Degrowth and Agriculture Module reading material

The subject of the module is an alternative food production and distribution in the context of degrowth theory.

The aim of the module is to introduce the following issues from the degrowth perspective: the critique of industrial agriculture, overview of possible alternatives, such as local and organic production, cooperatives, Community Supported Agriculture, and a critical analysis of functioning and results of these alternatives.

1. Critique of the industrial agriculture.

Modern agriculture – costs for its success, weaknesses of the industrial agriculture, potentials for land use policies

I assume that participants have either basic or no knowledge of the concept and meaning of the de-growth (steady state) economy. Besides, they have various expertise and background.

The participants will learn:

• How the concept of the de-growth economy can be translated into the agricultural sector

• What are the main principles of the European agricultural policies, what do they focus on, what mechanisms are applied, etc.
  What are the meanings of sustainable agriculture, what principles contribute to the sustainable farming

• What is the role of institutions in formulating sustainable agricultural policies, basics of (sustainable) policy designing and implementation

The module will consist of the following parts:

Introduction to the de-growth agricultural economy (principles, conflicts, implications for the society).

EU land policies on the edge of 21st century (objectives, mechanism, tools, their governance).

Agricultural policies and instruments that address the sustainable objectives. Policy design and policy cycle.

Practical part (perhaps in teams): formulation and preparation of the measures that will address the objectives which would fulfill the principles of de-growth economy

Where possible the presentation will be mostly accompanied with the practical examples or case studies.

Bibliography

Dietz R., O´Neill D. (2013) Enough Is Enough. Routledge. London.

Schumacher, E.F. 1973. Small Is Beautiful: Economics As If People Mattered. Harper and Row Publishers, Inc., New York, New York.

Lievens L. (2010) Agriculture in a degrowth society: helpful indicator for the transition. Transitory indicator for paradigm shift. Conference proceedings. 2nd Conference on Economic Degrowth For Ecological Sustainability and Social Equity

A list of reading materials is also at the web page of the Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy: http://steadystate.org/discover/reading-list/

Websites:

http://www.steadystate.org

http://www.landinstitute.org

http://neweconomy.net

2. How international growth policies influence agricultural practices:

•  Example 1: EU legislations and farmers practices related to them. Description of life stories of conventional farmers (if it is possible visits to the conventional farmers): What do they produce? How do they do it? What are the conditions of production? What changed until Poland is in EU? What they can and what they can not do regarding the legislations (antibiotics, medicines, conditions of production)? How they sell their products? What problems do they face? Would they change into alternative farming? Why? What do they need to change?

• Example 2: International trade legislation vs. food production and distribution.

Bibliography:

Adams, Ryan Thomas
2008 Large-Scale Mechanized Soybean Farmers in Amazonia: New Ways of Experiencing Land, Culture & Agriculture Vol. 30, Numbers 1 & 2 pp. 32–37

Kimbrell, Andrew
2002 The Fatal Harvest. Reader. A Tragedy of Industrial agriculture, Island Press, Washington/Covelo/London.

Bonanno, Alessandro; Lawrence Busch; William H. Friedland….

1994 From Columbus to ConAgra: The Globalization of Agriculture and Food, University Press of Kansas.

Hellin, Jon; Sophie Higman
2004 Feeding the Market: South American Farmers, Trade and Globalization, Kumarian Press, Bloomfield.

Magdoff F, Foster JM, Buttel F, ed. 
2000 Hungry  for  Profit: The Agribusiness. Threat to Farmers, Food, and  the  Environment.  New  York: Monthly Rev.  Press

3. Overview of possible alternatives

−        Alternatives systems of food production and distribution as a potential of change of socioeconomic relations. The role of cooperatives and CSAs in degrowing the economy.

−        Description of the role of peasant movements in the socio-economic global change.

−        The story of one CSA or a cooperative.

Bibliography:

Bebbington, Anthony
1993 Modernization from below: An Alternative Indigenous Development? Economic Geography, Vol. 69, No. 3, Environment and Development, pp. 274-292.

Desmarais, Annette Aurelie
2007 La Vía Campesina. Globalization and the Power of Peasants, Pluto Press, London.

Janssen, Brandi
2010 Local Food, Local Engagement: Community- Supported Agriculture in Eastern Iowa, Culture & Agriculture Vol. 32, Issue 1 pp. 4–16.

Marc Edelman
1999 Peasants Against Globalization: Rural Social Movements in Costa Rica, Stanford University Press, Stanford.

Netting, Robert McC.
1993 Smallholders, Householders: Farm Families and the Ecology of Intensive, Sustainable Agriculture, Stanford University Press, Stanford.

4. A critical analysis of functioning and results of these alternatives

−        A socioeconomic analysis of the food production and distribution alternatives.

−        An exercise based on a critical (ethnographic, economic, sociologic) text.

−        Conclusion we can derive from this critique: what are the risks of the alternatives, what are the limits, what should we avoid?

Bibliography:

Luetchford, Pete; Jeff Pratt
2013 Food for Change: The Politics and Values of Social Movements, Pluto Press, London.

Premat, Adriana
2012 Sowing Change: The Making of Havana’s Urban Agriculture, Vanderbilt University Press, Nashville.