Speaker
Description
Introduction:
Growing awareness of the need to counter the erosion of biodiversity, coupled with political and social injunctions, are prompting rural stakeholders to build and manage agroecological farming systems in multifunctional landscapes. Biodiversity is a key component of these landscapes, which farmers are called upon to preserve and manage.
When asked about their interest in biodiversity, the majority of farmers say they are interested (Herzon and Mikk, 2007). However, this interest in biodiversity varies according to the taxa considered. For example, when it concerns birds or mammals, the majority of farmers would like to learn more about all species, except those known to cause damage to crops or livestock. When it comes to plants or insects, a distinction is made between "harmful" species and species of interest or tolerated. This perception of biodiversity also varies according to the type of farming considered. Kelemen et al (2013) have shown that organic farmers adopt a more philosophical and holistic vision of biodiversity, linking it to the notion of ecosystems and the interrelationships between the organisms that make them up. Beyond the different types of farming considered, the perception of biodiversity depends on the personal background of each farmer and his or her interests outside professional activity, as well as the more or less biodiversity-rich environment in which the farm is located.
As part of an interdisciplinary project involving agronomists and management scientists, we looked at how farmers integrated biodiversity management and protection into their farm management, and what benefits they derived from it. The biodiversity considered, how biodiversity is integrated into the farm's strategy, and the expected benefits, were related to the farmers' background, production system, and the relationships they developed around biodiversity.
Material and Methods:
Thirty farmers were interviewed. These farmers were recruited either directly, or with the help of naturalist associations, chambers of agriculture, or hunting federations. They are located in a wide range of soil and climate conditions and operate a variety of production systems (market gardening, arboriculture, livestock farming, mixed farming - livestock farming, and arable farming), both organic and non-organic.
The interviews were recorded and transcribed in full. The transcripts were double-coded to identify the nature of the biodiversity taken into account, its degree of integration into the farmer's strategy, and the determinants of the farmers' consideration of biodiversity (determinants internal and external to the farmer), as well as the expected benefits.
Results and Discussion:
Integrating biodiversity into farm projects engages farmers in a change of point of view, where biodiversity says something about the agroecosystem they manage. Whether to enhance the expression of ecosystem services (regulatory processes) or to conserve "wild" biodiversity on the farm. For some farmers, agronomical decisions are taken from a “biodiversity point of view”, by integrating temporal scales longer than that of the cropping season and spatial scales larger than the cultivated field. Their management strategies are guided by contextualized thinking, based on their knowledge of the functioning of their agroecosystems. From this point of view, the farmer's background is a key factor in the level of reasoning behind biodiversity conservation practices.
Whatever the category of farmers surveyed, biodiversity does not appear to be an economic issue for the farm, i.e. they do not expect any added value in the marketing of their production.
If we wish to integrate biodiversity conservation as an objective of the farm, in the same way as production, farmers need to reappropriate and recontextualize knowledge that they have little or no training in. Biodiversity then acquires a new meaning and says something about the agroecosystem they manage. Observation of how the agroecosystem works then becomes an imperative condition for change, an essential quality, not only for the pleasure of observing but also for taking ownership.
I. Herzon & M. Mikk (2007). Farmers’ perceptions of biodiversity and their willingness to enhance it through agri-environment schemes: A comparative study from Estonia and Finland. Journal for Nature Conservation, Volume 15, Issue 1. Pages 10-25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnc.2006.08.001.
E. Kelemen, G. Nguyen, T. Gomiero, E. Kovács, J.P. Choisis, N. Choisis, M. Paoletti, L. Podmaniczky, J. Ryschawy, J.P. Sarthou, F. Herzog, P. Dennis, K. Balázs (2013). Farmers’ perceptions of biodiversity: Lessons from a discourse-based deliberative valuation study. Land Use Policy,Volume 35. Pages 318-328. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2013.06.005.
| Keywords | biodiversity, conservation, farmers, management strategy determinants, interviews |
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