Agroecology in Practice
From Local Initiatives to Global Scaling Through Video
Published on 24. March 2025
Book
Hardback
328 pages
978-1-80062-876-2 (ISBN)
Description
Industrial agriculture has taken a toll on our soils, environment and local food cultures. Agroecology in Practice offers a beacon of hope. This practical guide shares ideas and techniques with readers seeking to implement agroecological principles. This book presents innovative examples from across the globe on how to: Rebuild soil health and fertility Enhance biodiversity on your farm Conserve water resources Manage pests and diseases sustainably Ensure humane livestock care Support farmer cooperation Build local food systems. This book inspires the reader with real-world examples. It also explores the multiple ways in which video can contribute to building the necessary knowledge to transform food systems. Agroecology in Practice is a must-read for: Farmers seeking to transition to more sustainable practices Agricultural professionals and educators Students of agroecology Policymakers and anyone interested in a healthier future for our planet. Each short section in the book is linked to a relevant video on the award-winning platform Access Agriculture (www.accessagriculture.org). These 132 high-quality video demonstrations and explanations bring the book's content to life, thereby enriching the learning experiences for readers. These videos share a visual and engaging way to learn, complementing the written content in the book. We hope that having this rich multimedia component will make the book attractive to a wide audience.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Wallingford
United Kingdom
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
Dimensions
Height: 244 mm
Width: 170 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
912 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-80062-876-2 (9781800628762)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Jeffery W Bentley (Author)
Jeffery W. Bentley (Ph.D., University of Arizona) is an agricultural anthropologist with a lifelong interest in farmer creativity, and language. He has worked extensively with farmers and agricultural scientists in Latin America, Africa, South Asia, and Portugal. Previously at New Mexico State and Zamorano Universities, he currently works at Agro-Insight. Jeff has consulted for CABI, CIP, CIMMYT, and the CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers and Bananas (RTB), among others. In the early 2000s he played a key role setting up the CABI plant clinics. He lives in Cochabamba, Bolivia.
Paul Van Mele (Author)
Paul Van Mele (PhD, Wageningen University) is an agricultural scientist who has managed agricultural R&D projects dealing with sustainable agriculture across the global South for over three decades. Since 2002, Paul has spearheaded farmer-to-farmer training video, coordinated research on video-mediated learning and taken it to scale. He runs his own company, Agro-Insight, and co-founded the non-profit organisation Access Agriculture to support South-South learning on agroecological transformation.
Jeffery W. Bentley (Ph.D., University of Arizona) is an agricultural anthropologist with a lifelong interest in farmer creativity, and language. He has worked extensively with farmers and agricultural scientists in Latin America, Africa, South Asia, and Portugal. Previously at New Mexico State and Zamorano Universities, he currently works at Agro-Insight. Jeff has consulted for CABI, CIP, CIMMYT, and the CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers and Bananas (RTB), among others. In the early 2000s he played a key role setting up the CABI plant clinics. He lives in Cochabamba, Bolivia.
Paul Van Mele (Author)
Paul Van Mele (PhD, Wageningen University) is an agricultural scientist who has managed agricultural R&D projects dealing with sustainable agriculture across the global South for over three decades. Since 2002, Paul has spearheaded farmer-to-farmer training video, coordinated research on video-mediated learning and taken it to scale. He runs his own company, Agro-Insight, and co-founded the non-profit organisation Access Agriculture to support South-South learning on agroecological transformation.
Content
Part 1: Problems with Chemical-intensive, Industrial Agriculture 1.: Environmental Degradation, Climate Change and Health Risks 2.: Eroding Food Cultures 3.: Concentration of Power in the Food System Part 2: Diverse and Ecological Farming As a Viable Alternative 4.: Biodiversity 5.: Local Seed 6.: Healthy Soils 7.: Making the Most of Water 8.: Ecological Pest and Disease Management 9.: Healthy Livestock Part 3: Social Innovations for Healthy Food Systems 10.: Farmer Cooperation 11.: Shorter Food Chains 12.: Reviving Traditional Food Cultures 13.: Organic Certification, Regulations and Policy 14.: Money Matters 15.: When Researchers and Farmers Collaborate Part 4: Communicating with Farmers through Video 16.: Making Learning Videos with Farmers 17.: Merging Scientific and Local Knowledge 18.: Speaking of Language 19.: Inspiring Use of Videos by Local Organizations 20.: Encouraging Farmers to Experiment with New Ideas