@article {544, title = {Differentiating the nature of agroforestry systems and agroforestry knowledge among farmers in southern Rwanda: Participatory and formal approaches as complementary methods}, journal = {Culture \& Agriculture}, volume = {15}, year = {1994}, month = {December 1994}, pages = {5-11}, abstract = {Farmer conceived and designed agroforestry systems (i.e., agriculturalsystems integrating trees with cropsand/or animals) were used as the object of this study in Southern Rwanda. As many equally valid agroforestry systems are possible, my aim was to discover and describe what the existing systems and technologies were and,more importantly, to determine how such systems and technologies came into being: the meanings people assign to them; how the knowledge upon which they are based was generated; how these systems and technologies, and their underlying knowledge, have changed over time under pressure of changing sociocultural, economic, political and environmental conditions. (author)}, keywords = {agroforestry knowledge, agroforestry systems, Rwanda}, doi = {10.1525/cuag.1994.15.50.5}, url = {https://doi.org/10.1525/cuag.1994.15.50.5}, author = {Christoffel Johannes Petrus Antonius Maria Den Biggelaar} } @mastersthesis {442, title = {Farmer knowledge and experimentation with trees and tree cultivation in agroforestry systems in Rwanda}, year = {1994}, month = {1994}, school = {Michigan State University, Department of Forestry}, address = {East Lansing, MI}, abstract = {

A dissertation submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Department of Forestry.

Although Rwandan farmers have used trees for numerous purposes for centuries, the active planting and management of woody vegetation on-farm has been a relatively recent innovation. The goal of this research was to determine and understand the processes of agroforestry knowledge generation by farmers underlying these changes in resource management and usage. In particular, the study focused on farmer experimental methods related to the integration of trees on the farm. As agriculture is both a social and technico-economic endeavor, and as knowledge generation is embedded within productive processes, a social-constructivist perspective of science and technology was used as a framework for this study.

The research focused on a group of 44 locally identified tree experts, chosen in a two stage process using a ranking game and community interviews. A comparison group of 71 farmers was chosen randomly from those identified in the game as less-knowledgeable about agroforestry. In-depth methods used to study knowledge/technology generation included biographical case studies of tree experts, tree inventories, a socio-economic survey, participant observation and focus group interviews.

Ranking game informants identified tree experts as farmers cultivation a diversity of trees on their farm in accordance with the philosophical meaning of knowledge: knowing a plurality of objects or notions. Ranking game and socioeconomic survey results showed agreement on key variables used to distinguish farmers. Tree experts had more land, trees and tree species, but the tree density on comparison farms was more than two times higher. This points to a differentiation in knowledge between expert and comparison farms which was more than two times higher. This points to a differentiation in knowledge between expert and comparison farmers. Consultants identified the lack of local communication and information exchange networks as the major draw back to advancing endogenous agroforestry knowledge.

The study concludes that collaboration between knowledge systems may be beneficial for both. A synthesis between systems will increase the effectiveness of ongoing scientific agroforestry research and development but, more importantly, it will empower, legitimize and enhance the existing endogenous capacities for identifying problems and developing solutions, which will be an important step towards enabling rural people themselves to alleviate their poverty. (author)

}, keywords = {agroforestry, development, Rwanda, trees}, url = {http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/33975106}, author = {Christoffel Johannes Petrus Antonius Maria Den Biggelaar} } @article {603, title = {Land use, soil loss, and sustainable agriculture in Rwanda}, journal = {Human Ecology}, volume = {18}, year = {1990}, note = {

See also: 10.22004/ag.econ.55057 (OA University of Minnesota Repository)

}, month = {June 1990}, pages = {147-161}, abstract = {The conservation of scarce land resources is essential to the long-term viability of agriculture in Rwanda. High population density, steep slopes, and abundant rainfall prevail in the highland portions of this African country, making the task of erosion control uncommonly difficult for the peasant farmer. The specific use to which land is put, e.g,, cultivation, fallow, pasture, woodlots, and if it is cultivated, the particular combination of crops grown, can be seen as contributing to both the cause and the solution of the land degradation problem. Based on data from a nationwide survey of over 4,800 agricultural fields in Rwanda, this study reviews the extent to which the land use and cropping patterns employed by farmers are appropriately suited, in terms of erosion control, to the topographical and environmental characteristics of their landholdings. Analyses of other aspects of the traditional agricultural system, eg, variations in relative soil fertility, the use of organic fertilizers, and the location of fields relative to the household, are introduced to help explain why farmers often fail to maximize erosion control through land use and cropping practices. Adjustments to current land use practices that can be expected to reduce soil loss are discussed. (author)}, keywords = {cropping patterns, food security, Rwanda, slope, soil loss, sustainable agriculture}, doi = {10.1007/BF00889179}, author = {Daniel C. Clay and Laurence A. Lewis} }