Agroforestry Development Cycle 4 Agroforestry Development Cycle Sharing the results Trying things out Designing Monitoring & Keeping up experiments evaluation the process Innovative capacity, Looking for Getting started knowledge and things to try Practices of farmers Figure 4: Six Steps in Agroforestry Development 87 Participatory Agroforestry Development in DPR Korea (Sloping Land Management Project) 4.1 Six steps in designing agroforestry Agroforestry design is a dynamic process. However, these six basic steps are a useful guideline for creating a successful agroforestry development projects. The process is open-ended. The end of the sixth step is also the beginning of first step. This process is called the ‘Participatory Agroforestry Cycle’. 4.1.1 Getting started Objective: to widen the understanding of all involved on the current ecological, socio-economic, and cultural situation and agree upon steps toward agroforestry development that will benefit the local people Pre-existing linkages provide easy access to communities. The following activities are recommended to be undertaken: • Contact key farmer leaders and ask if they are willing to discuss tree farming with you, and among themselves. • Tell farmers you are interested in learning about their tree farming and sloping land management systems. • Start by asking farmers about their current tree resources, tree management methods, and the tree products collected from forests. • The discussion should lead to an understanding of sloping land problems and priorities, and the identification of the people who have responsibility for and interest in carrying out sloping land management through agroforestry practices. Tools: Village/user groups meeting, social mapping, transect walk, land use mapping Figure 4.1: Village/user group meeting 88 Agroforestry Development Cycle Example of Social Mapping in Yunnan, Southwest China Social mapping is a tool that uses sketching/drawing to identify houses, local experts (i.e. indigenous experts on plant identification, handicraft making), social facilities and infrastructure (i.e. temple, stores, rice mills, school, clinic, trails and roads, water pumps, irrigation and recreation facilities) in a village. These features are usually not well indicated in local land use maps. It helps to visualize and situate the location of households and other social facilities/infrastructure in a village. It serves as a baseline for the planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of village development activities (including the selection of a village organizing strategy). Figure 4.2: Social Map of Hani community in Xishuangbanna, Southwest China 89 Participatory Agroforestry Development in DPR Korea (Sloping Land Management Project) 4.1.2 Looking for things to try Objective: to gather information, document local knowledge and agroforestry practices, analyze and prioritize identified problems of land use and natural resource management. Tools: participant observation, free list & ranking, problem tree analysis, study tour, farmer workshop, classification of trees and crops, key informants’ interviews Before the village workshop, conduct a rapid reconnaissance of the local area to determine tree germplasm (seed or seedlings) availability, agroforestry practices and tree product marketability. Farmed species, for which germplasm and local knowledge is available and for which a strong market exists, can be considered 'best bet' species on which participatory agroforestry should focus. Figure 4.3: Participant observation is commonly used to learn from local people on indigenous knowledge 90 Agroforestry Development Cycle Farmer Workshop The farmer workshop is held in the village to foster farmers’ interest, build partnerships, and develop a work plan. Start the workshop by reviewing farmers' needs and their interest in agroforestry and a participatory technology development concept. A short review may be sufficient, but be prepared to discuss participatory agroforestry development in detail. To facilitate this process, invite other specialists (a forester or horticulturist) to complement the skills of the agroforester during the workshop. To provide visual examples of possible uses of agroforestry, the workshop should include a field visit to nurseries, orchards, or mixed plantations – whichever is appropriate. Contact the landowner or manager prior to the visit and ask them to present a site summary. The facilitators, or project team, should point out key aspects of the agroforestry systems that are relevant to farmers. Farmers will benefit greatly from the field visit. Figure 4.4: farmer workshop needs to be held in different stage of project planning 4.1.3 Designing an experiment Objective: to formulate experiments with farmers tailored to the local situation and to enhance farmers’ capacity and confidence (knowledge, experiences, practices, institutions and development). Tools: farmer to farmer training, sketch map (nursery), traditional agroforestry analysis 91 Participatory Agroforestry Development in DPR Korea (Sloping Land Management Project) Figure 4.5: Example of nursery sketch map designed by user groups 92 Agroforestry Development Cycle Types of on-farm trials There are three major types of on-farm trials. They are classified based on the different levels of cooperation between researchers and farmers in their design and implementation (Franzel et al., 1995). Type 1: Trials Designed and Managed by Researchers This kind of trial is an on-station trial transferred to farmers' fields. They are useful for evaluating biophysical performance under farming conditions and for obtaining accurate information about the interaction between the biophysical environment and crop management. Figure 4.6: Trials designed and managed by researchers These trials require the same design rigor as on-station research with regard to treatment, control choice, plot size, replication and statistical design. At the design stage, however, the researcher has to consult with the farmer on the site's homogeneity and history. These are more expensive and more difficult to manage than on-station trials. They often involve renting land from farmers and using laborers from the station to implement the study. In conducting this type of trial, it is often useful to get farmers' feedback on the different treatments. 93 Participatory Agroforestry Development in DPR Korea (Sloping Land Management Project) Type 2: Trials Designed by Researchers and Managed by Farmers Farmers and researchers collaborate in the design and implementation, but the farmers are responsible for conducting all the operations of the trial. These trials follow the conventional scientific approach to conducting an experiment. Test treatments are laid out in adjacent plots and compared to control treatments. Researchers consult farmers on the design of the trial and each farmer agrees to follow the same model (or chooses one of several possible model) so that results may be compared across farms. Figure 4.7: Trials designed by researchers and managed by farmers In Type 2 trials, the objective is to get reliable biophysical data over a broad range of farm types and circumstances. Other data that may be reliably gathered are cost and return analysis and quantity of inputs (e.g., labor) and outputs (e.g., crop yield). Type 2 trials are useful for assessing farmers' specific practices and their suitability to their circumstances. Farmers are encouraged to visit each other's trials and to conduct group field days to assess farm practices at different growth stages. 94 Agroforestry Development Cycle Type 3: Trials Designed and Managed by Farmers Farmers learn about new practices through visits to field stations, on-farm trials, or other farmers. In Type 3 trials, they plant and experiment with the new practice as they wish. Farmers are not obliged to plant in plots and it is possible that there are no control plots. Figure 4.8: Trials designed and managed by farmers Researchers and farmers together monitor the farmers' experiments, focusing on the assessment of the new practices and on any innovations made. Farmer-to-farmer visits are encouraged so that farmers can compare experiences and results. Any farmer experimenting with a new practice on his/her own could be said to have a Type 3 trial. Suitability of trials When evaluating the suitability of a trial, one must consider both the appropriateness of the trial for collecting the needed information and the ease with which the needed information can be collected. Different types of trials are suited to different types of analysis. If you want to determine... Then use... Biophysical response Types 1 and possibly Type 2 Profitability Type 2 Acceptability, in terms of Feasibility Types 2 and 3 Farmers’ assessment Type 3 and possibly Type 2 Other information Identify farmer innovation Type 3 Determining boundary conditions All types 95 Participatory Agroforestry Development in DPR Korea (Sloping Land Management Project) Farmers' assessments are more accurate in Type 3 trials for several reasons. Because farmers control the experimental process, they are likely to have more interest and information on the practice. Furthermore, because farmers in Type 3 trials usually have less contact with researchers than farmers in other types of trials, their views of a technology are less influenced by researchers' views. Finally, whereas it is often necessary to provide incentives to farmers in Type 2 trials to ensure that results are comparable across the board, no