Agroecology in Latin America
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Agroecology Agroecology (US: a-grō-ē-ˈkä-lə-jē) is an academic discipline that studies ecological processes applied to agricultural production systems. Bringing ecological principles to bear can suggest new management approaches in agroecosystems. The ...
is an
applied science Applied science is the use of the scientific method and knowledge obtained via conclusions from the method to attain practical goals. It includes a broad range of disciplines such as engineering and medicine. Applied science is often contrasted ...
that involves the adaptation of ecological concepts to the structure, performance, and management of sustainable agroecosystems.Altieri, Miguel A., Peter Rosset, and Lori Ann Thrupp. "The Potential of Agroecology to Combat Hunger in the Developing World." A 2020 Vision for Food, Agriculture, and the Environment.(1998). Brief 55. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United States. In
Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...
, agroecological practices have a long history and vary between regions but share three main approaches or levels: plot scale, farm scale, and
food system The term food system describes the interconnected systems and processes that influence nutrition Nutrition is the biochemical and physiological process by which an organism uses food to support its life. It provides organisms with nutrients ...
scale. Agroecology in Latin American countries can be used as a tool for providing both ecological, economic, and social benefits to the communities that practice it, as well as maintaining high
biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...
and providing refuges for
flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. E ...
and
fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zoo ...
in these countries.Altieri, Miguel A. "Part 1." Agroecological Innovations: Increasing Food Production with Participatory Development. By Norman Thomas. Uphoff. London: Earthscan Publications. (2002): 3-71. Due to its broad scope and versatility, it is often referred to as "a science, a movement, a practice."


Background


History

Agroecological methods have been practiced in Latin America for centuries, but the term agroecology in reference to the combination of
agronomy Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants by agriculture for food, fuel, fiber, chemicals, recreation, or land conservation. Agronomy has come to include research of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and ...
and
ecology Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...
was coined in 1928 by B.M. Bensin in the U.S. Until the 1960s, it mainly focused on the scientific aspects of agronomy and ecology and remained relatively unknown. However, due to the increasing awareness of the harmful effects of pesticides and the burgeoning environmental movement in the 1970s, agroecology gained momentum globally and began to integrate a much wider range of issues on top of ecological ones, such as the social, political, economic implications of agroecosystems. In this context, the scientific aspect of agroecology began to engage in dialogue with traditional local farming practices and experimentation in many regions. The relationship between agronomists and traditional practitioners, often
subsistence farmers Subsistence agriculture occurs when farmers grow food crops to meet the needs of themselves and their families on smallholdings. Subsistence agriculturalists target farm output for survival and for mostly local requirements, with little or no su ...
, has been termed an "exchange of wisdoms." In Latin America specifically, agroecology spread more widely during the period of structural adjustment policies in the 1970s. In this time, many Latin American countries took up loans from the International Monetary Fund with strict conditions of trade liberalization that allowed large transnational corporations to grab large swaths of land and out-compete local markets.The role of Agroecology on the future of agriculture and the food system
, Sociedad Científica Latinoamericana de Agroecología, 2017.
While many small farmers were negatively impacted, many others have joined to form cooperatives, social movements, or global organizations.


Benefits

Traditional farming systems of Latin America were forged from a need to subsist on limited means. These techniques were developed from centuries of cultural and biological evolution by combining experiences and methods of other peasant farmers using locally available resources. Due to its origins Latin American, agroecology represents a low impact form of agriculture. Modern agriculture had become a process of "artificialization of nature" producing a monoculture of a very few crop species. Agroecology contrasts industrial agriculture in its use of polyculture, lack of
synthetic fertilizers A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...
, minimal machinery and incorporation of successional stages. Agroecology attempts to benefit both people and the environment by maximizing crop yield, but also preserving the natural environment. It is often practiced by forming agroecosystems which are communities of plants and animals interacting with their physical and chemical environment that have been planted and harvested by people.


Economic benefits

Agroecological principles allow farmers to save many in several important ways: becoming independent from large corporations' inputs such as GMO seeds and fertilizers; having a more diversified and thus more resilient crop system where income does not depend on one single crop; using simple, cost-effective techniques to increase productivity; having solidarity markets with local communities and thus a steady source of income; having a democratized method of knowledge and seed exchange. Specific examples of economically successful agroecological systems include stabilizing hillside farming in
Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
. World Neighbors, an NGO, partnered with Honduran farmers to implement a program that helped practice soil conservation using techniques such as drainage and contour ditches, grass barriers, rock walls, and organic fertilization (e.g., use of
chicken manure Chicken manure is the feces of chickens used as an organic fertilizer, especially for soil low in nitrogen. Of all animal manures, it has the highest amount of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Chicken manure is sometimes pelletized for ...
and intercropping with legumes). These changes allowed for an increase in grain yield of three to four times more than in previous years as well as supplied 1,200 families with grain. Another example, from the Andean region in Peru where a partnership of NGOs and locals lead to the implementation of a Pre-Columbian indigenous technique called Waru Warus. This technique involved raising the fields and surrounding them with dug out ditches filled with water, which regulates the soil temperature allowing for an extended growing season. In the district of Huatta, this method of using waru-warus have increased annual potato yields by 4-10 metric tons per hectare. A final example from the Andean region where some peasant communities in
Cajamarca Cajamarca (), also known by the Quechua name, ''Kashamarka'', is the capital and largest city of the Cajamarca Region as well as an important cultural and commercial center in the northern Andes. It is located in the northern highlands of Peru ...
and NGOs planted more than 550,000 trees and reconstructed terraces as well as drainage and infiltration canals. This change allowed for about half the population in the area - 1,247 families - to have land under conservation measures. For these people, potato yields have increased from 5 to 8 tons per hectare and oca ( wood sorrel) yields have jumped from 3 to 8 tons per hectare.


Ecological benefits

The benefits of agroecology are not only economic, but also important ecologically. There is evidence to indicate that the agroecosystems with overstory shade trees like coffee or cacao plantations can rival the biodiversity of natural forests. The diversity is so high in these systems because the overstory is structurally and floristically complex which allows for many different niches to be available resulting in refuges. It is possible that shade coffee plantations are already serving as refuges, as seen in Puerto Rico where tremendous deforestation has occurred and yet the avian extinction rate is relatively low. Another system that is ecologically important is neotropical kitchen gardens. Kitchen gardens or home gardens are common in tropical and subtropical areas and they provide food and income for the family. Some kitchen gardens like the Mopan Mayan of southern Belize contain dozens of tree and plant species of different stories mimicking a natural forest. These patches, much like shade plantations, serve as refuges for flora and fauna such as in Belize where they are used by migratory birds. Agroecological farms and methods also contribute to reducing the effects of climate change as they have more plants and thus greater carbon sequestration as well as limited emissions from farm management and crop transportation. Agroecology in Latin America also includes many ecological areas such as water conservation, soil health, and maintaining seed diversity, among others.La ViaCampesina's Brochure. Web. October 20. 2017. viacampesina.org https://viacampesina.org/en/la-via-campesina-organisational-brochure-edition-2016/


Social benefits

The principles of agroecology are also cultural and social. Agroecology is the “transformation of rural realities through collective action” for the goal of food sovereignty. Thus it is not just science and principles, but also a practice, which produces many social benefits as it is a combination of efforts between farmers, social movements, scientists, and NGOs, as well as occasionally local governments.
Food sovereignty Food sovereignty is a food system in which the people who produce, distribute, and consume food also control the mechanisms and policies of food production and distribution. This stands in contrast to the present corporate food regime, in which ...
is a core component of agroecology that increases social power. The definition of food sovereignty as defined by
La Via Campesina La Vía Campesina (from es, la vía campesina, ) is an international farmers organization founded in 1993 in Mons, Belgium, formed by 182 organisations in 81 countries, and describing itself as "an international movement which coordinates peasan ...
, the social movement that articulated it, is the following:
"Food sovereignty is the right of peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through sustainable methods and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems. It develops a model of small scale sustainable production benefiting communities and their environment. Food sovereignty prioritizes local food production and consumption, giving a country the right to protect its local producers from cheap imports and to control its production. It includes the struggle for land and genuine agrarian reform that ensures that the rights to use and manage lands, territories, water, seeds, livestock, and biodiversity are in the hands of those who produce food and not of the corporate sector."
Thus, when communities, NGOs and the public move beyond the view of food security, i.e. having enough to eat, and transition to the framework of food sovereignty, much more progress can be made in ensuring people's well-being. Farmers then have control over how their food is produced, what is produced, and where it is sold, which must primarily be in local markets. Thus consumers also have close ties to the production process. A key component of the agroecological method used to achieve food sovereignty is campesino-a-campesino, or farmer-to-farmer knowledge exchange, which is an effective way to strengthen social relations within and between communities. Similarly, the collaboration between researchers from universities and farmer research projects allows farmers to have greater social standing than in industrial agriculture where they are simply told what to do. Additionally, indigenous customs and knowledge are highly valued, whereas they have historically been considered irrelevant by most agronomists and "development experts". Through the agroecological techniques that produce a higher and more diverse overall crop yield than industrial agriculture, small-scale farmers are able to be self-sufficient and at the same time produce excess to sell in local "solidarity markets," i.e. places where they have loyal customers. This is an effective form of poverty reduction because the greatest cause of poverty in rural Latin America is not having enough income from crops. With agroecological methods such as crop diversification, crops are much more resistant to drastic and unexpected effects of climate change, thus farmers' livelihoods are less vulnerable. Another important social benefit is the part of agroecology that emphasizes agrarian reform, i.e. transitioning back to small-scale farms where farmers own their land vs. being workers on large, corporate-owned industrial farms. Social movements in Brazil such as the Landless Workers' Movement (MST) have successfully re-acquired land for subsistence farmers and farmer cooperatives.


Role of social movements

Social movements play a significant role in the movement of agroecology in Latin America, which emerged in the scene of growing
neoliberal Neoliberalism (also neo-liberalism) is a term used to signify the late 20th century political reappearance of 19th-century ideas associated with free-market capitalism after it fell into decline following the Second World War. A prominent fa ...
globalization beginning in the 1970s. In this period, trans-national corporations began dominating the agricultural sector, causing food shortages, excess dependence on imports and agricultural inputs. It was in response to these effects that many social movements in Latin America formed. One of the most prominent movements is
La Via Campesina La Vía Campesina (from es, la vía campesina, ) is an international farmers organization founded in 1993 in Mons, Belgium, formed by 182 organisations in 81 countries, and describing itself as "an international movement which coordinates peasan ...
, an umbrella organization that connects many local farmer groups and movements. It began in 1993 when farmer representatives from four continents convened in their first conference, with many representatives from Latin America. it is now present in 73 countries all over the world, representing around 200 million farmers. La Via Campesina was the first to define food sovereignty at the World Food Summit in 1996. It began by demanding land for farmers through occupations, but soon expanded its goals to a much wider range of issues. Now its main goals are: defending food sovereignty, struggle for land and agrarian reforms; promoting agroecology and defending local seeds; promoting peasant rights and struggle against criminalization of peasants. It has also expanded its work to increasing communication and consensus with other users of land, conducting research, expanding its organizations that deal with legal support for occupations, and confronting negative stereotypes of occupations in the public eye. They hold an International Conference every four years, which is "the movement’s highest body for political discussion and decision-making, where future actions and agendas are defined." There have been such conferences since 1993, guiding the many other networks of action that members engage in around the world. Another large movement is the
Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra Landless Workers' Movement ( pt, Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra, MST) is a social movement in Brazil, inspired by Marxism, generally regarded as one of the largest in Latin America with an estimated informal membership of 1.5 millio ...
, or MST in Brazil. MST has been and continues to be one of the largest peasant-lead forces that drive agrarian reform. During the time of Presidents Lula and Cardoso, who prioritized agribusiness, little progress was made. But MST's alliance with La Via Campesina and its fight for agrarian reform explicitly tied to territorial issues still makes it a major driver in these questions: anywhere where there was successful reform, MST—the peasants themselves—were involved. Paradoxically, however, although MST and other organizations are relatively successful in acquiring land, simultaneously large agribusinesses are grabbing pieces of land from the Amazon. In general, there are several trends present in Latin American peasant social movements. First, peasants have developed a political consciousness and identity even across borders. Second, they share the conviction that small scale agroecological practices actually have higher efficiency, resilience to climate change, and increased food security and sovereignty. Third, they engage in five major battles against
agribusiness Agribusiness is the industry, enterprises, and the field of study of value chains in agriculture and in the bio-economy, in which case it is also called bio-business or bio-enterprise. The primary goal of agribusiness is to maximize profit w ...
es: * control of nature for sustainable local use * the right of smallholder farmers to produce for livelihood and communities around them not for profit * the fight for food sovereignty * keeping GMO seeds out and allowing their own control of genetic diversity * making production and market networks sustain the local needs.


Role of research

Hand in hand with the work of social movements is the work of researchers at various universities throughout Latin America. There are now many agroecology departments throughout the continent, although they often struggle with limited funding and resources compared to large agronomy departments. One example of an organization that promotes agroecological research alongside dialogue with farmers is th
Sociedad Cientifica Latinoamericana de Agroecologia
(SOCLA), or Latin American Scientific Society of Agroecology. SOCLA organizes conferences every year in various locations in Latin America, where farmers, students, and researchers share knowledge, seeds, practices, and formulate strategies for the future.


Examples by method


Shade Coffee

Shade-grown coffee is an ecologically and economically important agroecosystem in which coffee plants are grown in the understory of a tree canopy. The shade of the canopy over the coffee shrubs encourages natural ecological processes and species diversity. These shade coffee plantations are in many Latin American countries including Brazil, Mexico, Belize and Guatemala. Shade coffee growers maintain complex coffee agroforests in which they produce coffee and manage the area's
biota Biota may refer to: * Biota (ecology), the plant and animal life of a region * Biota (plant), common name for a coniferous tree, ''Platycladus orientalis'' * Biota, Cinco Villas, a municipality in Aragon, Spain * Biota (band), a band from Color ...
. Shade coffee differs from the industrial open sun coffee plantations that increase faster coffee growth and reduce costs but result in decreased biota resources, refuge,
nutrient cycling A nutrient cycle (or ecological recycling) is the movement and exchange of inorganic and organic matter back into the production of matter. Energy flow is a unidirectional and noncyclic pathway, whereas the movement of mineral nutrients is cycli ...
and increased broken terrain and soil erosion. Studies have been done in Latin America to prove the biological importance of shade coffee. In 1996, a scientific journal discussed the evolving industrial coffee plantation effects on Northern Latin American countries. Areas of high deforestation where traditional shade coffee methods are used have been found to be a crucial refuge for many biota. Another study in Veracruz, Mexico on shade coffee ecological relationships found that areas of lower
cloud forest A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF), is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, montane, moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud c ...
that are now coffee plantations are also a microclimate for native orchids and pollinators.


Shade cacao

Some cacao is now grown in cabrucas, an agroforestry system found in Belize, Mexico, Ecuador, Peru, Costa Rica and Brazil, in which cacao is grown underneath the canopy of mixed native trees. Cabrucas are largely run by smallholder farmers. As with shade coffee, the forest canopy for cacao production has been found to provide a diverse ecosystem. An example of the biological importance of cabrucas can be found in Brazil's main cacao production region Southern
Bahia, Brazil Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-largest by ...
. A 2008 study of biodiversity conservation in cacao regions found that the cabrucas in Southern Bahia are used by a significant proportion of native flora and fauna. Due to parts of the region experiencing high deforestation and fragmentation, these cabrucas are providing habitat, fragment connection, and
edge effect In ecology, edge effects are changes in population or community structures that occur at the boundary of two or more habitats. Areas with small habitat fragments exhibit especially pronounced edge effects that may extend throughout the range. As ...
reduction. Another study in Costa Rica on the role of these cacao plantations in maintaining
avian Avian may refer to: *Birds or Aves, winged animals *Avian (given name) (russian: Авиа́н, link=no), a male forename Aviation *Avro Avian, a series of light aircraft made by Avro in the 1920s and 1930s *Avian Limited, a hang glider manufacture ...
diversity found that the plantations do not substitute for a forest but do provide a home for a large number of avian generalist species.


Some examples by country


Cuba

Cuba is a unique example of successful agroecological transformation on a national level. In the beginning of the 20th century, Cuba was devastated socially and ecologically by industrial agro-inputs and chemicals and northern crop dumping, but the socialist revolution did not change that as large-scale industrial agriculture was still prioritized. Thus, once Cuba reached a crisis in the 1990s, it was determined to restructure its food system to emphasize smaller farms, local production, national and local self-sufficiency and food sovereignty.Funes-Monzote, F.R., Monzote, M., Lantinga, E.A. Van Keulen, H. (2009). ''Conversion of specialised Dairy Farming Systems into sustainable Mixed Farming Systems in Cuba. Environment, Development and Sustainability.'' 11, 765-783. What followed was what is now known as Cuba's agroecological revolution, where small-scale farmers now produce more than 65% domestic food using only 25% of the country's land, most using agroecological methods. Its success lies in the dynamic grassroots organization of peasants with other peasants. These improvements in organization and adoption of agroecological methods over time have increased productivity dramatically, and thus also food sovereignty, as well as resilience to climate change.Rosset, P.M. et al. (2011). ''The Campesino-to-Campesino agroecology movement of ANAP in Cuba: social process methodology in the construction of sustainable peasant agriculture and food sovereignty''. The Journal of Peasant Studies. 38:1, 161–191.


Mexico

''La Secundaria Técnica número 34'' in Jojutla became the first middle school in the country to give classes in
agroecology Agroecology (US: a-grō-ē-ˈkä-lə-jē) is an academic discipline that studies ecological processes applied to agricultural production systems. Bringing ecological principles to bear can suggest new management approaches in agroecosystems. The ...
.


See also

*
Environmental history of Latin America The environmental history of Latin America has become the focus of a number of scholars, starting in the later years of the twentieth century. But historians earlier than that recognized that the environment played a major role in the region's his ...
* * *


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Agroecology In Latin America Agroecology Agriculture by region Latin America