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To work well and be sustainable, seed systems have to offer a range of crops and varieties of good quality seed and these products have to reach farmers, no matter how remote or poor they may be. Formal seed sector interventions alone are not delivering the crop portfolio or achieving the social and geographic breadth needed, and the paper argues for focus on informal seed channels and particularly on traders who move ‘potential seed’ (local seed) even to high stress areas. This paper provides the first in-depth analysis on potential seed trader types and actions, drawing on data collected on 287 traders working in 10 African countries. The research delves into four themes: the types and hierarchies of traders; the technical ways traders manage seed using 11 core practices; the price differential of +50% of potential (local) seed over grain, and the pivotal roles which traders play in remote and crisis contexts. Traders are the backbone of smallholder seed security and need to be engaged, not ignored, in development and relief efforts. A detailed action framework for leveraging seed trader skills is presented, with the paper addressing possible legal and donor constraints for engaging such market actors more fully.
Louise Sperling; Patrick Gallagher; Shawn McGuire; Julie March; Noel Templer. Potential Seed Traders: The Backbone of Seed Business and African Smallholder Seed Supply. Sustainability 2020, 12, 7074 .
AMA StyleLouise Sperling, Patrick Gallagher, Shawn McGuire, Julie March, Noel Templer. Potential Seed Traders: The Backbone of Seed Business and African Smallholder Seed Supply. Sustainability. 2020; 12 (17):7074.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLouise Sperling; Patrick Gallagher; Shawn McGuire; Julie March; Noel Templer. 2020. "Potential Seed Traders: The Backbone of Seed Business and African Smallholder Seed Supply." Sustainability 12, no. 17: 7074.
Reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture is needed to meet global climate policy targets. A number of low-emission development (LED) options exist in agriculture, which globally emits 10–12% of GHG emissions. In paddy rice production, alternative wetting and drying (AWD) can reduce emissions by up to 48%. Co-benefits of AWD include lower water consumption, lower use of fertilizer and seeds, and higher resistance to some pests and diseases. These are expected to result in improved benefits for individual farmers while lowering the sector’s overall contribution to GHG emissions. Women are strongly involved in rice production, hence improving their access to AWD technology, participation in decisions about it, and capacity to use it influences AWD adoption and resulting emissions. Involving women in AWD and LED more broadly also can provide distributional and procedural justice gains for women. The authors develop a conceptual model to show how these issues can be integrated. They suggest that intermediary organizations such as farmer associations and women’s organizations are central to enabling women to realize their personal goals while allowing gender to be taken to scale in LED, as is the case for other technology interventions. This requires work to expand their social capacities. A case study developed from work on taking gender-responsive LED to scale in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam, illustrates the model.
Cathy Rozel Farnworth; Trần Thu Hà; Björn Ole Sander; Eva Wollenberg; Nicoline C. De Haan; Shawn McGuire; Tran Thu Ha. Incorporating gender into low-emission development: a case study from Vietnam. Gender, Technology and Development 2017, 21, 5 -30.
AMA StyleCathy Rozel Farnworth, Trần Thu Hà, Björn Ole Sander, Eva Wollenberg, Nicoline C. De Haan, Shawn McGuire, Tran Thu Ha. Incorporating gender into low-emission development: a case study from Vietnam. Gender, Technology and Development. 2017; 21 (1-2):5-30.
Chicago/Turabian StyleCathy Rozel Farnworth; Trần Thu Hà; Björn Ole Sander; Eva Wollenberg; Nicoline C. De Haan; Shawn McGuire; Tran Thu Ha. 2017. "Incorporating gender into low-emission development: a case study from Vietnam." Gender, Technology and Development 21, no. 1-2: 5-30.
Why would the farmers in a developed, Western country, dominated by an industrialised agriculture, choose to grow a traditional crop variety? This study aimed to explore this question through an investigation of the reasons why a traditional landrace barley – known as Bere – was still grown in the Scottish islands of Orkney and Shetland. Cultivated barley is one of the oldest and most widely grown cereals in the world and plays a significant role in global food security. However, since the beginning of the 20th century the genetic diversity in cultivated barley has been in decline as traditional varieties are replaced with modern cultivars. Traditional varieties, such as landraces, are an important genetic resource, and there is a growing interest in their in situ conservation, both in Europe and internationally. The success of such activities would benefit from a proper understanding of the factors that drive farmers’ motivations to maintain barley landraces on their farms and this study intended to fill the knowledge gap that existed in this regard in a European context. Interviews were conducted with Bere growers and representatives of the food manufacturing industry on the islands to discover why they valued this crop. This was complemented by insights from agricultural calendars, preference ranking tasks and photographic data. Thematic analysis of the data yielded four broad drivers of Bere cultivation: market demand, cultural and traditional values, adaptation to conditions, and use as a low-input crop. Preference ranking of these drivers showed their perceived relative importance and the variations in such perceptions between Orkney and Shetland. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of the findings for devising more effective in situ conservation strategies for barley landraces in Europe and further afield.
Niamh Mahon; Shawn McGuire; Mofakkarul Islam. Why bother with Bere? An investigation into the drivers behind the cultivation of a landrace barley. Journal of Rural Studies 2016, 45, 54 -65.
AMA StyleNiamh Mahon, Shawn McGuire, Mofakkarul Islam. Why bother with Bere? An investigation into the drivers behind the cultivation of a landrace barley. Journal of Rural Studies. 2016; 45 ():54-65.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNiamh Mahon; Shawn McGuire; Mofakkarul Islam. 2016. "Why bother with Bere? An investigation into the drivers behind the cultivation of a landrace barley." Journal of Rural Studies 45, no. : 54-65.
Seed can be an important entry point for promoting productivity, nutrition and resilience among smallholder farmers. While investments have primarily focused on strengthening the formal sector, this article documents the degree to which the informal sector remains the core for seed acquisition, especially in Africa. Conclusions drawn from a uniquely comprehensive data set, 9660 observations across six countries and covering 40 crops, show that farmers access 90.2 % of their seed from informal systems with 50.9 % of that deriving from local markets. Further, 55 % of seed is paid for by cash, indicating that smallholders are already making important investments in this arena. Targeted interventions are proposed for rendering formal and informal seed sector more smallholder-responsive and for scaling up positive impacts.
Shawn McGuire; Louise Sperling. Seed systems smallholder farmers use. Food Security 2016, 8, 179 -195.
AMA StyleShawn McGuire, Louise Sperling. Seed systems smallholder farmers use. Food Security. 2016; 8 (1):179-195.
Chicago/Turabian StyleShawn McGuire; Louise Sperling. 2016. "Seed systems smallholder farmers use." Food Security 8, no. 1: 179-195.
International audienceThe importance of seed provisioning in food security and nutrition, agricultural development and rural livelihoods, and agrobiodiversity and germplasm conservation is well accepted by policy makers, practitioners and researchers. The role of farmer seed networks is less well understood and yet is central to debates on current issues ranging from seed sovereignty and rights for farmers to GMOs and the conservation of crop germplasm. In this paper we identify four common misconceptions regarding the nature and importance of farmer seed networks today. (1) Farmer seed networks are inefficient for seed dissemination. (2) Farmer seed networks are closed, conservative systems. (3) Farmer seed networks provide ready, egalitarian access to seed. (4) Farmer seed networks are destined to weaken and disappear. We challenge these misconceptions by drawing upon recent research findings and the authors' collective field experience in studying farmer seed systems in Africa, Europe, Latin America and Oceania. Priorities for future research are suggested that would advance our understanding of seed networks and better inform agricultural and food policy
Oliver T. Coomes; Shawn McGuire; Eric Garine; Sophie Caillon; Doyle McKey; Elise Demeulenaere; Devra Jarvis; Guntra Aistara; Adeline Barnaud; Pascal Clouvel; Laure Emperaire; Sélim Louafi; Pierre Martin; Francois Massol; Marco Pautasso; Chloé Violon; Jean Wencélius. Farmer seed networks make a limited contribution to agriculture? Four common misconceptions. Food Policy 2015, 56, 41 -50.
AMA StyleOliver T. Coomes, Shawn McGuire, Eric Garine, Sophie Caillon, Doyle McKey, Elise Demeulenaere, Devra Jarvis, Guntra Aistara, Adeline Barnaud, Pascal Clouvel, Laure Emperaire, Sélim Louafi, Pierre Martin, Francois Massol, Marco Pautasso, Chloé Violon, Jean Wencélius. Farmer seed networks make a limited contribution to agriculture? Four common misconceptions. Food Policy. 2015; 56 ():41-50.
Chicago/Turabian StyleOliver T. Coomes; Shawn McGuire; Eric Garine; Sophie Caillon; Doyle McKey; Elise Demeulenaere; Devra Jarvis; Guntra Aistara; Adeline Barnaud; Pascal Clouvel; Laure Emperaire; Sélim Louafi; Pierre Martin; Francois Massol; Marco Pautasso; Chloé Violon; Jean Wencélius. 2015. "Farmer seed networks make a limited contribution to agriculture? Four common misconceptions." Food Policy 56, no. : 41-50.
We present a case study on the privatization of the Nyungwe National Park's buffer zone in which we critically examine the potential implications of a shift in management practice for local people. We present empirical data describing household collection of natural resources from the park, buffer zone, purchased from local markets, and private lands from areas adjacent to the park and buffer. Results show heavy reliance on wood from the buffer zone, with a larger proportion of relatively poorer households' income being derived from wood. Furthermore, semistructured interviews used to depict local perceptions of access to the buffer zone preceding the New Forest Company (a United Kingdom-based timber company) operations describe increasing difficulty in accessing resources due to greater enforcement. We conclude that the change in management poses substantial loss for local communities, in particular for the poorest households, in terms of resources from and access to the buffer.
Nicole D. Gross-Camp; Adrian Martin; Shawn McGuire; Bereket Kebede. The Privatization of the Nyungwe National Park Buffer Zone and Implications for Adjacent Communities. Society & Natural Resources 2015, 28, 296 -311.
AMA StyleNicole D. Gross-Camp, Adrian Martin, Shawn McGuire, Bereket Kebede. The Privatization of the Nyungwe National Park Buffer Zone and Implications for Adjacent Communities. Society & Natural Resources. 2015; 28 (3):296-311.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicole D. Gross-Camp; Adrian Martin; Shawn McGuire; Bereket Kebede. 2015. "The Privatization of the Nyungwe National Park Buffer Zone and Implications for Adjacent Communities." Society & Natural Resources 28, no. 3: 296-311.
There is currently a considerable effort to evaluate the performance of Payments for Ecosystem Services as an environmental management tool. The research presented here contributes to this work by using an experimental design to evaluate Payments for Ecosystem Services as a tool for supporting biodiversity conservation in the context of an African protected area. The trial employed a ‘before and after’ and ‘with and without’ design. We present the results of social and ecological surveys to investigate the impacts of the trial in terms of its effectiveness, efficiency and equity. We find the scheme to be effective at bringing about additional conservation outcomes. However, we also found that increased monitoring is similarly effective in the short term, at lower cost. The major difference – and arguably the significant contribution of the Payments for Ecosystem Services – was that it changed the motives for protecting the park and improved local perceptions both of the park and its authority. We discuss the implications of these results for conservation efficiency, arguing that efficiency should not be defined in terms of short-term cost-effectiveness, but also in terms of the sustainability of behavioral motives in the long term. This insight helps us to resolve the apparent trade-off between goals of equity and efficiency in Payments for Ecosystem Services.
Adrian Martin; Nicole Gross-Camp; Bereket Kebede; Shawn McGuire. Measuring effectiveness, efficiency and equity in an experimental Payments for Ecosystem Services trial. Global Environmental Change 2014, 28, 216 -226.
AMA StyleAdrian Martin, Nicole Gross-Camp, Bereket Kebede, Shawn McGuire. Measuring effectiveness, efficiency and equity in an experimental Payments for Ecosystem Services trial. Global Environmental Change. 2014; 28 ():216-226.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAdrian Martin; Nicole Gross-Camp; Bereket Kebede; Shawn McGuire. 2014. "Measuring effectiveness, efficiency and equity in an experimental Payments for Ecosystem Services trial." Global Environmental Change 28, no. : 216-226.
Distribution and procedure, two core social justice concepts, are central concerns for the design and practice of payments for ecosystem services (PESs). This paper explores the relationship between local conceptions of justice and the more globally referenced justice principles embedded in the design of PES schemes. The importance of this is that perceptions of justness are powerful determinants of human behaviour and, consequently, many environmental conflicts arise from contested visions of what constitutes ‘just’ environmental management. With that in mind we propose that PES schemes built on conceptions of justice that broadly align with those of prospective service providers will be better received than those that do not. In order to explore differences in justice conceptions, we specify three commonly defined dimensions of environmental justice: distribution, procedure and recognition. We predict that there will be differences in the importance different actors place on these different dimensions of justice and also differences in how each particular dimension is conceived. We interview 80 randomly selected respondents from a PES case in Rwanda and relate their views about justice to the design of the PES. Our findings challenge the implicit universalism in many market-based conservation interventions: that imposed framings of justice will resonate with local ones. They also challenge the assumption that different dimensions of justice are always mutually supporting – the fallacy of the rising tide that lifts all boats. We also conclude that an environmental justice framing provides a fruitful new analytical approach for research into global forest conservation efforts
Adrian Martin; Nicole Gross-Camp; Bereket Kebede; Shawn McGuire; Joseph Munyarukaza. Whose environmental justice? Exploring local and global perspectives in a payments for ecosystem services scheme in Rwanda. Geoforum 2014, 54, 167 -177.
AMA StyleAdrian Martin, Nicole Gross-Camp, Bereket Kebede, Shawn McGuire, Joseph Munyarukaza. Whose environmental justice? Exploring local and global perspectives in a payments for ecosystem services scheme in Rwanda. Geoforum. 2014; 54 ():167-177.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAdrian Martin; Nicole Gross-Camp; Bereket Kebede; Shawn McGuire; Joseph Munyarukaza. 2014. "Whose environmental justice? Exploring local and global perspectives in a payments for ecosystem services scheme in Rwanda." Geoforum 54, no. : 167-177.
Agricultural research does not exist in isolation, but is fundamentally influenced by economic and political relations, as well as by contemporary theories of development. This is hardly a new or surprising observation, yet it is still striking that studies of the social shaping of agricultural research remain relatively uncommon, especially studies that engage seriously with both the social context and with the practice of science itself. This alone makes Europe’s Green Revolution and Others Since worth reading. But what should make Harwood’s book fascinating for agricultural development practitioners and scholars alike is that his study is rooted in a systematic—and comparative—understanding of history. It explores the development of crop breeding in Central Europe in the late Nineteenth and early Twentieth Centuries, which was explicitly targeted at smallholder farmers. The book compares this experience with agricultural research aimed at the developing world, starting from 1945 (i.
Shawn McGuire. Jonathan Harwood. Europe’s Green Revolution and Others Since: The rise and fall of peasant-friendly plant breeding. Food Security 2013, 5, 743 -746.
AMA StyleShawn McGuire. Jonathan Harwood. Europe’s Green Revolution and Others Since: The rise and fall of peasant-friendly plant breeding. Food Security. 2013; 5 (5):743-746.
Chicago/Turabian StyleShawn McGuire. 2013. "Jonathan Harwood. Europe’s Green Revolution and Others Since: The rise and fall of peasant-friendly plant breeding." Food Security 5, no. 5: 743-746.
This paper reviews advances in the development and use of two evidence-based assessment toolkits: the Seed System Security Assessment (SSSA) and the Emergency Market Mapping and Analysis (EMMA). Both were created in the past five years and have been employed in a range of acute and chronic stress contexts across Africa, Asia, and parts of the Americas, in periods of civil strife, displacement, and drought, as well as following earthquakes, flooding, and political instability. The aims of this paper are threefold: to review advances with regard to each tool; to compare how each toolkit gathers and uses evidence, while considering possibilities for greater complementarity; and to reflect on the nature of 'evidence' used to guide humanitarian response in sudden-onset and chronic crisis situations. A comparison highlights the importance of triangulation and informed analysis for drawing conclusions from imperfect evidence, understanding the limitations of each assessment methodology, and confronting tacit assumptions.
Karri Goeldner Byrne; Julie March; Shawn McGuire; Laura Meissner; Louise Sperling. The role of evidence in humanitarian assessment: the Seed System Security Assessment and the Emergency Market Mapping and Analysis. Disasters 2013, 37, S83 -S104.
AMA StyleKarri Goeldner Byrne, Julie March, Shawn McGuire, Laura Meissner, Louise Sperling. The role of evidence in humanitarian assessment: the Seed System Security Assessment and the Emergency Market Mapping and Analysis. Disasters. 2013; 37 ():S83-S104.
Chicago/Turabian StyleKarri Goeldner Byrne; Julie March; Shawn McGuire; Laura Meissner; Louise Sperling. 2013. "The role of evidence in humanitarian assessment: the Seed System Security Assessment and the Emergency Market Mapping and Analysis." Disasters 37, no. : S83-S104.
While seed security is key to food security, concrete means for building resilient seed systems remain unexplored in research and practice. A new toolkit, the Seed System Security Assessment (SSSA), examines what actually happens to seed systems during crises and highlights specific features that foster or undermine resilience. Drawing evidence from SSSAs in contexts of political and civil conflict (Zimbabwe and South Sudan), earthquake (Haiti) and drought (Kenya), the article shows that seed systems prove to be relatively resilient, at least in terms of meeting farmers' planting needs for the upcoming season. Altering crop profiles, making use of multiple delivery channels, and innovating (for example, with new barter mechanisms) all become key, as does mobilizing cross-scale seed supply linkages. However, despite short-term survival, in the medium term, both formal and informal seed systems will have to be transformed to address agro-ecological and farming system challenges, partially shaped by global environmental changes. Key is that formal seed systems will play a catalytic but supporting role, with the onus on resilience response lying within informal systems, and especially with local markets and their traders. Also key is that achieving seed security in fluctuating environments will hinge on developing resilience-linked information systems which put as much weight on helping farmers strategize as on delivering the planting material itself. The article defines seed system resilience, identifies eight principles linked to processes that build such resilience, and makes 15 practical recommendations for enhancing seed system resilience in the short and medium term. Finally, drawing insights from seed systems, processes central for building resilience in other development sectors are highlighted. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd
Shawn McGuire; Louise Sperling. Making seed systems more resilient to stress. Global Environmental Change 2013, 23, 644 -653.
AMA StyleShawn McGuire, Louise Sperling. Making seed systems more resilient to stress. Global Environmental Change. 2013; 23 (3):644-653.
Chicago/Turabian StyleShawn McGuire; Louise Sperling. 2013. "Making seed systems more resilient to stress." Global Environmental Change 23, no. 3: 644-653.
This paper explores the potential for an environmental justice framing to shed new light on conservation controversies. We argue that, in order to make such progress, environmental justice analysis will need to provide a ‘difference-friendly’ conception of justice and that this will necessarily involve moving beyond dominant liberal conceptions of distributional fairness. We are largely welcoming of global deployments of distributive justice principles. However, we also explore the dangers of focusing on distribution alone, questioning the assumption of positive relationships between benefit sharing and more culturally defined dimensions of justice such as recognition. The limits of access and benefit sharing for delivering justice writ large is that it can disenfranchise people who are less well equipped or less willing to navigate its prevailing system of knowledge. We argue that, especially in the context of resource poverty, efforts to improve distribution can require potential beneficiaries to assimilate to dominant discourses of society and nature. Such conditionality can contract the opportunities for local and autonomous constructions of ‘different’ ways of knowing nature, and in doing so may also contract possibilities for flourishing biodiversities.
Adrian Martin; Shawn McGuire; Sian Sullivan. Global environmental justice and biodiversity conservation. The Geographical Journal 2013, 179, 122 -131.
AMA StyleAdrian Martin, Shawn McGuire, Sian Sullivan. Global environmental justice and biodiversity conservation. The Geographical Journal. 2013; 179 (2):122-131.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAdrian Martin; Shawn McGuire; Sian Sullivan. 2013. "Global environmental justice and biodiversity conservation." The Geographical Journal 179, no. 2: 122-131.
Jules Siedenburg; Adrian Martin; Shawn McGuire. The power of “farmer friendly” financial incentives to deliver climate smart agriculture: a critical data gap. Journal of Integrative Environmental Sciences 2012, 9, 201 -217.
AMA StyleJules Siedenburg, Adrian Martin, Shawn McGuire. The power of “farmer friendly” financial incentives to deliver climate smart agriculture: a critical data gap. Journal of Integrative Environmental Sciences. 2012; 9 (4):201-217.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJules Siedenburg; Adrian Martin; Shawn McGuire. 2012. "The power of “farmer friendly” financial incentives to deliver climate smart agriculture: a critical data gap." Journal of Integrative Environmental Sciences 9, no. 4: 201-217.
Seed security initiatives are proliferating in both developmental and crisis contexts but the field as a whole is weak in critical thinking. Two gaps in particular are explored in this paper: the need to set explicit seed security goals and the need to ensure balance among the security elements of availability, access and quality. Differences in the planning and implementing of seed security initiatives are examined in some detail for programs that variously aim for: food production, nutritional enhancement, system resilience, and income generation. Results show that one seed security program is not like another and that features such as partner choice, product design, delivery and awareness-raising strategy need to be tailored to meet the overarching goals. The paper closes with five key policy and programming recommendations.
Louise Sperling; Shawn McGuire. Fatal gaps in seed security strategy. Food Security 2012, 4, 569 -579.
AMA StyleLouise Sperling, Shawn McGuire. Fatal gaps in seed security strategy. Food Security. 2012; 4 (4):569-579.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLouise Sperling; Shawn McGuire. 2012. "Fatal gaps in seed security strategy." Food Security 4, no. 4: 569-579.
The circulation of seed among farmers is central to agrobiodiversity conservation and dynamics. Agrobiodiversity, the diversity of agricultural systems from genes to varieties and crop species, from farming methods to landscape composition, is part of humanity’s cultural heritage. Whereas agrobiodiversity conservation has received much attention from researchers and policy makers over the last decades, the methods available to study the role of seed exchange networks in preserving crop biodiversity have only recently begun to be considered. In this overview, we present key concepts, methods, and challenges to better understand seed exchange networks so as to improve the chances that traditional crop varieties (landraces) will be preserved and used sustainably around the world. The available literature suggests that there is insufficient knowledge about the social, cultural, and methodological dimensions of environmental change, including how seed exchange networks will cope with changes in climates, socio-economic factors, and family structures that have supported seed exchange systems to date. Methods available to study the role of seed exchange networks in the preservation and adaptation of crop specific and genetic diversity range from meta-analysis to modelling, from participatory approaches to the development of bio-indicators, from genetic to biogeographical studies, from anthropological and ethnographic research to the use of network theory. We advocate a diversity of approaches, so as to foster the creation of robust and policy-relevant knowledge. Open challenges in the study of the role of seed exchange networks in biodiversity conservation include the development of methods to (i) enhance farmers’ participation to decision-making in agro-ecosystems, (ii) integrate ex situ and in situ approaches, (iii) achieve interdisciplinary research collaboration between social and natural scientists, and (iv) use network analysis as a conceptual framework to bridge boundaries among researchers, farmers and policy makers, as well as other stakeholders.
Marco Pautasso; Guntra A Aistara; Adeline Barnaud; Sophie Caillon; Pascal Clouvel; Oliver T. Coomes; Marc Delêtre; Elise Demeulenaere; Paola De Santis; Thomas Döring; Ludivine Eloy; Laure Emperaire; Eric Garine; Isabelle Goldringer; Devra Jarvis; Hélène I. Joly; Christian Leclerc; Selim Louafi; Pierre Martin; Francois Massol; Shawn McGuire; Doyle McKey; Christine Padoch; Clélia Soler; Matthieu Thomas; Sara Tramontini. Seed exchange networks for agrobiodiversity conservation. A review. Agronomy for Sustainable Development 2012, 33, 151 -175.
AMA StyleMarco Pautasso, Guntra A Aistara, Adeline Barnaud, Sophie Caillon, Pascal Clouvel, Oliver T. Coomes, Marc Delêtre, Elise Demeulenaere, Paola De Santis, Thomas Döring, Ludivine Eloy, Laure Emperaire, Eric Garine, Isabelle Goldringer, Devra Jarvis, Hélène I. Joly, Christian Leclerc, Selim Louafi, Pierre Martin, Francois Massol, Shawn McGuire, Doyle McKey, Christine Padoch, Clélia Soler, Matthieu Thomas, Sara Tramontini. Seed exchange networks for agrobiodiversity conservation. A review. Agronomy for Sustainable Development. 2012; 33 (1):151-175.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMarco Pautasso; Guntra A Aistara; Adeline Barnaud; Sophie Caillon; Pascal Clouvel; Oliver T. Coomes; Marc Delêtre; Elise Demeulenaere; Paola De Santis; Thomas Döring; Ludivine Eloy; Laure Emperaire; Eric Garine; Isabelle Goldringer; Devra Jarvis; Hélène I. Joly; Christian Leclerc; Selim Louafi; Pierre Martin; Francois Massol; Shawn McGuire; Doyle McKey; Christine Padoch; Clélia Soler; Matthieu Thomas; Sara Tramontini. 2012. "Seed exchange networks for agrobiodiversity conservation. A review." Agronomy for Sustainable Development 33, no. 1: 151-175.
We explore the potential for payments for ecosystem services (PES) to reconcile conservation and development goals, using a case study of an experimental PES intervention around the Nyungwe National Park in Rwanda. The scheme involves the purchase of biodiversity conservation services from local communities in four selected locations. Although a portion of the payment is awarded at the household level, it is the collective action of the community that determines the level of the payment. Contracts are negotiated annually and include performance indicators within each participating community. We examine the ability of PES to achieve conservation and development objectives, through three sub-questions: Is the PES scheme effective? Is it legitimate and fair? Is it equitable? Our findings indicate that the relationship between these evaluation criteria is complex, with both trade-offs and synergies. In this case study the effectiveness of PES is dependent on the equitable distribution of the payment, participants’ belief and acceptance of the service being paid for, institutional histories that aid in the establishment of legitimacy and fairness, and the complementary nature of PES to more conventional enforcement methods.
Nicole D. Gross-Camp; Adrian Martin; Shawn McGuire; Bereket Kebede; Joseph Munyarukaza. Payments for ecosystem services in an African protected area: exploring issues of legitimacy, fairness, equity and effectiveness. Oryx 2012, 46, 24 -33.
AMA StyleNicole D. Gross-Camp, Adrian Martin, Shawn McGuire, Bereket Kebede, Joseph Munyarukaza. Payments for ecosystem services in an African protected area: exploring issues of legitimacy, fairness, equity and effectiveness. Oryx. 2012; 46 (1):24-33.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicole D. Gross-Camp; Adrian Martin; Shawn McGuire; Bereket Kebede; Joseph Munyarukaza. 2012. "Payments for ecosystem services in an African protected area: exploring issues of legitimacy, fairness, equity and effectiveness." Oryx 46, no. 1: 24-33.
The food price crisis has led to assumptions that food price rises are due to inadequate food production, and that such food insecurity is linked to seed insecurity. Hence, in response to high food prices, seed resources worth hundreds of millions of US dollars are being shipped into vulnerable farming systems across the world. This article examines the evidence for linking food security to seed security, particularly in acute contexts, and shows how the challenges facing security features of availability, access, and utilisation are markedly different when assessing food security and seed security scenarios. The need for sharper thinking about (a) seed security strategy in itself and (b) the causal links between food security and seed security raises questions about supply-side responses which may wrongly identify both the problem and the solution. The article closes by suggesting ways to refine seed security goals which can provide more refined strategies for addressing food security needs.
Shawn McGuire; Louise Sperling. The links between food security and seed security: facts and fiction that guide response. Development in Practice 2011, 21, 493 -508.
AMA StyleShawn McGuire, Louise Sperling. The links between food security and seed security: facts and fiction that guide response. Development in Practice. 2011; 21 (4-5):493-508.
Chicago/Turabian StyleShawn McGuire; Louise Sperling. 2011. "The links between food security and seed security: facts and fiction that guide response." Development in Practice 21, no. 4-5: 493-508.
Seed interventions are the major agricultural response during emergency and recovery phases of humanitarian relief. They are implemented by diverse agencies, and widely promoted: for instance the FAO alone managed 400 such projects between 2003 and 2005. However, seed aid suffers from a lack of critical attention, perpetuating widespread myths among practitioners, policymakers, and the larger humanitarian community. This paper challenges five predominant myths about seed aid: (1) seed aid is needed whenever food aid is; (2) seed aid can do no harm; (3) disasters wipe out seed systems; (4) effective implementation is a straightforward logistical exercise, and; (5) improved seed is the best form of aid. These myths are juxtaposed with recent empirical work across a range of countries, particularly in Eastern and Southern Africa. The perpetuation of such myths highlights a serious absence of scrutiny of emergency seed aid, and helps explain why such aid is repeated year after year in many sites, with little apparent positive effect. The paper argues that the invisibility of seed aid is a major cause for the lack of oversight and concludes that donors and farmer beneficiaries must become centrally involved in seed aid governance.
Louise Sperling; Shawn McGuire. Persistent myths about emergency seed aid. Food Policy 2010, 35, 195 -201.
AMA StyleLouise Sperling, Shawn McGuire. Persistent myths about emergency seed aid. Food Policy. 2010; 35 (3):195-201.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLouise Sperling; Shawn McGuire. 2010. "Persistent myths about emergency seed aid." Food Policy 35, no. 3: 195-201.
SUMMARYInformal markets receive little attention from governments and researchers, despite their centrality to farmers' seed security. This paper documents the importance of informal markets for supplying seed and restocking critical plant genetic resources in normal and stress periods. It analyses farmers' rationales for using such markets and their strategic actions in selecting out seed from grain. Conceptual aids for differentiating among market goods – grain, ‘implicit seed’ and seed – are presented, including tracing of agro-ecological seed sources, traders’ seed management behaviour and seed/grain price patterns. Ethiopian case material gives rare insight into how different scales of traders manage the seed/grain divide. Better understanding of informal markets is an important precursor to strengthening them as such markets have unrealized potential to deliver more and higher quality seed, and a greater range of modern and local varieties. Support for informal seed markets could usefully feature in rural livelihood and social protection programmes, but this will require basic shifts in interventions and further refinements in market analysis.
Louise Sperling; Shawn McGuire. UNDERSTANDING AND STRENGTHENING INFORMAL SEED MARKETS. Experimental Agriculture 2010, 46, 119 -136.
AMA StyleLouise Sperling, Shawn McGuire. UNDERSTANDING AND STRENGTHENING INFORMAL SEED MARKETS. Experimental Agriculture. 2010; 46 (2):119-136.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLouise Sperling; Shawn McGuire. 2010. "UNDERSTANDING AND STRENGTHENING INFORMAL SEED MARKETS." Experimental Agriculture 46, no. 2: 119-136.
L. Sperling; J. Ashby; E. Weltzien; M. Smith; S. McGuire. Base-broadening for client-oriented impact: insights drawn from participatory plant breeding field experience. Broadening the genetic base of crop production 2009, 419 -435.
AMA StyleL. Sperling, J. Ashby, E. Weltzien, M. Smith, S. McGuire. Base-broadening for client-oriented impact: insights drawn from participatory plant breeding field experience. Broadening the genetic base of crop production. 2009; ():419-435.
Chicago/Turabian StyleL. Sperling; J. Ashby; E. Weltzien; M. Smith; S. McGuire. 2009. "Base-broadening for client-oriented impact: insights drawn from participatory plant breeding field experience." Broadening the genetic base of crop production , no. : 419-435.