| 1. |
- Andersson, Elina, et al.
(författare)
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Gambling in the garden: Pesticide use and risk exposure in Ugandan smallholder farming
- 2021
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Ingår i: Journal of Rural Studies. - : Elsevier BV. - 0743-0167. ; 82, s. 76-86
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The use and promotion of pesticides is on the increase in many sub-Saharan African countries, including in the smallholder sector. This paper stems from placed-based research in Uganda and aims at advancing current knowledge on smallholder farmers' motivations for pesticide use, the extent and character of such use, as well as on lived experiences regarding the impacts of pesticides. Data was generated through a household survey, in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with farmers, complemented by field observations and interviews with local agricultural actors. Conceptually, we draw on political ecology to link local practice to broader conditions and processes and their social-environmental outcomes. Our findings demonstrate that a large majority of farmers have resorted to pesticides as their primary strategy for pest control. Current practices entail substantial human health and environmental risks which tend to be socially differentiated, including along gender lines. Many farmers are concerned about the impacts and uncertainties surrounding pesticides, but face numerous barriers to behavioral change. While intensifying pest pressure is one such immediate barrier, our findings also suggest that deep structural forces shape farmers' adoption of pesticides and prevent adequate protective measures. Rapid market liberalization combined with poor regulation enforcement have resulted in widespread promotion of agro-chemicals and a large informal market for cheap, poor-quality products, including counterfeits. Low public spending on the agricultural sector, a malfunctioning extension system and systematic lack of development and promotion of strategies not centered on synthetic pesticides furthermore severely constrain farmers’ access to support on, and indeed options for, pest control. This lacking capacity and effort to adequately protect smallholders from pesticide exposure and ensure their ability to make informed decisions on pest management clearly places the burden of risk disproportionately on an already vulnerable group.
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| 2. |
- Boda, Chad, et al.
(författare)
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A collective alternative to the Inward Turn in environmental sustainability research
- 2022
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Ingår i: Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2190-6491 .- 2190-6483. ; 12:2, s. 291-297
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- It has become quite common in environmental sustainability research to promote the influencing of so-called inner dimensions of individuals as means to address pressing environmental problems such as climate change, what we refer to as the Inward Turn. We argue that the conceptual foundations of the Inward Turn, an extreme form of methodological individualism, limit it significantly as a strategy for addressing climate change and other socially relevant environmental problems. After briefly reviewing major shortcomings with the way the Inward Turn conceptualizes the relationship between individuals and social change, including its neglect of causal structures and propensity to abstract its analysis away from problems that are specific to place and time, we sketch the basic tenets of an alternative methodological approach capable of overcoming these limitations. Our approach, however, does not go to the other extreme and neglect the role of individuals; rather, our recognition of the structural drivers of particular environmental problems points to the necessity of specific collective actions by individuals, for example, in the practice of social movements. This recognition demands a rethinking of the role of individual factors, like emotion and empathy, in addressing environmental sustainability problems, namely as they relate to collective action/social movement emergence, development, and outcomes.
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| 3. |
- Boda, Chad, et al.
(författare)
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Every farmer is a farmer? : A critical analysis of the emergence and development of Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana
- 2024
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Ingår i: Geoforum. - 1872-9398. ; 150
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Smallholder farmer-based rural social movements have been heralded as a promising source of political power with the potential to effectively promote sustainable trajectories of agricultural development in Sub-Saharan Africa and beyond. However, the very early stages of rural social movement building remain understudied, including under what conditions such nascent efforts are likely to lead to effective political influence and foundations for broader collective action. Drawing on insights from organizational studies and resource mobilization theories, we provide an analytical narrative of the emergence and development of a smallholder farmer-based policy advocacy organization, the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG). Through analysis of organizational documents and an extensive open-ended focus group interview with PFAG’s founders, long-term members, and current staff, we discuss how PFAG managed to overcome the “liability of newness” faced by new organizations, and how its resulting organizational structure influences its modes of resource mobilization and thus type and coverage of its advocacy and service delivery activities. Considering this developmental narrative, we elaborate several challenges that PFAG faces in pursuit of its ambitions to expand its influence in Ghanaian agricultural policy and practice. Our findings indicate the need for PFAG to address emerging contradictions in project activities and uneven geographical coverage, manage tensions between advocacy and service delivery objectives and to work towards establishing an umbrella agenda capable of providing for the diverse and evolving needs of their membership base.
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| 4. |
- Boda, Chad, et al.
(författare)
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Every farmer is a farmer? A critical analysis of the emergence and development of Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana
- 2024
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Ingår i: Geoforum. - : Elsevier. - 0016-7185 .- 1872-9398. ; 150
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Smallholder farmer-based rural social movements have been heralded as a promising source of political power with the potential to effectively promote sustainable trajectories of agricultural development in Sub-Saharan Africa and beyond. However, the very early stages of rural social movement building remain understudied, including under what conditions such nascent efforts are likely to lead to effective political influence and foundations for broader collective action. Drawing on insights from organizational studies and resource mobilization theories, we provide an analytical narrative of the emergence and development of a smallholder farmer-based policy advocacy organization, the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG). Through analysis of organizational documents and an extensive open-ended focus group interview with PFAG's founders, long-term members, and current staff, we discuss how PFAG managed to overcome the “liability of newness” faced by new organizations, and how its resulting organizational structure influences its modes of resource mobilization and thus type and coverage of its advocacy and service delivery activities. Considering this developmental narrative, we elaborate several challenges that PFAG faces in pursuit of its ambitions to expand its influence in Ghanaian agricultural policy and practice. Our findings indicate the need for PFAG to address emerging contradictions in project activities and uneven geographical coverage, manage tensions between advocacy and service delivery objectives and to work towards establishing an umbrella agenda capable of providing for the diverse and evolving needs of their membership base.
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| 5. |
- Byaruhanga, Ronald, et al.
(författare)
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Rethinking the Alternatives: Food Sovereignty as a Prerequisite for Sustainable Food Security
- 2023
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Ingår i: Food Ethics. - 2364-6861. ; 8:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The concept of food sovereignty is primarily taken as an alternative to the prevailing neoliberal food security model. However, the approach has hitherto not received adequate attention from policy makers. This could be because the discourse is marked by controversies and contradictions, particularly regarding its ability to address the challenges of feeding a rapidly growing global population. In response to these criticisms, this paper argues that the principles of food sovereignty, such as democratic and transparent food systems, agroecology, and local market prioritization, should be fundamental pillars for achieving sustainable food security. It acknowledges that neither food sovereignty nor food security models alone can guarantee long-term food security, thus advocating for a blended approach that integrates these perspectives into a complex and interconnected system. This paper makes three significant contributions to the existing literature. Firstly, it emphasizes that food sovereignty should be seen as an integral component of transforming food systems towards sustainability, rather than a complete departure from neoliberal food systems. Secondly, it highlights the importance of adopting a multi-scalar approach, where decisions and policies for transforming food systems are context-specific and tailored to local circumstances. Lastly, the paper recognizes the necessity of institutional transformations that involve nation-states, social movements, and civil society organizations as key actors in the process of food system transformation. By reframing the discussion on food sovereignty and its relationship with food security, this paper provides insights into how these concepts can be mutually reinforcing, leading to more sustainable and equitable food systems.
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| 6. |
- Ellinor, Isgren, et al.
(författare)
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Rural social movements and sustainable agricultural development in sub-Saharan Africa: towards a collaborative research agenda
- 2023
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Ingår i: Interface. - : Interface journal. - 2009-2431. ; 14:1, s. 22-45
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Agriculture is key to sustainable development globally – particularly in countries where agriculture both accounts for most of the land use and provides a livelihood for most of the population. We map out a collaborative research agenda aimed at tackling the urgent but poorly understood issue of the role of farmer organisations in overcoming political barriers to sustainable and inclusive agricultural development, with particular attention to sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. Building on a critical and collaborative dialogue between a diversity of small-scale farmer-led organisations, local activist groups, transnational civil society networks, and heterogeneous academic institutions, our agenda is organized around two key objectives: 1) understanding the conditions for, development of and outcomes from farmer-based political mobilisation in rural areas; and 2) strengthening participatory, action-oriented research capacity for critically engaged research on agrarian questions in SSA. The approach we advocate emphasises the scientific and societal benefits of combining theoretically informed crosscountry comparison of farmer-based rural social movements, with deepening of academic-civil society collaboration
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| 7. |
- Gerhardt, Karin, et al.
(författare)
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Nog nu, politiker – ta klimatkrisen på allvar
- 2022
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Ingår i: Aftonbladet Debatt. - 1103-9000. ; -:-
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Tidskriftsartikel (populärvet., debatt m.m.)abstract
- 1944 svenska forskare och anställda i forskarvärlden: Vad är det ni inte förstår?
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| 8. |
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| 9. |
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| 10. |
- Harnesk, David, et al.
(författare)
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Sustainability as a Real Utopia – Heuristics for transformative sustainability research
- 2022
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Ingår i: Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space. - : SAGE Publications. - 2514-8494 .- 2514-8486. ; 5:3, s. 1678-1695
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The idea of ‘Sustainability as a Real Utopia’ elaborated on here adapts sociologist Erik Olin Wright’s emancipatory social science and is a heuristic informed by critical realism and social theory for interdisciplinary research on viable alternatives that move society towards achieving sustainability. Starting from the proposition that many environmental problems are rooted in how social structures and institutions interact with nature by shaping human agency, we argue for concretely situated analysis aimed at guiding human agency towards changing those root causes. Then, drawing on concrete examples from sustainability research, we elaborate on three central tasks: diagnosing and critiquing environmental problems, elaborating viable alternatives and proposing a theory of transformation. Finally, we discuss, and welcome dialogue around two central and interlinked challenges of our approach to transformative sustainability research: that of scales, and that of the distinction and relationship between reforms and transformation.
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