- Wageningen, Netherlands
Harro Maat
Wageningen University, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty Member
- My research area is the history and sociology of agricultural technology and food production. The major approach is t... moreMy research area is the history and sociology of agricultural technology and food production. The major approach is to trace and analyse local responses to policy plans and technology introductions. Most cases focus on rice cultivation in Asia and Africa but the approach is also applied to other agricultural technologies, water management and health practices. A recent volume, co-edited with Sandip Hazareesingh, presents cases of local subversions to colonial cultures (Palgrave Macmillan 2016).edit
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Research Interests:
Traditional crop varieties are an important source of genetic diversity for crop adaptation and modern breeding. Landraces of Asian (Oryza sativa) and African (Oryza glaberrima) rice have been well studied on the continents where they... more
Traditional crop varieties are an important source of genetic diversity for crop adaptation and modern breeding. Landraces of Asian (Oryza sativa) and African (Oryza glaberrima) rice have been well studied on the continents where they were domesticated. However, their history of cultivation in northern South America is poorly understood. Here we reveal the rice diversity that is maintained by Maroons, descendants of enslaved Africans who fled to the interior forests of the Guianas ca. 300 years ago. We interviewed subsistence farmers who practice shifting cultivation along the Maroni and Lawa rivers that form the natural border between French Guiana and Suriname, and used ethnobotanical and morphological methods to identify around 50 varieties, of which 15 were previously undocumented. The genetic origin of these varieties was explored using the Angiosperms-353 universal probe set. Despite the large distances between sites and relative inaccessibility of the area, phenotypic and gen...
This article investigates the connection between performance, group, and society. The argument is that group formation around particular farm operations and the details of the activities they engage in are an expression of the preferred... more
This article investigates the connection between performance, group, and society. The argument is that group formation around particular farm operations and the details of the activities they engage in are an expression of the preferred way of technology implementation. The argument is developed using Paul Richards' notion of agriculture as performance. Two cases are presented. The first is the composition of a spraying team for weed control in smallholder oil palm production in Sumatra, connected to a global agreement on sustainable oil palm production, known as the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). The second case is about a team of women transplanting young rice seedlings on prepared paddy fields in a village in Uttarakhand, India. A new way of rice transplanting was introduced by a local non-governmental organization, known as the System of Rice Intensification (SRI). The analysis shows that group performances provide essential information about how introduced plans...
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Research Interests:
For many people living in low-income countries, poverty implies an increased exposure to conditions that threaten health and wellbeing as well as reduced capacity to maintain health. Despite the challenging conditions caused by poverty,... more
For many people living in low-income countries, poverty implies an increased exposure to conditions that threaten health and wellbeing as well as reduced capacity to maintain health. Despite the challenging conditions caused by poverty, people may consider themselves healthy because they have learned to cope with their situation probably as a result of life experiences which expose people to both challenges and potential solutions. In this paper we present results from studying health and wellbeing challenges and mechanisms to cope with challenges among two different groups of people who are living under conditions of poverty: workers of the Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC) and students of the university of Buea and the university of Yaoundé. We performed a cross-sectional study, interviewing 21 CDC workers and 21 students. Results Our study reveals context-specific stressors emerging from poor work conditions and study pressure as well as non-context-specific stressors percei...
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Creating better access to good quality healthcare for the poor is a major challenge to development. In this study, we examined inter-linkages between poverty and disease, referred to as poverty-related diseases (PRDs), by investigating... more
Creating better access to good quality healthcare for the poor is a major challenge to development. In this study, we examined inter-linkages between poverty and disease, referred to as poverty-related diseases (PRDs), by investigating how Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC) camp dwellers respond to diseases that adversely affect their health and wellbeing. Living in plantation camps is associated with poverty, overcrowding, poor sanitation and the rapid spread of diseases. In a survey of 237 CDC camp dwellers in Cameroon, we used the health belief model to understand the drivers (perceived threats, benefits and cues for treatment seeking) of reported responses. Using logistic regression analysis, we looked for trends in people's response to malaria. We calculated the odds ratio of factors shown to have an influence on people's health, such as food, water, sanitation challenges and seeking formal healthcare for malaria. Malaria (40.3%), cholera (20.8%) and diarrhoea (17.7...
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In this paper, we explore the connection between poverty and health (poverty-related diseases: PRDs) by investigating the factors that play a role in how two groups of people in Cameroon cope with health challenges: workers in a large... more
In this paper, we explore the connection between poverty and health (poverty-related diseases: PRDs) by investigating the factors that play a role in how two groups of people in Cameroon cope with health challenges: workers in a large agro-industrial organization (living in 'camps') and students in two major universities (living on 'campuses'). We investigated factors reported in the literature as being associated with coping, summarized under the 'salutogenic umbrella', as well as demographic, social and environmental factors. A total of 509 respondents from camps and campuses participated in this study. We used a combination of standardized and un-standardized survey instruments to measure coping. We used χ2 and ANOVA tests to investigate bivariate differences and multiple logistic regression analysis to determine which significant survey factors predicted coping. Our results showed expected and unexpected differences between the settings. Individual dispos...
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Research Interests:
Poverty-Related Diseases (PRDs) emphasize poverty as a 'breeding-ground' for a range of diseases. The study presented here starts from the premise that poverty is a general condition that can limit people's capacity to... more
Poverty-Related Diseases (PRDs) emphasize poverty as a 'breeding-ground' for a range of diseases. The study presented here starts from the premise that poverty is a general condition that can limit people's capacity to prevent, mitigate or treat diseases. Using an interpretation of health seeking behaviour (HSB), inspired by the salutogenic approach, we investigated how people deal with PRDs, their ability and strategies put in place to cope. We collected HSB data from two groups of respondents in Cameroon: labourers of the Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC) living in settlements called camps and students of the state universities of Buea and Yaoundé living in settlements we refer to as campuses. By selecting these groups, the study offers a unique view of how different people cope with similar health challenges. We carried out semi-structured interviews with 21 camp dwellers and 21 students in a cross-sectional study. Our findings revealed 1) respondents use multipl...
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In parts of Asia, rice is sometimes known as ‘the lazy man’s crop’ because it is perceived as an undemanding crop to grow. To grow rice well is more demanding, requiring careful management of inputs and resources. We consider crop... more
In parts of Asia, rice is sometimes known as ‘the lazy man’s crop’ because it is perceived as an undemanding crop to grow. To grow rice well is more demanding, requiring careful management of inputs and resources. We consider crop performance as the outcome of interaction among the rice genome, (agro-)ecology and management (GxExM). We focus on E and M components and distinguish between macro- and micro-level ExM interactions. Our argument shows that calling rice the ‘lazy man’s crop’ need not be understood as a pejorative label. An undemanding crop can help farmers manage the micro-level complexity of farming systems and allow them to pursue a sustainable livelihood strategy that works within the macro-level dynamics in which their framing systems function.
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... and Bill Storey. My thanks also go to the people of the Technology and Agrarian Development group at Wageningen University, in particular Sietze Vellema, for creating a very pleasant work environment. The various Wageningen ...
Research Interests: History, Genetics, Higher Education, Agricultural Development, Agricultural Economics, and 15 moreApplied Research, Agricultural Sciences, Plant Breeding, Public sector, Mathematical Modelling, Nineteenth Century, Group Formation, Cost effectiveness, Agricultural Research, Education System, Plant production, Large Scale, Food Products, Physical Model, and Difference in Differences
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Research Interests:
Agronomic practices such as fertilizer application or seed rates have been known to affect rice pests and damage, but the evidence is often blurred in studies on pest management decisions and invisible in studies on pesticide lock-in.... more
Agronomic practices such as fertilizer application or seed rates have been known to affect rice pests and damage, but the evidence is often blurred in studies on pest management decisions and invisible in studies on pesticide lock-in. Combined agronomic practices and pesticide use may create technological lock-in, occurring when the combination has accumulated advantages over time which encourages its continued use, even if better options are available. We present results from a survey among farmers (N = 400) from five provinces in Cambodia. We asked about field-level, agronomic practices and applied a regression analysis to determine whether these practices affect pesticide application. Farmers from the selected provinces produce rice intensively, particularly those in provinces in the Mekong Delta where a percentage of farmers would aim for three crops per year. Cambodian farmers in the five sampled provinces rely on pesticides for pest control with an average of 2-5 applications each for herbicide and insecticide, and 1-6 applications of fungicide per season. Farmers from the Mekong Delta, particularly Prey Veng Province, made more pesticide applications. Interestingly, of nine agro-nomic practices tested, six were found to significantly correlate with no applications as in organic management recommendations, as well as misuse of pesticides. Varied combinations of agronomic practices including seed rate, crop establishment method, seed treatment, cultivating larger landholdings, irrigation through gravity irrigation system, and number of fertilizer applications predicted herbicide, insecticide and fungicide application. Interactions varied across wet and dry season. Pesticide use makes sense to farmers given a specific combination of agronomic practices. Therefore we argue that field-level agronomic practices contribute to pesticide lock-in as much as wider innovation system conditions such as trade and regulation of pesticides. These findings imply that addressing the pesticide lock-in to facilitate a shift to more sustainable practices, such as Integrated Pest Management, should not only aim at broader innovation systems or industry level changes. There are adjustments and fine-tuning of agronomic practices that also need to be made to wean farmers from pesticide reliance.
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This paper addresses the conditions and mechanisms that sustain pesticide use by Cambodian rice farmers and constrain a transition to more sustainable pest control practices. We analyzed data from a survey of individual farmers (N ¼ 320),... more
This paper addresses the conditions and mechanisms that sustain pesticide use by Cambodian rice farmers and constrain a transition to more sustainable pest control practices. We analyzed data from a survey of individual farmers (N ¼ 320), focus group discussions with farmer groups, and interviews with input sellers, rat hunters and local extension agents. Our findings show that farmers mix different types (e.g. herbicides and insecticides) and brands of pesticides in one application. Other chemicals, in particular 'growth activators' are often added to these mixes. The interaction patterns and financial arrangements among farmers, pesticide sellers, and laborers promote or sustain these practices. Increasing returns to information and recursive social interaction at the community level thus create a lock-in situation for pesticide use. These findings have direct implications on targeting interventions, which are often aimed at providing knowledge to government extension agents and farmers. Our results suggest that farmers' knowledge on pest management is not the only driver for their decisions and practices. A broader scope of intervention in communication and feedback loops between stakeholders directly interacting with farmers can help to diversify the suite of recommendations while providing a balance in the information that reaches farmers. Changes in these social arrangements and informal rules may be required to affect positive changes in rice pest management.
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This paper situates representations of the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) – a set of agronomic principles promoted as a method for sustainable rice cultivation – in the context of three key values in agricultural development: high... more
This paper situates representations of the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) – a set of agronomic principles promoted as a method for sustainable rice cultivation – in the context of three key values in agricultural development: high yields, sustainable agriculture and widespread adoption by farmers. We argue that overstated claims in relation to these values, positively by promoters and negatively by critics, endowed SRI with mythological attributes. In contrast to a popular understanding of myths as false beliefs, we adopt an anthropological perspective on myths as narratives that create meaning and motivate action. The mythological associations of SRI have connected it to overarching development narratives about food security and sustainable
agriculture, which implicitly reduce the complex and intricate processes of rice cultivation using SRI techniques to a neat, technopolitical fix. We argue that these simplistic framings of SRI (and technology more generally) contribute to the gap between the worlds of science and politics on the one hand and farmers' realities on the other. Using a case study of changes in the seeding and transplanting practices of rice cultivators in northern India, we show that farmers also use mythological narratives but in a far less constraining manner. Development narratives as myths (in the anthropological sense) can guide people and their communities in dealing with change without determining clear-cut solutions in advance.
agriculture, which implicitly reduce the complex and intricate processes of rice cultivation using SRI techniques to a neat, technopolitical fix. We argue that these simplistic framings of SRI (and technology more generally) contribute to the gap between the worlds of science and politics on the one hand and farmers' realities on the other. Using a case study of changes in the seeding and transplanting practices of rice cultivators in northern India, we show that farmers also use mythological narratives but in a far less constraining manner. Development narratives as myths (in the anthropological sense) can guide people and their communities in dealing with change without determining clear-cut solutions in advance.
This article investigates the connection between performance, group, and society. The argument is that group formation around particular farm operations and the details of the activities they engage in are an expression of the preferred... more
This article investigates the connection between performance, group, and society. The argument is that group formation around particular farm operations and the details of the activities they engage in are an expression of the preferred way of technology implementation. The argument is developed using Paul Richards' notion of agriculture as performance. Two cases are presented. The first is the composition of a spraying team for weed control in smallholder oil palm production in Sumatra, connected to a global agreement on sustainable oil palm production, known as the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). The second case is about a team of women transplanting young rice seedlings on prepared paddy fields in a village in Uttarakhand, India. A new way of rice transplanting was introduced by a local non-governmental organization, known as the System of Rice Intensification (SRI). The analysis shows that group performances provide essential information about how introduced plans, regulations and material designs are reworked and turned into meaningful and effective changes to agricultural practices. The article concludes that these activities are not merely technical adjustments but in themselves express arguments about the preferred way of organising farming, farm labor, and payments. Performing groups thus exert a form of bargaining power against development actors.
Cet article examine le lien entre la performance, le groupe et la société. L'argument est que la formation de groupes autour d'exploitations agricoles particulières et le détail des activités dans lesquelles ils se lancent sont l'expression du moyen privilégié de mise en oeuvre de la technologie. L'argument est développé en utilisant la notion de Paul Richards de l'agriculture en tant que performance. Deux cas sont présentés. Le premier est la composition d'une équipe de pulvérisation pour la lutte contre les mauvaises herbes dans la production de palmier à huile à Sumatra, liée à un accord mondial sur la production durable de palmier à huile, connu sous le nom de Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). Le deuxième cas concerne une équipe de femmes transplantant de jeunes plants de riz dans des rizières préparées dans un village d'Uttarakhand, en Inde. Une nouvelle méthode de repiquage du riz a été introduite par une organisation non gouvernementale locale, connue sous le nom de Système d’intensification du riz (SRI). L'analyse montre que les performances de groupe fournissent des informations essentielles sur la façon dont les plans, les réglementations et les conceptions des matériaux sont retravaillés et transformés en changements significatifs et efficaces des pratiques agricoles. L'article conclut que ces activités ne sont pas simplement des ajustements techniques, mais expriment en elles-mêmes des arguments sur la manière préférée d'organiser l'agriculture, le travail agricole et les paiements. Les praticiens exercent donc une forme de pouvoir de négociation contre les acteurs du développement.
La noción de "agricultura como performance" captura la improvisación en el éxito de las operaciones agrícolas. Por tanto, el argumento del performance hace hincapié en las particularidades de la improvisación y habilidades dirigidas a las operaciones agrícolas. El papel de la interacción social y formación de grupos es esencial para la expresión y empleo de las habilidades de improvisación. Este artículo investiga las conexiones que hay entre performance, grupos y sociedad. Se desarrolla un marco conceptual de los rasgos esenciales de los grupos performativos: la coordinación de actividades, las particularidades de la situación en que las actividades se realizan, así como el proceso de aprendizaje. Como ejemplo, dos casos se analizan bajo este marco. El enfoque es en cómo las recién introducidas descripciones del trabajo resultan en un grupo performativo particular. El primer trabajo de grupo presentado es un equipo de aspersión para el control de maleza en una pequeña productora de aceite de palma, conectada al mismo tiempo a un acuerdo global de producción sustentable de aceite de palma, conocido como Mesa Redonda de Aceite de Palma Sustentable (RSPO). El segundo caso es sobre un equipo de mujeres que trasplantan plantas de semillero de arroz en arrozales preparados en la villa de Uttarakhand, en India. Un nuevo método de trasplante de arroz fue introducido por una organización local no gubernamental, conocida como Sistema de Intensificación del Cultivo del Arroz (SRI). El análisis muestra que los performances de grupo proveen una información esencial sobre cómo planes, regulaciones y diseño de materiales que son introducidos, son reformulados y convertidos en prácticas agrícolas que resultan tanto significativas como efectivas.
Cet article examine le lien entre la performance, le groupe et la société. L'argument est que la formation de groupes autour d'exploitations agricoles particulières et le détail des activités dans lesquelles ils se lancent sont l'expression du moyen privilégié de mise en oeuvre de la technologie. L'argument est développé en utilisant la notion de Paul Richards de l'agriculture en tant que performance. Deux cas sont présentés. Le premier est la composition d'une équipe de pulvérisation pour la lutte contre les mauvaises herbes dans la production de palmier à huile à Sumatra, liée à un accord mondial sur la production durable de palmier à huile, connu sous le nom de Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). Le deuxième cas concerne une équipe de femmes transplantant de jeunes plants de riz dans des rizières préparées dans un village d'Uttarakhand, en Inde. Une nouvelle méthode de repiquage du riz a été introduite par une organisation non gouvernementale locale, connue sous le nom de Système d’intensification du riz (SRI). L'analyse montre que les performances de groupe fournissent des informations essentielles sur la façon dont les plans, les réglementations et les conceptions des matériaux sont retravaillés et transformés en changements significatifs et efficaces des pratiques agricoles. L'article conclut que ces activités ne sont pas simplement des ajustements techniques, mais expriment en elles-mêmes des arguments sur la manière préférée d'organiser l'agriculture, le travail agricole et les paiements. Les praticiens exercent donc une forme de pouvoir de négociation contre les acteurs du développement.
La noción de "agricultura como performance" captura la improvisación en el éxito de las operaciones agrícolas. Por tanto, el argumento del performance hace hincapié en las particularidades de la improvisación y habilidades dirigidas a las operaciones agrícolas. El papel de la interacción social y formación de grupos es esencial para la expresión y empleo de las habilidades de improvisación. Este artículo investiga las conexiones que hay entre performance, grupos y sociedad. Se desarrolla un marco conceptual de los rasgos esenciales de los grupos performativos: la coordinación de actividades, las particularidades de la situación en que las actividades se realizan, así como el proceso de aprendizaje. Como ejemplo, dos casos se analizan bajo este marco. El enfoque es en cómo las recién introducidas descripciones del trabajo resultan en un grupo performativo particular. El primer trabajo de grupo presentado es un equipo de aspersión para el control de maleza en una pequeña productora de aceite de palma, conectada al mismo tiempo a un acuerdo global de producción sustentable de aceite de palma, conocido como Mesa Redonda de Aceite de Palma Sustentable (RSPO). El segundo caso es sobre un equipo de mujeres que trasplantan plantas de semillero de arroz en arrozales preparados en la villa de Uttarakhand, en India. Un nuevo método de trasplante de arroz fue introducido por una organización local no gubernamental, conocida como Sistema de Intensificación del Cultivo del Arroz (SRI). El análisis muestra que los performances de grupo proveen una información esencial sobre cómo planes, regulaciones y diseño de materiales que son introducidos, son reformulados y convertidos en prácticas agrícolas que resultan tanto significativas como efectivas.