrrril: Ilildehrand(r~~frecl.ifils.utl.cdu
!ilorc recently, in South Asia. He wrote. with
![hers, the original American Journal of Janice Jiggens. i past President of the
igricultural Economics article on I!SR in 1 9 8 0 . International issociation for Farming Systems

9. .. .
VIII Contributors' Biographies
Kesearch a n d 1:xtension. lanice is currerltly (~~m~nl.ccof.org.br).h a s applied remote scris-
Hc
t'roft:ssor of Ifurnan Ecology at t h e Sm~edish ing a n d geographic information svsterns to t h e
ilgricult~~ral I'niversity. She h a s spent most of asscssrnent a n d monitoring of developlnent :rnd
her illterdisciplini~ry career cz~orking agricul- on environmental protection programlncs.
ture and rural clcvcloprncnt. rnainly in Africa lirrllril: niir(u;n~na.ernbrapa.br
trnci South Asia. She has a p;rrticular interest in
David Norman. Ilavid is l'rofessor.
conibining p;~rticipatory and 'high tech'
1)cp;rrtrnent of Agricultural I<conomics. Kansas
appro:~ches and tools. and in ensuring that
St;rlc llrlivcrsity. Since t h e mid Ic)hOs h e has
gender issues. a n d nromcri prokssionals. ;Ire
spent a total of LO years working in national
fully present in t h e agricult~lral scicrlccs.
agricultural research systems in Afric;~(Nigeria
1:rrrtril: i a n i c c . j i g g e n s ( ~ ~ ~ I I ? ~ ~ t ~ . s l ~ ~ . s c
a n d 130tsmrana)arld continues to taltc on short-
Stuart Kean and M. Creasy Ndiyoi. Sluarl is term ;rssigl~rncr~ls Africa, isi;r ;rrld Ihc S o ~ ~ t h in
;I soci;ll scientist czritli i r ~ l c r e ~ ll ~
1'. .'
i l irgric~~lturc. 'rc~lic. llc nzas atnorig ttiosc M ~ iriiti;~tcd t h e O
rur;rl dcvcloprncnt arld colnrn~~nity-hirsc~cl ncrt- anrlual frrrlning systerns rc~scirrcli :lnd cxtcnsion
~ r r ~ resource r1i~rriagelilcr1t.I lc, worl<e(l for I 1
rl symposi;~ at Kansas Statc IIllivcrsity. wliich
years i ~ iZaliibia and M,;IS tlle lirst Ni1tion;rl Iirter e~ol,cd into the global issociation for
('oordinator 01' Ilic Atl;rptivc Iicxc;rrch I'larilririg I::rrming Systems Kc~sc~;11-cli-l:xtc~11sio1l thc3 (lloczr
'I'carn (iRI"I'). Ilc is curl-erllly coortliriatirlg the Illlerli;rlio~i;rI I'irr-liiillg Systcriis issoci;rlioti).
NOI-lllcrrl Namibi;~I:rrvi~-orl~~lc~nlal 1'1-ojcct li>;r- I le i alo a past I'reident of tlie ~ s s o c i ~ r l i o ~ l .
lur-ing multi-;rge~icyc'omrnl1nily-l1;1sc(1 ri;rtu~-al / , ~ r t t i i I ;clr1or1ii:1li~(ir g c ~ c o ~ i . l i s ~ ~ . ~ c l ~ ~
;
I-csourcc m;~rlagcriicntinili;rties. James Olukosi. Jalncs is a profc.ssor of
/ ~ 1 t r 1 r f / ; S I , ~ ; I I I ( ~ I iirfric~:~.coli~.t~i~ .gric~~rltur:~I l<coliorliic 11,1111 llic> l ~ i s l i t ~ ~ l c
of
Kdiyoi is tlic C'l~icl' , g ~ - i c ~ ~ ~ l I ~ ~ r : r l l<cxc,i~rc,Il ,g~-~c.~rltural I{esearcIi ;rt rhrnad~r I3cllo
Ol'Iic,cr-, I!:irriiirig S ~ ~ t e ;rrlcI i Sitciitl Scic~tce, I t ~ i v c r s i t yl l 'Cigc%~-ia. Iias orli lied cvidcly in
~~ s i ;rrid
hlinistry of ~ g r i c ~ ~ l t u l - c ;rnd I'islicric~s. I:SK in 1Vest ;ti-ic;~.llc is the C'oorclinator ol' tile
I'ood
%;rmhia. Ilc, has ,orlied i l l Ilic liclcl of krrming LVcsl I ~ ' I - ~ ~ ; 1:armirlg System liesearch III
systems a n d sm;rll l'trrrncr dc~rclopmclltlitr t h e Nctworlt (W/I:SKN).
1;rst 1 7 yc;rrs. Ilc is l h c current 1'1-csitlerilof tllc l~;rrr~ri/: ~CI<~SKI'-W-NI~~I~I<I!(~~~~~~~I~
Southcrri !fric;~n /ssociation for I!:rrming
Systcnis I<c~sc;rrcIl ;rrld 1:xtcnsion (SiAI:SIiI:). I<ohcrto A. Quiroz, Carlos 1,eon-Velz~rde
1:rrltril: mndiyoi(crpop 5.xarnnel.xm and Walter Howen. Koberto is the I lc;rd of t h e
I'roduction Systems a n d Nat~rral I<esotrrce
Clive 1,ightfoot. ('li,c, ari ;rgronomist. ~ , o r l t c d b1an;rgc~rncwl I)cp;rrtrncnt a1 the Intc3rnatior1;rl
i l l 011-farm rcscarcll for- ri1;lny pcars in /l'ric;r I'otato ('csriter (('11'). Ilc recci,c>d his blS and
a n d in Asia. Ilc Ilas put much ol' tlic Ilcsl~or1 1'111) clegrecs Srom North ('aroli~ia State
tllc bones ol' a g r o e c o s y s t c ~ ~ i s rcsc~arcli aricl is Itii.ersity. Ilis interests a r c in I:SI< irrid i l l 111~'
irltcgratioll of (;IS and remote sc,nsirig tvith sim-
ulation ~notlclsin lir~ldLISC stl~dies. (';~rlos is il
systems scientist at t h e ('11' and ( h e
llal MacArthur. A pas1 I'rc~sidcnl 01' the Intc~rrlatior~al1,ivcstoclt Kcsearch Institute
1ntc~rnation;rlissociation for 1:;rrming Systems (II,I<I).llc holcls a I'hl) from t h c Ilr~ivcrsityof
I<cscarch. Ilal h;rs 'orlied cxtensi,c,ly in I:Sli (;uclph in animal brceding ;111d gcnctics. Ilis
programmes i r i both /fric;r and Asia. research h a s litcused o n the development a n d
I:rrrtril: hrncarthur(ci hawaii.edu applicatiol~ of sirnulatior1 lnodels in niixcd
crop-livestock systems, a n d natural resources.
Constance McCorlile. I sociologist with wide Walter is a systelns scientist, specializilig i r i soil
experience in Africa. Asia a n d 1,:ltin imcrica, I'c!rtilily, ~ v i l h tht, International 1:crtiliscr
('onstance is a world a ~ ~ t h o r ior1 the study anci 1)cveloprncnt ('enter (Il:I)C'), outposted t o thc
ty
;~pplicationof ethnoveterinary medicine. CII'. 1lc earned his b1S a n d I'hD degrees froln
('orncll Ilniversity. tiis research actirrities have
Evaristo Eduardo de Miranda. I3orn in ccrltred or1 t h e development and application of
Ilraxil. I:~aristo h a s had over 1 0 0 works pub- crop growth r ~ i ~ d e l s .
lished at home :inti abroad. Ilc is a l'rofessor at 1:rtrrril: R,()uiroz(&cgiar.org
Sao I'aulo State llnivcrsity (LISP),researcher at Nimal Ranweera. Nirnal is a past president of
the l:hlKK~I'rl Ticmote Sensing Monitoring both the Asian Association for Farming Systems
('enter (m~~wrinia.er~ibriipt~.br)
arid ;tlso heads Kcsearch a n d t h e Intcrnational Association for
t h e NGO ECOFOKCli Kesearch a n d Dcveloptncnt Farming Systerns Research-Extension. He is a

10. Contributors'
senior administrator in the Ministry of Sikasso. 'l'oon Llefoer, Senior Scientist at the Koyal
Agriculture. Sri 1,anlt;l. Ile hosted and orga- 'l'ropical Institute (J<IrI')Amsterdam. specializes
nixed the 1 9 9 6 international FSRli sy~nposiurn. in ft~trierparticipiltory n~cthodology devclopmcnt
lirrrclil: miriagr(u~slt.lk for natural resources management. He was the
technical :Idvisor to thc 1:Sl'GKN team in Sikasso
Bill W. Shanrr. Bill is I'rokssor Ilrncritus.
kotii 199 3 to 1996. I:rr~clil:rradarno(u;n~xs.ril
('olor;~do State Ilnivcrsity fie was team leader
and scnior author of the book. 1.irrrrtirlq .S!lsfcrrrs Ann Stroud and Koger Kirkby. Anri, a
Kc.sc~rrrc,ll I)cJvr~lo~~rrtc~nt:
rlr~rl (;liirlc~lirrc,s Ilc~~~rlop,iry
/i)r ('alifornian, lias resided in l a s t Ali-ica since
C'olrrrtric~s.tlc occasionally consults overseas on 1 9 8 1 . Slle lias hrorlicd for a number of orgoni-
projects rclatcd to economic dcvcloprncnt. zations spccializitlg in weed rnilnagerncnt, pcsti-
1:rrtrril: ir~tertlcv(c~:lar~ii~r.coIosli~tc~~c~cl~~ cidc issues, farming systems rc,scw-ch arld Inore
rc,ccntly nalur;~l resource, ~ n a n i ~ g c r n c n tIlcr .
Hilary Sims 1:rldstein. Ililary is t.lic, 'l'raining cxperic~ncc,in systcrl~s ;lgronolny is derived from
Specialist a1 Ihe International ('cntcr li)r
licld resc;~rcll; ~ n d cxlerisi~c ;~dvisirlg and c ; ~ p ; ~ c -
I<escarch or1 Worncn, lV;~shington.IIC. For ) '
ily buil(lir~g ta~ilhN/lIS in 1t1c 1:ast a n d soul1.1-
years. she ~ ~ 2 tI1c I'~ogri1111
1s 1,cadc.r. (;cnder
cbrn il'rici~r~region. She. is c.urrcnlly tlic
inalysis. lilt- Ihc (:cmdcr I'rogr;lm ;11 1kic ('(:IAli.
coordinator oI' (Ire /St-ican Ilighl;~r~cls 1niti:rtivc.
In recent years she has ~ ~ o r l t cm l i t l ithe, Kcnyi~
t~
a n ccorcgional progr;lrnliic at I('R/12. Roger is
Agricull~rr;~l I<csc;~rcli I n s l i l ~ t c ;rnd nritl~
LVIIO
:in :~g~-orion~ist Iiils ct~rrieclO L I ~ ~ I I - ~ ' ; I I - I I I
l'gandir's N;rtior~;rlI:n~~irortrncnt;~l hd;rrr;~gcrncrll
csxpc*rimcrrts i t 1 c;rstc>rtl ili-ic;~ a n d I,;~lir~
i~rtIiorilylo inlcgri~tc gender i~nalysis into t1icti1-
/tllcrica since I c)Oc). l lis I'hl) I'rorn ('ornell
orgarriz;~tions' technology dc~cloprncnt a~rcl
I inivc~rsity iricludetl loolting at nr;lys to integrate
11;rtural rcsourcc, m;~r~agc~mcrll ;~c.tivitics.
exnc~-it~lct~l;~tio~i hv I';~r~ricrs d the formal scc-
an
I:rr~tril:I lilary~l~el(lstci~i(c~:cIi~i.c.om
tor; other- dctgrccss ;Ire frorn thc Ilnivcrsitic~sof
1,ouise Sperling and Jacqueline Ashby. lV;~lesanel ('atnhridge. llc is currc11lly ('1Kl"s
1,ouise Spcrlitig. :in antfiropologist, is a scnior Cyoorc1ir1:~tor ,I'rica. for
~cicntist at ('Iil'l' rid krcililatcs the I'lant Iirtt(1i1:/.Strot~clfo~cgii~r.org l<,l<irl~l~y((i~cgi;~r,org
131-cedirig (;roup of the ('(;I:I< Syster~~~~iclc
ilist;~irSuthrrland and John N. Kang'ar;~.
l'rograrn on 1'arlicip;rtory I<c~carcli (;ctidcr l0r
]oh11 l i a ~ ~ g ' ; ~ t - ; ~
is ;I rcse;~rcl~erl livcsloclt pro-
il
;rlalysis trntl 'I'cc,hnical Irlno~;itior~. l ~ eIi;rs
S
ductiori ~ I I I C ~~r~llritioti ~villr tlic 1<e11yi1
~~,orlccl 2 0 yc,:~rsi11 ~I'ric:i :1t1(1 isi;r oti iti~io-
1'01-
~ I g r i c ~ ~ ~ lI<csc;~t-clr
t ~ ~ r t l l lristit~rlc, 1~;isccI I~riibu
irt
,:rtivc breeding a ~ i dsc>cd spslc~mstt-;~tcgics10
benclit srn;~ll I'ilr~ncrs. Jaccluc.litlc islihy is ; I I<csc;~rcli ('cnlrc. Ilc was the livestocli
1;-0111 I 9 9 3 10
l'hl) in devc~lop~ncr~t sociology nrho h ; ~ sp l ~ h - rcstb;~rcl~cr (lie lJil<I<l'[~rojctc.l
on
lishcd cxtcnsifcly o n pi~rticil~atory research and l')L)7 ~ I I I C I the pr~ijc,ctcoot-(Iiti~~tor fro111 lclc)5.
soci;~l ecology. She is currently 1)irectot- of ilist;~ir Suthcrlatid is 21 social arilhropologist
Iic~sc~arcl-I Natural Kc~so~rrcc.
for Managcmcrtt ;rI ~ ~ i l ltI1c Ni~tur:~I< ~ S O I I I - C ~ S I1istiI~11e the
i I of
the Inlcrr~alion;~l C'cnlcr. for 'l'ropic:~I Ilr~iversily of (;rccrl~.ich, Ill<. lle was the
:gricull~rre (('Iil'l') vherc she previously tlevcl- ;~nlhropologist arid Icclinical ;rd~isor o n the
oped approacl~cs to applied p;~rtic,ip;~tory I)iI<l1I' projccl fro111 I LJ93 to 1 9 9 7 .
rc~sc~arcli n,hich are nomf t i ~ u g h and practisc~din
t I:rr~tril:;~listair.s~rtIic~rI:~~i(l(~inri.org
sc~cral cou~itries across the vorltl.
Kobrrt 'I'ripp. Kohcbrt is an aritliropologist a n d
I.'rrtrril: I,.Spcrling(cijcgi;~r.org].istit~yfojcgiar.org
cur-rerrtly ;I rcscarcli I'ello~r at the Overseas
Villem Stoop, Omar Niangado, 1)emba Ki.bi. I)cvclopmcrlt Institute ( 0 I ) I ) in l,ondon, 11K. Ilc
and 'loon I)rfoer. Wille~ii an agronomist a ~ i d was previously ~vitlithe CIMMY'I' 1:conomics
is
boil scientist. Sine? 1 9 9 1 he has been external 1'1-ogram. where, lie vorkcd o n training a n d
advisor to 1,'lristitut d'l<conorliic Kuralc in nictflods for on-fur~il research.
I3;1malio. Mali, arld its rcspcctirc IISI'(;KN tca~iis. I:rr~rril: r.tripp(~~odi.org.111i
inc,luding Sil<asso. fle ,as formerly with t l ~ e
Koyal 'l'ropical Institute in Arnstcrdarn and is Toon van Eijk.'l'oon is a f;lrmirig systeriis agrono-
~ l o a nvindependent consulti~nt.
~ Omilr Niiurgado mist who has t,orled in illozarnbique. Kenya.
r 7
i a plarit breeder a r i t t i particular expertise in mil- lanzania and Zambia over the last 1 years.
0
let. llc was Ilircctor (;enera1 of 1,'lnstitut Ila.ing recently completed his thesis at
on
d'Econoniic Kuralc in Kamalio. Mali. from 1 9 9 3 Yagcriingcn Ilni~~ersity I2SK and Spirituality he
t o 1 9 9 8 . Demba Kkbc is agricultural econoniist is nov ;I Srcelance advisor on rural develonrnent
, i t L'lnstitut d'l~cvnomicRural in Bamako and based in his home in Ilar-esBalaam. Tanzania.
..:CISformerly Head of' the ESPGRN teiun in I?rrlnil:trancijl;(uuct.co.tz

11. Abbreviations and Acronyms
,l'ric,;~t~ .oc~itrtio~i l ' i ~ t - t ~Si I~C~ I ~ Kcc:~t-cIiI : ~ t c ~ i i o:~~ici~I'riiirii~lg
01' i I I ri
;groc~c~~~~ot~~ic~ xorie
; S ~ : I I I I . ' ; I I - I ~S.le11i . s o i , i : ~ t i o ~ ~
I~II~
;ssoci;~(ionoI- I:;~rmingSystclns Iiesc~al-c.h
I' i~tld I:stc~~isior~
!si:~t~ Kicc I2i~rt1iit~g s l e r ~ ~ s
Sy clvorl,
id;~plivcI<csc';~rcli ' l ; ~ ~ ~ n iIn Y I I ~
I ' Lg
Asi;~r~ 'cgcl;~hlc Rcsc;~rc.h; ~ r ~ d I)cveloprl~cntC'cr~tcr
('arihbcwn igric~rlttrralRcsc~arch ancl 1)cvcloprncnt Inslitutc
'I'ropic;~l/grictrlltrral ('ct~lerl i ~ licse;~t-cl~ '['raining
r i111d
('onstrlt;~tivc(iroup 011 1nlcrn;rlional Agricultlrral I<ese;~rch
IntctrnationaI C'crlter l i ~'I'ropical igrict~lltrrc
r
('onsortium I'or It~lernationalI)c~~clol~menl
C':III:I(I~;I~I l r ~ l e r t ~ : ~ l ilo e ~ ~ ~ l o p ~ ~ i c t ~ l
)~~; e tssistirr~ce
International Llaixc. and U'lic~i~t Itnprovet~~erit ('cntcr
Intcrni~lionalI'olalo ('cntcr
('er~trcIt~tcrtlaliorlal I<ecl~e~-clics dc ;g~-onomiclues pour Ic I)c~veloppcmet~t
('onsortium lilr the S~rsl;ti~iahlc I)e~eloptl~er~l tndcan I<coregiori
of t11c.
I)ryl;~nd ipplied 1icse;lrch and I l s t c n x i o ~ ~ I'rojc~t
1;cology. ('or~imunity Organization arid (;cr~dct- programme (Clar-lcIlrlivcrsity I
InstittltcsI'or igrictrltural and 1,ivc~stocl~ Kcsearch (1Sraxil)
I:ood allel igt-ictrlttrt-e Orgar~iz;~tior~ Ilniled Nations ol' the
I!ar-mcr tr~;~r~agetlIfr~rtncr implctncntcd
12;lrmcrparticipatory rc)searc.h
12arrncrparticipatory rc~search and extension
1:arrning systcrns rcscarcli
Farming systctns rcscarch a n d extension
Farming systcrns support project
(;cogr:rphical information systems
International Agricultural 1)cvelopmcnt Service
1ntern:rtional igricultur;rl Kcsc~arch ('cntrc
Colonlbiar~/gricultural Ir~stitutc
International Center for igricult~rralKesearch in the Dry Areas
International ('enter l i ~ living Aquirtic Resourcc Management
r
Iriternational ('entrc for I)cvclopnient Oriented Research in rigriculture
International C'entre for Kesearch on igroforestry
Intcrr~ational C'rops Kcsearch Institute for the Semi-rlrid Tropics

12. Abbreviations and Acronyms xi
ICTA Institute of Agricultural Science and 'l'echnology ((;ualcrnala)
IIIRC International Ueveloprnent Kesearch Center
I FAD International Fund for i2griculturalI)cvelopment
II:SA Internationt~l Farming Systems Association (fi)rnierly iFSKli as above)
Il1111FSK-E Intrti-F-Iouschold and FSR-E Case Studies I'rojcct
I I ('A Interamerican Institute for Cooperation orr i g r i c u l t ~ ~ r c
I lrl'A Inlernational Inslilutc of 'l'ropical i g r i c u l t ~ ~ r e
IK Indigenous I<nowledge
ll,Cf International I,ivcsloclc Center for Ali-ica
Il,K!I) Intcrni~tional 1,aboratory for Krsc;rrch o n Anirnal 1)iscascs
INRA N;rtional Institulc fix igricultural Research (1:ranr.c)
I I'M Integrated pest manageme111
IKfYI' Institute l'or'l'ropic;rl Agrol~orr~ic Kescarch
Ilil) Ir~tcgrated rur;rl dcvclop~ncnt
IRK1 1ntc.rnational Kicc. Resc,arch Inslilutc
ISNfR 1ntcrrration;rl Service for N;rlior~aligriclrltur:tl Iicscarch
YARI: National /gricultur;rl Rcscarch a n d 1;xtcnsion
ZARI National Agricultural Kcsc;rrch Instilulc
VRS Nalional Agr-ic~~lturirl Rcscarc'f~Sc,r,icr
YIi1 Nat~rralIicsourccs Instilutc~
YKM Natural I~csource Managcrncnl
Ol)/ Overseas I)cvclopntcr~l i(lrr~ir~istratior~ w 1)I:II))
(no
01, 0r1-firrrn
olll; On-f;rrnl cxpcrirncntalior~
01:Ii On-l'arrn rcxscarclr
ORS'I'OM Institut Francais tlc I<ccherchc~ Scicntiliq~rc~ Ic I)c~cloppcmc~nt
pour en
('ooper;rliot~
(1s On-s1;rtion
OSII 011-stirtiori rccarcll
l'lI/ I';rrlicip:~to~-y- ~ r r - i r l irppriri~itl
r
I'SNRM I'rocl~rclio~~ Syslcriis irricl h:rI~tr:rl1icso~11-cc kli111irgr11iet11
I'SI' l'roduction Syslcnrs I ' I - ~ ~ I - ; I I I I I I ~ ~
1i1) Iircornrnc~rdirtio~~ elornilin
IIIMISI' Irrtcrnalior~al 1:arlning Syslcms IIcsc;rrch blcllrodology hclvorlc
KISI'AI, 1,;rtirr irneric;~nirrim;rl I'roduc.tior~ Systems Iicscirl-el1Nctvorl
I(M1) licsourcc nlanagcrncbnt domaill
1iMIl:I licsenrchcr rnanagcdlflrrrnc~r implcmcrilcd
KMIRI Iicscarchcr mar1agcd/rcsc~:1rc11c~r implc~nc~rted
lilif Iiapid rur;rl appraisal
KS Kernole sensing
s'll~s1i-l~ Southern /li-icirrr Association ol' 1:arming Systcnls Kcsrarch and Ilxtcnsion
S;C'('I R Southern Africalr Ccr~trc ('0-opcratior~it1 /gric.~rlturaland Natural
l'or
Kesources Iicscarch
1)epartmcnt l i ~ Rclsearch o n Agrarian Systc>rnsand I)cvcloprnrnt
r
(within l n ' K ~ I:rar~cc)
,
S,NRIlM C'KSP Sustainable ;griculture and Natural Kcsource and Illr~ironment
Man:~gcrncnt('ollabort~tivc liesearch I'roject
Sustainable Agriculture Kesearch and l<xtcnsiorr
Swedish International 1)evelopment ilssistarlce
IJnitcd States Agency l i ~ International L)cveloprncnt
r
West ilfrican Farming Systems Research Net~vork
West Africa Kice Developmcnl Association
Women in igriculturall)evelopment program (IJni7ersity of Florida)
Women in Rice Farming Systems

13. Foreword
JaniceJiggens, Past President of the International Association for
Farming Systems Research and Extension
is I'rcsidc~nt of the, .xsoc.i;~tion lor- I'arriiirlg ~lc-c.c>ilic. .lie~lI persuaded a n agrorlo-
13111
Systelns Kesri~rclii ~ n d I:stcnsio~lI.I:SI<I: ~ i o . 11iit Iron1 tlic p r o r i ~ i c i ; ~rrsr;irc,h s l ; ~ t i o ~ i
~ l to
the Inlcrni~tional1:arrnlng S!.stc~n . s o c , ~ i ~ t i o ~ii i t llic l'i~~-mc~l- Icarn mol-c. about their
to
(Il:S/II n*llcn the hool, lax commisxioricd. I a m cupcrirnr~ntsa n d perhaps giv' some, advicc~. LVC
dcliglitcd to contribute a I'orc~z~ord this his- e ~ l d c d in a blazing a r g u ~ n c r i l
10 1112 ahout wasting
tory of klrming systc~msrcsc~arch(l:SI<) anci its his tinlc just to show 1 1 1some M~OIIICIIgronrillg ~
i~pplications, seeing it as irn opportunily to ol'kr n,ccds! I was forced to I h i r ~ kclccply ahout the
;I persor~;~l aceour11 of my own love ill'k~ir with spc~cilic /aluc of t h c vcgctcrblcs to crop produc-
I:Sli. 11 rl~irrors. r ~
i marly rcs[~cc.ls, scclucncc tion i ~ n dk)od S ~ S ~ C I I I S ,
lhc i1110~1t the g c ~ i ( I c r - s ~ ~ c -
of thc text itsclf -a rctrospcclivc on nly own cilic roles of rncn a n d women, a n d about tllc
b;rplism: ;I li)cus o n wh;~t arc, l i ~ r me. lccy n a l ~ r r c a sc~icncc,-basedtrairii~lgi l l agrictrl-
of
;~spcclsof I:SR: the progress rnildr ; ~ n dchal- ~ L I I -~~v h i c hcoulcl so easily sc,t i~sidcfarme-rs'
Icngcs rcrnaining: and 111y ~ L V I Ipvrc'cptio~~s of Icno~z,lcdgc and a c,rop that was cxsc~nti;~l tllc to
some Ixy Icssoris learned. li~clillooclof the, zronlcrr ancl to the nutrition of
tlicxir faniilics.
: second li)rrnati,e cxpcv-icwcc, b r o ~ ~ g h t into
A RETROSPECTIVE qt~cstio~l agricultur;~lsurvey rcsci~rch~iiclhods.
My t e a n ~h;ld dcvelopcd a questionnaire in thc
1 strayed into FSK at the end of t h e lC)70s local language lo preparc a st:~tistical s:rmplc of
w h e n I was ~ ~ o r k i n s a social scicntist in t h e households in a n area of shiliing cultivation.
ag
northern and centr:rl provinces of Zamhi;~. 'l'llc Iloczrc.vcr, alicr a few days in the licld 1 realized
challenge was to find ways to dcvclop tcch- that my male Za~nbiaricolleagues were estab-
nologics for, and supply services to. impover- lishing less Sorm;rl relations with the women in
ished small-scale I'ar~ncrs r arccis ol' high male t l i c ~
i ~ rillage tlibrn t h a t of intcrvicnnerand rcspon-
outmigratiorl. I becam' fascinated by t h e d o l t . I t clearly did not make any conirnunica-
experiments of some women k r ~ n e r s improve live sense to t u r n up a Sen, h o u r s later with il
to
crops of :I traditional green leaf vegetable. question~lait-c hand. Yet the long. drawn-out
in
growrn bctwcen t h e main cereal crop both for methods of the anthropologist were not practi-
h o m e consuniption and sale in the local m a r - cal: what tools and techniques could <le use in
Itct. 'l'hc Icares arc rich in minerals, dry well the 3 wccl<s wc had to ensure some reliable
and form an important seasonal additive to t h e degree of rigour a n d reprcscntivity yet ~ ~ e r c
relish which accompanies the starchy m a i n based o n a more natural process of enquiry?
meal, as u.cll as providing cash ti)r household With hindsight. I wish I had paid more attention

14. ...
Foreword XIII
to the refinement of the concept of 'recommen- the opportunities to technical innovation.
dation domains' a n d methods of informal Gender adds a little complexity for a lot of
survey that Mike Collinson a n d his colleagues insight, while participatory process and tech-
were applying a t the time in the central niques enable farming systems researchers to
provincc. engage more effectively with members of farm-
Much of my tield work in Zambia turned ing communities.
into a n exploration of alternative rnctliods, 'I'he marriage of IW-K, gender analysis a n d
culled from whatcver source book or cxpcri- participatory methods has, to a considerable
enced person then av;~ilablcto me. But it did not extent, become common practice. [:our
k e l likc 'good' research. I was learning more strcr~gthsstand out. 1:irst. the quality of thc
t h a n 1 had ever done bcl'orc. but hour could I ir~forrnationis bettcr because it is richer, rnorc
prcserit this linowlcdgc in a way that n,otrld deeply contcxtualixed and yet amenable to
convince nly own pcer group? ;rggregation. 11 is focused yet cost-effective
'li)wards the end of rny stay i r ~ %;~rnbia across scale, where 'scale' is understood as a
Kobcrt C'harnbcrs and I worked togelher o n a recornmendatior~dornain. Second, in cornbina-
I3asic Needs rnissiori spor~sorcd by thc~ lion they can le;ld lo the rapid discovery of con-
International I , a b o ~ ~ r 0rg;lnixatiorl. 'I'hc lorig tradictions such ;IS the points ~ r l i e r c experience
trek up to the shores of I,ake I3angwculu gave diverges, cz,ticrc>inforrr~;~tion inconsistcr~tand
is
us arnple time fir discussion of these cluestiorls. whcrc. intcrprc,tatior~svary. Where there is con-
vtiich Kohcrt himsclf nr;ls also ponderir~garld vergence, consis1erlc)i ;rrld agreement, o n e c a n
cxplorirlg. along with rnany others, ;IS I later proceed will-1 corllitlcnce along well-established
realixcd. A tiax;~rdous canoc trip across the lake p:rthw;rys: whcre there arcx cor~tradictioris,
brought us to the old 'got11 wonran'. Shc assumptions ;Ire challenged anci further invcsti-
rern;~ins in my nicrnory as o u r tutor in what g ; ~ l i o l is required. 'l'liis is the opportunity for
~
later heccrme known as participatory appraisal genuinely rlew theoretic:~l and practical Itnowl-
methodology. Wc worked n,irIi her li)r a day cdgc to clncrgc. Kelicw of experience suggests
using tcchniqucs still rctgardcd :IS innov;~tivc. that the combination of 12SK-1: plus gender
a ~ ~ a l y s i n g r n a ~ ~ a g ~ r nof ~hcl- goats zhicli
the e rt analysis p l ~ r sparticipatory methods, prompts
ircrercnowncd li)r thc>irt ~ ~ i ti ~ s i c lgood lic;~lth.
ir disco,cv-y by ol'li'ril~gthree dift'crcnt 'windows'
atid n,hich she sustained through the cat-cllrl illto c.oniplcx situ;rtiorls2. 'I'hird. thc comhina-
recycling of waste t ~ n dtlre use ol' tr;rdilior~al tion of pc~rspccti~cs d methods li)cuscs at1c.n-
an
herbs she grew hersell: tion o n c o t ~ s t r a i r ~ t;rncl opporturlitics, rt~thcbr
s
'l'hese l i ~ r n ~ a t i v e
cxpcricnccs i~ddcd a srriall
in than problems. 111 rny view. the elnpliasis or1
,ay lo t l ~ erivcr of :~ccornplishrnent docu- problcrns in :rgricultural research has beell a
mented in this book by bringing together I:SK Iiirlclrance to dcvclopr~~ent, only because it
if
perspectives, gender analysis and participatory providcs such poor inspiration for cl'l'ort and for
methods. spccilication of the potential for change in agri-
cultural reality. I!ilially, the upplication of thcsc
methods has dravn attention to the important
and necessary teclinology-led gains t h a t car1 be
KEY ASPECTS: FSR-E, GENDER achieved with poor people living in variable.
ANALYSIS A N D PARTICIPATORY diverse and uricertairi criviroritrients.
METHODS Ilowc~er, cornhiriation does have a nunl-
the
ber of n~eakriesscs. At the theoretical level,
.s the experiences of rese;~rchers around the thinking about s y s t c n ~ s cloes not have to be sys-
I-orld during the 1 9 8 0 s dcrnonstrated, there is ternic to he useful. Rut a t the practical level. if
iiiuch to be gained by marrying these three the research and technology developrnerlt objec-
-ays of learning and cooperating. On gender tive is in some way to change the systern, then
,inalysis Feldstein and jiggins' concluded that thc mcthodologic;~l toolbox must include the
using gender a s ;I focus resulted in a better tools of researching farming as a n h u m a n activ-
Liescription of the system as a whole a n d ity. Best practice research is generating a rich and
ipencd the door to a greater understanding of constructive case book of the participatory

15. methodologies esscrltial to systemic changc. icy effectsx: a n d apply participatory applied
More commonly however. these niethodologies research a t farm a n d community levels to nat-
seem to be applied mechanisticially or in a n ural resource management.
extractive manner. giving rise to f:~ilures in the A linal problem lies in the field of FSR-H ctlu-
change process'. While lip-service rnight be cation. For many yeiirs I s h i ~ r e d frustrations
the
paid in research proposals to the role of women of field personnel in trying to t u r n the h u m a n
in farming systems, the sad I'act is that this products of specialist ~lniversitydegrees into
remains a male-domin;rted area anti FSli is still systcrns thinkers with ; ~ tleast some competence
1 a ' ~ l ~ n g the proper haridlirlg of this essential
; . in in working with furmcrs o n system develop-
ingredient. ment. My early efforts at the llniversity of
'I'here is a third arca in which I W - t pr;~cticc (;uelph in Ontario to taltc the lessons of the lield
fr~lls short of its potential, perht~ps bcci~use its hael< into acaderni;~to producc a gcneratiori of
of
strong historical rools in farrn rnanagerncrit profc~ssiont~ls competent in I:SK wcrc positive at
'conornics. licscarch 11;1shighlighled the cxtcrlt the h u m a n le,cl. 'l'he students reacted enthusi-
to which a n accomplished end-of-setason svsterii astic;~llyto participatory rnc~thods.intcrdiscipli-
'clesigr;' is the desired o l ~ t c o m cof rcsponscs to rial-!, Ic;~rl~irlg n d systcii~s tlliriliing. l3ut.
a
rtlcxntsunli)l(iing through t l ~ e seasoti. M'hcrevcr tic~.;pitc~ good.ill rid ~ ~ p p ooft key indiviti-
tlie r
the degree of ~rnccrtaintyis high. the, tc~ndency ~ r a l s~ ~ n d o l r h t c ~ d
. barrier.; rcrnained i l l thc rigidi-
.
. ,, .,
to ,~sscssfarrriir~giri terrii.; of pcrfc)rr~~;rricc tic 01 dc.p;~r-tmcntaI struct~lrc~s. dcl'er~ccof
is thc
partic~rlarly rnarl,c~d4, hut this tcndcnc! i ;~lxo intcllectu;~lterritory ;inel the prohlems of rccon-
to be h u n d in more. highly contrc~ll~clr o d ~ ~ c - (.ilirlg s!.stems-oriented courses a ~ the d
p ~ ncecls of
tiori cn,ironments'. (;i,cn thex importance to students vithin the existing s t ~ ~ d y pr-ogr;irnrne.
reso~lrcc-poor f u r n ~ c r s of managing uncc,r- , I (;uclph. marly of the tiil'licultics of rigidity
tainty, greater attentior1 shoul(1 be p;~idlo thc hctwccn dcpartrncnts have beer1 cased by the
overall irnplic;~tions dryland fr~rrnirlg.
of recent crcation of arl irltcrdisciplinary I'hl)
I3est practice points the way, li)r cxarnplc ofli.rcd through a new 1:aculty of
through cxarriirlatiori of stratcgics for copirig 1:nvironrncntal Ilesign ; ~ n (Kurnl 1)evelopriicnt. l
with v;~ryirigseasorial conditions a n d the rules As one, ~ f h is directly irivolvc~d;IS ;I rie~nr-
o
wtiicl~guide farming choices. ('ox 1.t ill." con- corner lo university lilc 211 the Sn~edisli
ductcd elegant rcsearcli a m o n g dryland wllcat Ilrrivcrsity of igricultcrral Sciences. what riiost
I ~ r r n e r sin riorthcrn ( ] ~ r c c ~ ~ s l a r4 1 i c l r-e~c;~ls strikes me, is the irrelevaricc~of rii~rcli n r h ; ~is
~ ~d i of t
much a h o ~ r lthc r ~ ; ~ ( u 01' c cor~tirlgct~t
r decision 011 01'11.1-; i t universities. Ian!. studcnls rcs[~oritl
malting iri corlditior~s of ~rrlccrl;~intq: 'l'hcy hy linding thrir o~vri path.ays of learning
Sound dc.cisions to bc basc>d on a rathc,r small thr-o~rgli 11i1i.scll-study reading groups and by
iril
riurnber of sirnplc rule sets which 'verc: nested: making off-caliip~~s lirilts to community- i ~ n d
triggered hy evcrlts: iritcrcorincctc.d: lirilcd to I';~rmcr-basetia c t i o ~ i'l'he regular prograrnmc is
.
aclditional sets, stable, in rctsponsc to stress (such vliat tI1c.y have to d o to qualify. not nrh;~tthcy
;IS prolongecl clrought): adaptive to lorig-lerm m7ant to do to I c ; ~ r r ~ . ILleanm,hilc~, collahorativc
trends in systerri states: irltcrprctntivc: ; ~ r ~ d su11- initiatives amorig cot~litions those with a per-
of
portivc of sirnultarlcous n~ariagcrncr~t multi- sonal comrnitrnent to chiungc processes are cre-
of
ple indicators of system pcrli)rriiance. ating new institution~tl t r u c t ~ ~ rarld rictnrorlis
s es
I focus or1 thc rn;~n;~gcrnent ur~c.crtainty
of which bypass cxisting structures'.
also suggests 21 need for greater cniph;~sis in It is encouri~gingto find that even in tlie
FSK-F, practice on collaboration between farm- linancii~lly titrrd-pressed educational environ-
ers and scientistsi. l k s t practice has, in fact, ment of eastern and southern Africa, such
already moved in this directiorl. a movement innovations are occurring. For example. ;I con-
rcinl'orccd by crncrging concerns about the rela- sortia of non-government organizations whose
tion bctnrccn on-farm developments and land- activities fbcus o n various forms of ecological
scape scale resource rnanagerncnt. FSK-li is now farming in partnership with farmers and in col-
being ch;~llcngedto investigate the relationships laboration with the llniversity of Zimbabwe,
a m o n g on-farm systems development. ecologi- have now developed a degree course which sup-
cal systems management and agricultural pol- plements classroom study informed by systems

16. thinking with periods of field work with the par- total cultivated area of 2 million h a was desig-
ticipating NGOs. rlated as a 'needs protection' area in the face of
widespread soil erosion. In the space of 4 years,
thc interventions raised thc percentage of dry-
land wheat farmers in the vulnerable areas who
SOME EXAMPLES A N D LESSONS FROM had adopted one or rnore l';llloczr management
BEST PRACTICE practice from 30'XIlo 75'X, some 1 6 0 0 farmers.
-
'I'his success was the more remarlcable for being
1,orrrrrirlg Tog(~t/r(~r, l l a g m a n n . Murnrira a n d achieved through a period of deepening drought
by
Churna in 1 9 9 h I 0 , docu~ncrlts devcloprnent the and ccorlorrlic liartiship. An interdisciplinary
and extension of soil and water conservalion team of scicrltists and cxtcr~sionadvisers worked
technologies in Masvingo arid C'hivi. Zirnbabmv. with I';~rnlers on joint systcnls analysis, and
'I'his example of a new approach was called throlrgh periods of so~nctirnes pairll'ul and con-
krrt~rrrc,~/tr o try) by the I'r~rmcrs- a translatior1 Ilictual rc,flcctiorl on what was being learned arld
(t
of 'resc:~rch' into Shona. I t was based on dia- Ilow thcblei~rrli~lg process nrils occurrirlg. A series
logue, on hrrncrs' own real time, o n wholc-sys- 01' tools nrcbrc devised, i~gi~irllilrgely i r l collabor;~-
t a n cxpcrirncrlls ~und on ;I strcngthcnir~gof tior1 with l':~rmcrs, to e n h ; ~ r ~ cindividual a r ~ d c
sc.lf-organiztrtior~i~l cap;~cityat cornniunity level. sh:rrcd Icarr~irlg about systerns st;~lrs n d pcrl'or-
a
After two seasons each participatirlg L~rmcr. niance. 'l'hcsc included: a rainfall si~nulator,a
brsiclcs tied ridging, had at Icast two other trials soil corer. I low Wet ( a computcr-aided clctcisiorl
ongoing, selected fronl arnorig expcrimcrlts sug- support tool). the F;~llow Managcrnent (;arnc
gested by projcct stafl', local rc.scarcl1 stations (which allows players lo expand o n and intcr-
and farmer irlrlovators, or arising out ol' discus- rogate scc,narios gc~nc>r:rlcd thc usc of tI1c hy
siorl of I~rrriers'indigenous linowlcdgc. More olhcr three, lools) arid LVith and Without ( a user
t h a n 1 0 options li;~vec~ncrgedli-om this join1 fricndly cx)~nparalivc'conomic analysis tool).
procr3ss,includirlg rnccllanical, agronomic. bio- 'l'llrce Iessorls stand out: the import:rncc of pill!-
logical and water savingiirrigalio~l 111e1hods ing c,xplicil ;~tlc'ntior~ I:SI( processes, thc powcr
lo
and tcchnologjcs. Yithirl three seirsor~s li-0111 of slirnul;~tirigshared Irlom~lcdgccrcatiorl and
1992-9 3 , at Ic;~st SO'X, of Ihc total of I I 3 h tllc' nccd li)r sc,icncc> leaders and policy malicr-s to
households within orl? ~rd~riinistrative unit in accept that t11c process will not lead to irdoptio~i
('hivi 1)istrict mrcrc pr;~ctising soil and mr;lter of uniform or- standardixe(l resolutio~is across ; i r l
conservation. 'l'llc irnporttrnt lessons irlc.luclc ccosyste~n. I<atllcr, ;I mosi~ic crncrgcs ;~daptedto
tllc nccd to focus on intcgratcd li~rld u s h ~ i t ~ d r y the systc,rnic req~~irc'rncnts unit levels ( t l ~ e
h at
since individual tccli~iiqucscannot ovcrcornc. l'i~rrn, crop).
lield ; I I I ~
thc diversity of condilio~lsnor ;rlone gcncr;~tc
s u l ' l i ~ i ~ cconornic bcnelit. the value of k ~ r m c r
nt
in~olvemcritright li-om the start i r l extending. FINALE
enriching and validatirlg the portfolio of experi-
rncntution a n d cmerging options, a n d the I)espitc the growing number of examples ol'
rlccessity of supporting ir!stitution;~l and orgkl- good practice with ticmonstrably cost-cl'l'ective
nixational development (czrilhi~icommunilics rc~sults.tlierc is much still to be Ic:~rncd ;rt thc
but also within resctrrch a n d extcrrsio~l a g c w c u t t i r ~ g cdgc o f I3R-I: and ;I contin~ring rlced Sor
cies) in order to support participatory process. /igil;unl cluality control in creryd;ry practice.
I,c,rrrrrirr:g to /,cTttr-rr lblit/r I:trrrr~c~rs, llamilton
by ilofircvcr. to cnd or1 ;I pessimistic note would
in 1995". focuses on a projcct in s o ~ ~ t h e r n give, a li~lse pic,ture of the contribution that sys-
C)ueellsland. This provided invaluable input into tems rcscarc.h in agriculture :und resource rnttn-
research on the dereloprnent, use and c f i c t s of agcment is making to the resolutioli of urgent
providing farmers with better tools Sor rnonitor- hurnan problems. In nly experience, it is a lielcl
ing and interpreting system states and trends. as of ~ n d ~ a v that ~ r o ~ attracts tlcdicated scientists.
the basis for informed decision making u'ith rcseiirchcrs and development worliers of excep-
regard to I'allow management. The project iiras tion;~lly high calibre broadly united in a com-
based in a region where 1 . 8 million ha of the mitment to the betternlent of hurnan existence

17. xvi Foreword
support it. In the
a n d t h e life systems ~ ~ h i c h person of Karl Ikiedrich, then Head of t h e Farm
inclusive direction in which it is evolving, FSR-E Mariagcmcnt a n d Production Economics
provides a franielz.ork for understandirig, a n d I k a n c h , had offered support for the history
thc processes and tools Ibr pursuing t h e agenda within t h c context of FA0 promotion of a n FSII-
f i r h u m a n survival captured by Gocthc, w h o based approach to development. but possible
might he regarded a s a n early rncnihcr of the a u t h o r s and editors were all were too busy
l.'SII-l.: family in the following stanza: 'I:SK-ing' to talte on t h e job. 'l'hcn, in 1)ecemher
1 9 9 4 , at hlontpellier, it all c a m e together. Karl
I!ricdrich a n d 1 rile1 with Milie Collinson.
/ltho~rgh ;In FSII vctcr;ln ;ind enthusi;rst.
rllilic's comniittmcnts over the last 1 0 yctrrs had
inhibited his involvement in AI!SKI: a n d he was
attending only his third o r fourth (tic carl't
COMMISSIONINGTHE BOOK
rernemher!) syrnpositrrn of t h e I 4 that had been
111 I 9 9 1 J was honoured to bc clected ;IS held. Now Iiow~ver, W;IS d u e to rctirc a n d lie
tic
I'residcnt of t h e 1Al:SRlI. One of rny ~ n a i r ~ t;~slis committc,ti h i ~ ~ ~ sto l tfh e cornpil:rtic~n and cdit-
c
duril~g 111y term a s I'rcsidcnt, apart f r o n ~ per- ;I ing of a n history of I!SK o n his retircmcnt. I le
manent strugglc with linancing, was the orga- linirlly retired in early I9'1h a n d has dc~roled
nization of t h e 1 4 t h I n t c r r ~ ; ~ l i o n Symposiurli
;~l 111ucl1 his tirnc, since to linding contributors
of
in Montpellicr. I:ri~r~ce. ;~longsidc,o u r 1:rerlch a n d to coaxing their contributions frorii thcrli.
hosts. One issue h a d been taxing t h e Ilo;rrd of .l'liis is Ilic result 40 contributions from 50 of
-
tlie issociation a n d ils rncmbcrs sinccl 1989 tlie cz,orld's lctrding proli.ssionals. froln som? 1 0
-
tlie writing of a hislory of l h c as so cia ti or^, arrd countries a n inclusive sufccp of t h c spcctrurn
-
11erhaps ;I history of I:SI< in gcncral. I!IO, it1 the of prokssions a n d contincr~ls involved in I!SI<-I:.
REFERENCES
I!'ldstein, 11. & J. Jiggins (Ids), 1994. 'l'ools fc~r 111rI:icltl. (;crlclc.r Issi~c*s I:;~rmi~~g
in Systems I<c~sc*;~rch
anil l~xlc~isio~i. ll~~rtforcl, I I I I ; I ~ ~ ~ I I
West KL l'rcss.
Jiggins,J. & K. R;lm;ln, 1994. I)ccc~nr~ii~l , ~ c1984 I ')Ct3.1:;1stcr11I I ~ I ; I 1:;irrning S ~ S ~ C 'Ilcsci~rch
l<c ~. I IIIS
I'rogrammcs.N C M I)clhi. ' 1 ' 1 1 ~ I:ord I'o~~l~cli~lior~.
1k1wde11, R., 1995. 0 1 1 I l l c Sytc111I ) i n ~ c ~ ~ in~l'Sl<. ] i ~ ~ ~ rof ;I~iir~r~ing
~ ion n ~l Systc>111I{csc:rrcli ;111cl
I:xtcr~sio~r,512). I I X .
Rirh;lrds, I?, 1985. lt~cIigc~nou~ I - I ~ L I I l K rI I -l;~ ~ ~I r i~ ~ ~c l ~ i n I , o ~ ~ c l i ~ t ~ .
. ~L o II I ~t t . ot ,
de Steenhuijsen Piters, 8.. 1995. I)ic,~-~l! 01 l irlel i111dI:i~~-lners. I:xpli~i~~illg Vi~rii~lionsl
Yield il
hort11crti c';1111croor1, I~~rhli~l~c~cI 1'111) ll~csis, ; I ~ L - I I ~ I I ~ ~ I I , 1111icrsitj.
",gricullu~-;~l
I,eeuwis, C., 1993. 0 ' ('i~nrp~tlc~rs.
1 LI>ll~s I I I ~ Rli~dcdling.'l'lir Socii~l ('onstruction of 1)ivcrsity.
; ~
I<nowledgc. Il~fornl;~tion~ l r c l ( ' o ~ ~ ~ l i ~ l ~ ~ l'I1c~~l~~iologic~
i i e i ~ l i o ~ l in I)111et1 IIortic~~IIurc i~nd A g r i c ~ ~ l i ~ ~ r i ~ l
I:utcrlsior~.I'ublisl~cdI'hl) tlic.si.;. 4';1gc11ir1gcn. :gricirl(urt~lIlr~ivcrsity.
Cox, P.G., iZ.1). Shulman, PI.Ridge, M. 1:o;lle & A.1,.C;lrsidr, 1995. / r ~ intcrrog;~tivc appro;~ch ayslctns
to
diagnosis: an invitalion lo the tl;~r~cc. journ;~l I:;~rmingSyste~ns
of Research and I:xlcnsion. 5 ( L ) .h7--X 1.
Sperling, I,. & I Berkowila, 1994. I'arlncrs in Selection. I3e;ln 13rccdcrs ;rnd Womcn I3c;tn 1:xpcrts in
?
1lvanda. ('(;IAl<,Wt~shillgton. I)C.
Sperling. I,. & 11. Srhiedegger, 1995. I'articipi~tory Srlectioll ol' I3cans in I<w;tnda:Ilcsults. Xlcthods and
Instilutiol~al Issues. (;i~tckecpcr scrirs 11o.5 1 . 111:I). I,ondon.
Caldwell, J. & E. Akobundu, 1997. /Igricullurt~l Systcrns and I'olicy. I3l;rcl~sburg. Virginia I'olytechnic
Institute and Stale University li)r /I!SRIi.
Jiggins, 1. & I). Gibbons, 1997. Yll;~te1i1c.si~~terdisciplini~ry tnc;~r~? t:xpericnces from SI.II. I'apcr pre-
sc~~tctl Session 5: ,gricultur;rl Klrowledgr and Inforn~alionSystems. I 3th 1:~lropcan Seminar on
to
Etcnsion F,ducation. 1-6 September. I nivcrsity of 1)uhlin. I)uhlin.
Hagmann. I., K. Murwira & E. Chuma, 1996. 1.earning togcthcr: dcvclopmcnt and extension of soil
and rvtitcr conscrvtrtion in Zimbabwe. (juartcrly Journal of International ilgriculturc. 3 i ( 2 ) . 1-1 4.
IIamilton, N.A., 1995. I,earning to 1,carn with I:t~r~ners. t'ublishcd I'hl) thesis. Wageningcn. Agricultural
1 ~ii~ersity.

19. Chapter 1
Introduction
Mike Collinson
1.1 FSR – TERMINOLOGY AND Americans write about experiences in Africa,
DEFINITION Asia and Latin America, for expatriates indeed
dominate the early history of FSR, itself per-
Even within the choir of advocates there has haps a factor in the resistance to change in
long been controversy on terminology in farm- institutions in many developing countries. An
ing systems research (FSR)1. It raised its head expanding professional capacity there began to
again during the preparation of this book. I make itself felt in FSR’s application and evolu-
hope I have outflanked the controversy by refer- tion in the 1980s, yet institutional change is
ring to FSR and its applications. FSR itself is still perhaps the single biggest constraint to
defined as a diagnostic process; a basket of wider application. Similarly, the early days of
methods for researchers to elicit a better under- FSR are male dominated but the number of
standing of farm households, family decisions contributions in the book from women demon-
and decision-making processes. Its applications strates how they have increasingly asserted
use this understanding to increase the effi- themselves in agricultural development.
ciency in the use of human and budgetary The book is divided into five parts (each with
resources for agricultural development, includ- an editorial introduction) and 12 chapters, each
ing research, extension and policy formulation. with several contributors. Part I of the book tries
These are important applications, both for those to capture the origins and the essence of FSR; its
countries which rely on the traditional agricul- conceptual framework and some of the methods
tural sector to drive their economic develop- central to the understanding of the farming of
ment, and for other countries where that sector resource-poor communities. It begins with con-
is small in terms of population, but where a tributions from a group of pioneers – fondly
social conscience demands measures to combat labelled ‘the old dogs’. Part II examines the appli-
rural poverty. cation of FSR understanding to the choice and
I have tried to give the book diversity development of technology, to the planning and
through the number and origins of its contribu- evaluation of extension, and to policy formula-
tors, and coherence through its structure. tion. Part III focuses on efforts made to incorpo-
While the application of FSR in developed coun- rate FSR into agricultural research and
try agriculture is occasionally illustrated, the extension systems in Africa, Asia and Latin
book is primarily focused on FSR in its original America. It also covers the essential companion
role, with small, resource-poor farmers in devel- to institutionalization; the training of profes-
oping countries. The origins of contributors are sionals in FSR. Part IV looks at the organization
sometimes deceptive. Europeans and North of FSR professionals, with contributions on the
© CAB International 2000. A History of Farming
Systems Research (ed. M. Collinson) 1

20. 2 Chapter 1
growth of associations and networks in Africa, FSR was an innovation in the research
Asia and Latin America, as well as on the process, emerging from field practitioners, an
Association for Farming Systems Research and early effort to bridge the gap between the needs
Extension (AFSRE), subsequently renamed the and capacities of small, resource-poor farmers
International Farming Systems Association and publicly funded agricultural research
(IFSA). These accounts are complemented by establishments. Early in the book, founder
commentaries from professionals in agronomy, members of the FSR family talk about its ori-
farm management and rural sociology on the gins. The common threads through the differ-
interaction of these disciplines with FSR. The ent accounts leave no doubt that in the 1960s
fifth and final part of the book turns to the and early 1970s the same problem was widely
future. Current practitioners discuss cutting identified across the developing world; tech-
edge methods and applications in FSR and the nologies recommended as a result of agricul-
final chapter looks at the lessons of the past and tural research investments were, in general,
the possibilities for the future. It sets out how inappropriate to the priorities and circum-
FSR has moved toward its original goal – a better stances of small farmers. Field practitioners
understanding of small farmers – and, as sys- recognized the importance of the problem and
tems applications in agriculture proliferate, asks targeted a better understanding of small farm-
whether it still has a distinct role. The editorial ers and the way they make decisions, as a path
introductions to each of the five parts outline to its solution. Their concern for appropriate
the contributions and offer a personal commen- improvements for small-scale, illiterate and
tary on the theme covered. Where appropriate, resource-poor farmers was the origin of FSR
this summarizes the evolution of that theme, and remains its foundation.
highlighting both progress and unresolved But FSR has also been elaborated, and for
issues. Three unresolved issues pervade the edi- some confounded, by the scrutiny of academics.
torial introductions and take centre stage in Development theorists, often economists, have
Chapter 12; the scope of FSR, its place in the R & criticized the narrowness of conceptual frame-
D process, and strategy for institutional change. works pinned together by practitioners preoccu-
pied by technology adoption. These originally
ignored such issues as intra-household equity,
1.2 THE ISSUE OF SCOPE population dynamics, intergenerational equity
FSR was one of a number of threads from sys- and sustainability, and the wider macro and pol-
tems thinking that reached into agricultural R icy linkages that these imply. ‘Imported’ meth-
& D in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Crop ods, driven mainly by academics doing research
modelling, dominated by the disciplines of to add to theory, or to test out methods in new
physiology and agronomy, was another innov- circumstances, have sometimes diverted profes-
ative thread, as was cropping systems research, sional attention from the operational circum-
recalled by Dick Harwood in Chapter 2 as stances of developing countries, the modest
underpinning the origins of FSR in Asia. institutional capacities and thin budgets with
Eagerly grasped by a variety of constituencies, which FSR professionals were wrestling. A noto-
the early, tight focus of FSR rapidly widened. rious example in farm management was the
Texts on systems and agricultural develop- quest to apply linear programming to the small-
ment, including those by Penning de Vries, farm sector in the 1960s. Promoted by the ‘have
Teng and Metselaar in 1993, Dent and tool will travel’ brigade, usually from academia
Macgregor in 1994 and CIRAD in 19962, in the USA, it has not yet made a significant
demonstrate the growing range of systems operational impact in developing country agri-
applications in agriculture. It has become culture. Its failure has been due to the intensive
unclear, perhaps even confusing, to practition- data collection efforts required, and the very
ers, how FSR is best viewed within that spec- high costs of bringing the results of program-
trum. Proliferating constituencies for systems ming to bear on farm units with such low levels
applications in agriculture, and confusion over of income that even major improvement would
the scope of FSR have arguably distracted from offer little return for the costs of the research
its practice and institutionalization. and advisory process.

21. Introduction 3
1.3 FSR AS AN INNOVATION IN absence of an appropriate enabling infrastruc-
THE R & D PROCESS ture, must manage their environment directly by
their own decisions and by their activities both
Still today, a generation on, in many of the on and off the farm. Small farmers often cannot
countries where the small-farm sector remains use the technologies appropriate for commercial
crucial to both the national economy and to the farmers and always need explicit consideration
environment, the research/farmer interface in agricultural R & D. These insights have given
remains a critically weak link in the develop- rise to the development of new investigative
ment process. Thus, despite a 25-year history, methods to manage the different circumstances
FSR remains an innovative component in the of resource-poor farmers under conditions of
process for agricultural R & D. The prolonged scarce professional and financial resources. A
gestation for FSR reflects the forces governing start has been made in reorganizing agricultural
innovation – particularly innovation in public R & D institutions to implement the new meth-
institutions – in developing countries, and is ods and to adjust higher agricultural education
itself a lesson for both governments and aid to achieve congruity between the mind-sets of
agencies. There has been great difficulty in fit- peasant farmers and professionals to encourage
ting FSR into agricultural institutions. Is this a mutual respect and partnership in agricultural
failing in FSR as an innovation, or are the improvement.
power dynamics and the entrenched institu- A parallel feature of the last 15 years, and
tional and professional interests in national one which holds great hope for the future, has
agricultural R & D too formidable for change? been the growth of FSR professional associa-
Has the timing of its introduction been inappro- tions. FSR associations attract people from a
priate? The book examines these important range of disciplines, from agronomy, ecology
ongoing issues. Indeed, the history of FSR is a and plant breeding to economics, anthropology
case study of the dynamics of institutional and rural sociology. The growth of these pio-
innovation in developing countries. neering associations has received much of its
The introduction of FSR has been compli- impetus from the leadership of university profes-
cated by: sionals, who established an annual symposium
● The need for changes in professional atti- for FSR-E in the USA in the early 1980s. This
tudes and institutional orientation and orga- evolved into the AFSRE and associations and
nization. institutional networks now exist at the continen-
● The biases of the inherited, often colonial, tal level in the USA and Asia, and at the regional
establishments, in both agricultural educa- level in Africa, Latin America and Europe.
tion, research and development; expatriate- Several contributions to this book document the
driven, Western mind-sets, isolated from the evolution of these associations which promote
small-farm sector, with inappropriate interdisciplinary interaction around key prob-
criteria for success. lems, encourage independence for professionals
● Differences between commercial farmers, in developing countries and complement alle-
often driving public programmes in many giance to discipline with allegiance to people in a
developing countries, and resource-poor refocusing of the R & D process in agriculture. In
farmers. Africa, Asia and Latin America FSR associations
are moving professionals out from under the
Small farmers do not behave like commercial spell of developed country fora, finding their feet
farmers. They are not organized to interact with in their own context, and helping to bring both
the wider market economy, nor are they politi- education and development processes into line
cally articulate like commercial farmers. These with the needs of local people. It is good to be
had attracted a set of service institutions, for able to record progress towards these goals. But
example in credit and insurance, for protection it is important to record that these gains remain
against the vagaries of weather and the market. fragile and there is a danger that governments,
These older institutional processes, oriented to courted by the dynamics of growth at any price,
and organized for large farmers, cannot operate may despair of their smallholder constituencies
cost-effectively with small farmers who, in the as an engine to achieve it.

22. 4 Chapter 1
Appropriate intervention for farm improve- ● Recognition that on one small farm, a major
ment remains the heart of FSR. Experience improvement of productivity, even 100%, is
has widened the portfolio of interventions a small absolute benefit, and costs of achiev-
beyond the early emphasis on technology ing it must be low.
development. Accumulating insights into the ● Recognition that appropriately qualified
nature of the traditional agricultural sectors agricultural professionals are an extremely
of developing countries have shaped the evolu- scarce resource.
tion of an FSR process for their successful
The scope of FSR and the strategy for promotion
development and deployment. The early
and institutionalization, perhaps the funda-
insights included:
mental issues of FSR, are revisited in the final
● Recognition that vast numbers of small chapter. I hope this book will provide a founda-
farms dominate agricultural sectors in many tion on which a second, or now perhaps a third,
developing countries under widely diverse generation of farm systems practitioners can
circumstances. build.
REFERENCES
1. Merrill-Sands, D., 1986. Farming systems research: clarification of terms and concepts. Experimental
Agriculture, 22, 87–104.
Simmonds, N.W., 1985. Farming Systems Research – a Review. World Bank Technical Paper no. 43.
World Bank, Washington D.C.
2. Penning de Vries, F., P. Teng, & K. Metselaar (Eds), 1993. Systems Approaches for Agricultural
Development. Kluwer, Dordrecht, and IRRI, Los Baños, Philippines.
Dent, J.B & M.J. Macgregor (Eds), 1994. Rural and Farming Systems Analysis – European Perspectives.
CAB International, UK.
CIRAD, 1996. Systems Oriented Research in Agriculture and Rural Development. Lectures and Debates
from an International Symposium, Montpellier, France. CIRAD-SAR, Montpellier.