- Wageningen, Netherlands
Harro Maat
Wageningen University, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty Member
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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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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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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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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 chapter examines how farming technologies move between places and how they are unpacked and 'grounded' in particular spaces and contexts. It argues that a better understanding of how this process occurs helps to shed light on a... more
This chapter examines how farming technologies move between places and how they are unpacked and 'grounded' in particular spaces and contexts. It argues that a better understanding of how this process occurs helps to shed light on a source of contestation within agronomy. The chapter discusses two farming technologies that have been at the centre of controversial debates among experts, policy makers and the wider public: the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) and drip irrigation. These technologies have been contested partly because important social dimensions have been neglected, which have led to the technologies being configured and appreciated differently in different sites. The different understandings of technology and its role in agricultural development, and the cases of SRI and drip irrigation are discussed to illustrate the practice-based notion of technology and technological change as expressions of situated socio-technical practice. Concepts of inscription and affordance, as developed by anthropologists of technology and Science and Technology Studies (STS) scholars are also used.
Smallholder rice farming is characterized by low returns and substantial environmental impact. Conversion to organic management and linking farmers to fair trade markets could offer an alternative. Engaging in certified cash-crop value... more
Smallholder rice farming is characterized by low returns and substantial environmental impact. Conversion to organic management and linking farmers to fair trade markets could offer an alternative. Engaging in certified cash-crop value chains could thereby provide an entry path to
simultaneously reduce poverty and improve environmental sustainability. Based on comprehensive data from a representative sample of approximately 80 organic and 80 conventional farms in northern
India, we compared yield and profitability of the main rotation crops over a period of five years. Contrary to the widespread belief that yields in organic farming are inevitably lower, our study shows that organic farmers achieved the same yields in cereals and pulses as conventional farmers, with considerably lower external inputs. Due to 45% lower production costs and higher sales prices, organic basmati cultivation was 105% more profitable than cultivating ordinary rice under conventional management. However, since holdings are small and the share of agricultural income of total household income is declining, conversion to organic basmati farming alone will not provide households a sufficiently attractive perspective into the future. We propose that future efforts to enhance the long-term viability of rice-based organic farming systems in this region focus on diversification involving higher value crops.
simultaneously reduce poverty and improve environmental sustainability. Based on comprehensive data from a representative sample of approximately 80 organic and 80 conventional farms in northern
India, we compared yield and profitability of the main rotation crops over a period of five years. Contrary to the widespread belief that yields in organic farming are inevitably lower, our study shows that organic farmers achieved the same yields in cereals and pulses as conventional farmers, with considerably lower external inputs. Due to 45% lower production costs and higher sales prices, organic basmati cultivation was 105% more profitable than cultivating ordinary rice under conventional management. However, since holdings are small and the share of agricultural income of total household income is declining, conversion to organic basmati farming alone will not provide households a sufficiently attractive perspective into the future. We propose that future efforts to enhance the long-term viability of rice-based organic farming systems in this region focus on diversification involving higher value crops.
Vulnerability assessments are a cornerstone of contemporary disaster research. This paper shows how research procedures and the presentation of results of vulnerability assessments are politically filtered. Using data from a study of... more
Vulnerability assessments are a cornerstone of contemporary disaster research. This paper shows how research procedures and the presentation of results of vulnerability assessments are politically filtered. Using data from a study of tsunami risk assessment in Portugal, the paper demonstrates that approaches, measurement instruments, and research procedures for evaluating vulnerability are influenced by institutional preferences, lines of communication, or lack thereof, between stakeholder groups, and available technical expertise. The institutional setting and the pattern of stakeholder interactions form a filter, resulting in a particular conceptualisation of vulnerability, affecting its operationalisation via existing methods and technologies and its institutional embedding. The Portuguese case reveals a conceptualisation that is aligned with perceptions prevalent in national government bureaucracies and the exclusion of local stakeholders owing to selected methodologies and assessment procedures. The decisions taken by actors involved in these areas affect how vulnerability is assessed, and ultimately which vulnerability reduction policies will be recommended in the appraisal.
Background: In Cameroon, poverty-related diseases (PRDs) are a major public health concern. Research and policies addressing PRDs are based on a particular understanding of the interaction between poverty and disease, usually an... more
Background: In Cameroon, poverty-related diseases (PRDs) are a major public health concern. Research and policies addressing PRDs are based on a particular understanding of the interaction between poverty and disease, usually an association between poverty indicators and health indicators for a specific country or region. Such indicators are useful but fail to explain the nature of the linkages between poverty and disease or poverty and health. This paper presents results of a study among university students, unravelling how they perceive diseases, the linkages with poverty, their responses to diseases and the motivations behind reported responses. Based on the health belief model, this cross-sectional study was carried out among 272 students at the universities of Buea and Yaoundé in Cameroon. Data were collected using questionnaires containing items matching the research objectives. The questionnaires were self-completed. Results: Malaria was considered as the most common disease perceived and also a major PRD. Contrary to official rankings of HIV/AIDS and TB, cholera and diarrhoea were considered as other major PRDs. Also, typhoid fever was perceived to be more common and a PRD than HIV/AIDS and TB combined. The most prominently attributed cause for disease was (lack of) hygiene. In response, students deployed formal and/or informal healthcare strategies, depending on factors like available money, perceived severity of the disease and disease type. Discrepancies were observed in respondents' response to diseases generally and to malaria in particular. Even though, overall, respondents predominantly reported a formal healthcare response toward diseases in general, for malaria, informal responses dominated. There was an overall strong awareness and (pro)activity among students for dealing with diseases.
Scientific assessments of socio-ecological systems are becoming mainstays in guiding policymaking and other interventions in response to global environmental change. The environmentality literature emphasizes the institutional... more
Scientific assessments of socio-ecological systems are becoming mainstays in guiding policymaking and other
interventions in response to global environmental change. The environmentality literature emphasizes the institutional architecture of emergent science-policy regimes and how scientific research is used in political settings, creating new modes of governance and subjectivities. However, there has been relatively little attention to domain-level socio-ecological assessments as socially produced technologies where specific scientific choices are mechanisms connecting governance architecture and popular subjectivities.
Combining empirical case study and literature review, ssessment technologies are analyzed in three domains: vulnerability assessment, ecosystem services assessment, life-cycle assessment. Using conceptualization, operationalization, and
institutionalization as analytical lenses, the cases illustrate ways that scientific choices simplify complex socioecological relationships with implications for both governance practices and subjectivities. Furthermore, findings explore the possibility for assessments to be more inclusive of diverse social values and practices, enabling more empowering subjectivities.
Keywords Vulnerability . Life cycle assessment . Ecosystem services . Assessment . Environmentality . Science studies . Research methods . Socio-ecological systems
interventions in response to global environmental change. The environmentality literature emphasizes the institutional architecture of emergent science-policy regimes and how scientific research is used in political settings, creating new modes of governance and subjectivities. However, there has been relatively little attention to domain-level socio-ecological assessments as socially produced technologies where specific scientific choices are mechanisms connecting governance architecture and popular subjectivities.
Combining empirical case study and literature review, ssessment technologies are analyzed in three domains: vulnerability assessment, ecosystem services assessment, life-cycle assessment. Using conceptualization, operationalization, and
institutionalization as analytical lenses, the cases illustrate ways that scientific choices simplify complex socioecological relationships with implications for both governance practices and subjectivities. Furthermore, findings explore the possibility for assessments to be more inclusive of diverse social values and practices, enabling more empowering subjectivities.
Keywords Vulnerability . Life cycle assessment . Ecosystem services . Assessment . Environmentality . Science studies . Research methods . Socio-ecological systems
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Dam development in southeastern Turkey is a highly-disputed issue, fanned by the Turkish–Kurdish conflict , socio-environmental and historical–cultural concerns, and international geopolitical interests. This paper focuses on discussions... more
Dam development in southeastern Turkey is a highly-disputed issue, fanned by the Turkish–Kurdish conflict , socio-environmental and historical–cultural concerns, and international geopolitical interests. This paper focuses on discussions around the Ilisu Dam and shows how different actor coalitions imagine different hydrosocial territories regarding this mega-hydraulic project currently under construction. Imaginaries, counter-imaginaries and endeavours to materialize them go far beyond technical projects, portraying the dam to (re)configure the territory physically, ecologically, socioeconomically , symbolically and discursively. The paper embeds competing hydro-territorial constructs and claims within an analysis of governmentality and the multi-scalar and multi-issue politics of dam opponents.
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This book brings together original, state-of-the-art historical research from several continents and examines how mainly local peasant societies responded to colonial pressures to produce a range of different commodities. It shows how... more
This book brings together original, state-of-the-art historical research from several continents and examines how mainly local peasant societies responded to colonial pressures to produce a range of different commodities. It shows how they were able to subvert these processes and establish viable alternative livelihoods. In particular, it introduces the fresh concept of the 'anti-commodity', to indicate local, sustainable forms of production steeped in values other than simply economic ones. The book will appeal to readers eager to find out more about the histories of some familiar items of everyday consumption such as rice, cotton, sugar and tobacco, as well as to those with a keen interest in the histories of African, Asian and Caribbean societies. Finally, it offers new directions in both historical and contemporary research on the continents beyond Europe.
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Although the concept of the apprenticeship seems to be universal, its institutional form and status differ around the world. This article discusses informal apprenticeship training as it occurs among car mechanics in the informal... more
Although the concept of the apprenticeship seems to be universal, its institutional form and status differ around the world. This article discusses informal apprenticeship training as it occurs among car mechanics in the informal industrial complex of the Suame Magazine, Kumasi, Ghana. Using on-site research and theories of social learning and material culture, it focuses on the material aspects of the apprenticeship training and shows that materiality is, in multiple ways, a crucial aspect for both the content and learning practices of the apprenticeship system. The material nature of the Suame Magazine forms a strong learning environment and the status of apprentices is also directly related to the mastering of specific car parts. Moreover, the increasing use of electronics in vehicles demands a different curriculum for apprentices. The role of materiality in social learning is an apparent, though understudied, element in apprenticeship systems.
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... The first was to select the best rice varieties, the latter to discover factors leading to yield maximisation. The head of the Directorate of Agriculture in the Netherlands,Herman Lovink, was asked to review the proposal. Lovink ...
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Science and technology need society. Research and technology have little chance of influencing development if they do not anticipate societal effects and responses. Universities, research centres and technology institutes invest in a good... more
Science and technology need society. Research and technology have little chance of influencing development if they do not anticipate societal effects and responses. Universities, research centres and technology institutes invest in a good relationship with ...