HESO 449: Ecohealth SDS

I would say it is possible to change agricultural practices in the area in order to decrease land clearing and to teach better management practices. However, it would be a difficult task that would take a long time. I agree with the article in that returning results to the community is essential to an ecohealth approach but it is very difficult as well. For one, it is very difficult for an outsider to become accepted and share their knowledge with the communities, especially considering these communities are very small and quite isolated. In order for it to be successful, they would need to extensively educate well respected community members so that the community representatives could communicate with the rest of the community regarding the issue. Also, researchers must take the history and culture of the community into consideration when sharing results and offering solutions. For instance, the solutions need to take in to consideration economic and social factors such as the amount of money and resources the individuals have for resolving management issues. In other words, the provided solutions should be very cost effective so that the community can profit. In short, I would say it is possible to change agricultural practices but it would require a lot of time and effort.

On a side note, I think it’s insane how soil erosion and high levels of precipitation can lead to increased levels of Hg in fish. I’ve taken a few geob and earth science courses but have never stumbled upon this fact, but once I think about it, it all makes sense.

I agree with Elmira; the challenges in intervening and implementing new ways of farming in a community can be daunting, especially if the community is more traditional. Collectivist societies naturally feel the need to invest their time and energy toward only those of their in-group, leaving outsiders unwelcome and their tasks, unaccomplished.
Promoting better management practices, I think, would be the most sustainable and feasible approach: integrating trees and shrubs with a landscape that is primarily used for crops would decrease soil erosion enhancing agricultural practices, while at the same time maintaining/increasing biological preservation. The concept of changing agricultural practices seems like it would be a very idealistic solution and one that enforces ways of ‘the Western world’, or ways that are not natural to the people. It is important to work with the culture of the people, understand their history, even immerse oneself in their environment and day-to-day tasks and use their culture as one’s framework for creating an approach to suggest management practices that will work best for land cultivators.
I found an interesting article on BBC about Agroforestry in West Africa; Since Ecuador is usually the ‘model’ system for looking at forestry interventions, I was curious as to how other regions fair with the same issue.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7949053.stm

The Tree Aid program aims to encourage agroforestry and sustainable agriculture. They say that “Without trees in the landscape, you cannot have a sustainable farming system.” Their interesting perspective also makes me appreciate how a grass-roots organization can influence the lives of millions of people, and positive, accepted change in their cultural and farming practices.

Thanks for the article, Nadine. It’s interesting to note what initiatives are taking place on a global context. Seeing what an important role agroforestry plays in the long-term success of agriculture can make such initiatives particularly relevant. To take Nadine’s comment one step further, “”Without farming, you do not have any life in these communities.” When it comes down to priorities, urban planners and governments should realize that food security should remain high on the agenda. And initiatives such as the Tree Aid program should be encouraged, such as improving land tenure issues.

Despite cultural taboos, “People believed that if you planted a tree, you were bound to die before it bore fruit.”, there is still motivation to implement agroforestry into agricultural practice by farmers. Once land tenure issues can be over come, farmers can feel a particular sense of pride for their work:
“For farmers, it is like a declaration of ownership. Planting trees says ‘this is my land and it is going to be mine for a long time’.” It would be truly beneficial to see such a practice implemented into a broader context.