Integrated assessment of health and sustainability of agroecosystems

Exploring the implementation of participatory, multistakeholder, and transdisciplinary ecosystem health research, Integrated Assessment of Health and Sustainability of Agroecosystems combines the latest theories in complexity and management with practical tools and approaches for sustainable rural development research. nbsp;Although the text focuses on smallholder farming communities in the central highlands of Kenya, the material discussed can be--and has been--effectively applied to agroecosystems in many other parts of the world.

After showing how the agroecosystem health framework was successfully adapted in a smallholder-dominated agroecosystem, the book integrates participatory methods, systems analyses, pulse process models, and soft systems methods in an open-ended, adaptive R&D process. It then looks at how to use correspondence analysis to refine a research-based suite of indicators and analyze data obtained using indicators.

Incorporating the authors' pioneering work in the ecosystem health field, this book demonstrates the potential of the agroecosystem health paradigm as a framework in the decision-making processes of agricultural communities in a tropical highlands area.

Foreword	p. vii
Preface	p. ix
Acknowledgments	p. xiii
The Authors	p. xv
Overview	p. xvii
Chapter 1 General Introduction	p. 1
1.1 Introduction	p. 1
1.2 Global Context	p. 2
1.3 Sustainability	p. 4
1.3.1 Definitions	p. 4
1.3.2 Assessment and Implementation	p. 5
1.4 Agroecosystem Health	p. 5
1.4.1 Systems Theory	p. 7
1.4.2 The Health Concept	p. 8
1.4.3 Assessment and Implementation	p. 10
1.4.4 Indicators	p. 11
1.4.5 Selection of Indicators	p. 12
1.5 The Kiambu Agroecosystem	p. 13
1.5.1 External Environment	p. 13
1.5.2 Internal Environment	p. 14
1.6 Potential Indicators	p. 15
1.7 Justification	p. 16
References	p. 17
Chapter 2 Design and Implementation of an Adaptive, Integrated Approach to Health and Sustainability in a Smallholder-Dominated Agroecosystem	p. 25
2.1 Introduction	p. 25
2.2 Research Strategy and Methods	p. 27
2.2.1 Secondary Data and Holarchical Scales	p. 29
2.2.2 Sampling Study Sites	p. 30
2.2.3 Systemic Description and Action Planning	p. 31
2.2.4 Indicators	p. 32
2.2.4.1 Community-Driven Indicators	p. 32
2.2.4.2 Selection of Research-Based Indicators	p. 32
2.2.5 Monitoring, Evaluation, and Assessment	p. 33
2.2.5.1 Community-Based Assessments	p. 33
2.2.5.2 Research-Based Assessments	p. 33
2.2.6 Implementation of Interventions	p. 33
2.2.6.1 Community Training	p. 34
2.2.6.2 Community-Based Development Interventions	p. 34
2.3 Results	p. 34
2.3.1 Holarchical Scales	p. 36
2.3.2 Study Sites	p. 37
2.3.3 Systemic Description	p. 38
2.3.3.1 Demographic Features	p. 38
2.3.3.2 Geoclimatic Features	p. 38
2.3.3.3 Resource Use and Distribution	p. 38
2.3.3.4 Agriculture	p. 42
2.3.3.5 Agroecosystem Health Goals	p. 48
2.3.4 Health and Sustainability Assessment	p. 49
2.3.5 Implementation of Interventions	p. 49
2.4 Discussion	p. 49
2.4.1 Holarchical Scale	p. 49
2.4.2 Systemic Description	p. 51
2.4.3 The Agroecosystem Health Approach	p. 52
2.4.4 Health and Sustainability Assessment	p. 53
References	p. 54
Chapter 3 Community Participation and the Integration of Agroecosystem Health and Sustainability Concerns into Practical Decision Making	p. 57
3.1 Introduction	p. 57
3.2 Process and Methods	p. 60
3.2.1 Community Identities	p. 60
3.2.2 Initial Contact with Communities in the Study Sites	p. 61
3.2.3 Initial Village Participatory Workshops	p. 61
3.2.4.1 Participatory Techniques	p. 63
3.2.4.2 Participatory Mapping	p. 63
3.2.4.3 Institutional Mapping	p. 64
3.2.4.4 Historical Background	p. 65
3.2.4.5 Time Lines	p. 65
3.2.4.6 Trend Lines	p. 65
3.2.4.7 Transect Walks	p. 66
3.2.4.8 Semistructured Interviews	p. 66
3.2.4.9 Seasonal Calendars	p. 66
3.2.4.10 Daily Activity Charts	p. 67
3.2.4.11 Focus Group Discussions	p. 67
3.2.4.12 Presentations and Analysis	p. 67
3.2.4.13 Wealth Ranking	p. 68
3.2.4.14 Health Analysis	p. 68
3.2.4.15 Problem Identification and Ranking	p. 68
3.2.4.16 Problem Analysis	p. 69
3.2.4.17 Preference Ranking	p. 69
3.2.4.18 Action Planning	p. 69
3.2.5 Follow-up	p. 69
3.2.5.1 Creating Cognitive Maps	p. 70
3.2.5.2 Developing Community-Based Indicators	p. 70
3.2.5.3 Monitoring, Evaluation, Planning, and Assessments	p. 70
3.3 Results	p. 70
3.3.1 Community Identities	p. 71
3.3.1.1 Participatory Mapping	p. 71
3.3.1.2 Institutional Mapping	p. 71
3.3.1.3 Historical Background and Time Lines	p. 71
3.3.2 Profiles and Trends	p. 72
3.3.2.1 Trend Lines	p. 72
3.3.2.2 Transect Walks and Semistructured Interviews	p. 76
3.3.2.3 Wealth and Well-Being	p. 76
3.3.2.4 Health Analysis	p. 80
3.3.3 Problem Analysis and Action Planning	p. 81
3.3.3.1 Problem Identification, Ranking, and Analyses	p. 81
3.3.3.2 Preference Ranking and Action Planning	p. 82
3.3.4 Follow-Up	p. 82
3.3.4.1 Collective Action	p. 82
3.3.4.2 Reflection and Replanning	p. 82
3.4 Discussion	p. 84
3.4.1 Community Identities and Collective Action	p. 87
3.4.2 Community Participation	p. 87
3.4.3 Systemic Descriptions	p. 88
3.4.4 Problem Analyses and Action Plans	p. 89
3.4.5 Monitoring and Evaluation	p. 89
References	p. 89
Chapter 4 Use of Systems Theory, Directed Graphs, and Pulse Process Models in an Adaptive Approach to Agroecosystem Health and Sustainability	p. 91
4.1 Introduction	p. 91
4.2 Process and Methods	p. 93
4.2.1 Participatory Cognitive Mapping	p. 94
4.2.2 Geometric Analyses	p. 95
4.2.3 Pulse Process Models	p. 96
4.2.4 Application of System Theory Tools in Villages	p. 98
4.3 Results	p. 98
4.3.1 Githima	p. 99
4.3.2 Gitangu	p. 104
4.3.3 Kiawamagira	p. 109
4.3.4 Mahindi	p. 110
4.3.5 Gikabu	p. 113
4.3.6 Thiririka	p. 117
4.4 Discussion	p. 122
4.4.1 Construction of Cognitive Maps	p. 122
4.4.2 Use of Signed Digraphs	p. 122
4.4.3 Geometric Analyses	p. 123
4.4.4 Pulse Process Models	p. 124
4.4.5 Assessment of Value Stability	p. 124
References	p. 125
Chapter 5 Soft System Methodology in the Management of Agroecosystem Health and Sustainability Concerns of a Tropical Highlands Agroecosystem	p. 127
5.1 Introduction	p. 127
5.2 Process and Methods	p. 129
5.2.1 Examination of the Problem Situations	p. 129
5.2.2 Root Definitions and Soft System Modeling	p. 129
5.2.3 Building Consensus, Compromise, and Collective Action	p. 130
5.3 Results	p. 130
5.3.1 Problem Situations	p. 130
5.3.1.1 Drainage and Access Road Problems in Kiawamagira	p. 130
5.3.1.2 Gitangu Water Project	p. 131
5.3.1.3 Inadequate Extension Services in Kiambu District	p. 134
5.3.1.4 Community Inertia in Kiambu District	p. 136
5.3.2 Building Consensus and Root Definitions	p. 136
5.3.3 Implementation, Monitoring, and Evaluation	p. 137
5.4 Discussion	p. 139
5.4.1 Soft System Models	p. 139
5.4.2 Collective Action, Action Research, and Soft System Methodology	p. 143
References	p. 145
Chapter 6 Development of Health and Sustainability Indicators for a Tropical Highlands Agroecosystem	p. 147
6.1 Introduction	p. 147
6.2 Process and Methods	p. 148
6.2.1 Development of Community-Driven Indicators	p. 149
6.2.2 Development of Researcher-Proposed Indicators	p. 151
6.2.3 Indicator Measurements	p. 152
6.2.3.1 Community-Driven Indicators	p. 152
6.2.3.2 Researcher-Proposed Indicators	p. 152
6.2.4 Refining Researcher-Proposed Indicators	p. 153
6.3 Results	p. 153
6.3.1 Community-Driven Indicators	p. 153
6.3.2 Researcher-Proposed Indicators	p. 155
6.3.3 Indicator Measurement and Refinement	p. 158
6.3.3.1 Community Driven	p. 158
6.3.3.2 Researcher Proposed	p. 159
6.3.4 Comparison of Indicator Suites	p. 167
6.4 Discussion	p. 170
6.4.1 Comparison of Indicator Suites	p. 170
6.4.2 Indicator Measurement and Refinement	p. 174
6.4.3 Practicality and Application	p. 177
References	p. 178
Chapter 7 An Assessment of Health and Sustainability of a Smallholder-Dominated Tropical Highlands Ecosystem	p. 181
7.1 Introduction	p. 181
7.2 Process and Methods	p. 182
7.2.1 Spatial and Temporal Trends in the Indicators	p. 182
7.2.2 Evaluation of Goals, Expectations, and Achievements	p. 183
7.3 Results	p. 184
7.3.1 Spatial Trends in the Researcher-Proposed Indicators	p. 184
7.3.2 Evaluation of Temporal Trends in the Researcher-Proposed Indicators	p. 185
7.3.3 Evaluation of Goals, Expectations, and Achievements	p. 187
7.4 Discussion	p. 190
7.4.1 Spatial and Temporal Trends in the Indicators	p. 190
7.4.2 Evaluation of Goals, Expectations, and Achievements	p. 193
References	p. 196
Chapter 8 General Discussion	p. 197
8.1 Synopsis	p. 197
8.2 Sustainability	p. 197
8.3 Agroecosystem Health	p. 198
8.4 Kiambu Agroecosystem	p. 199
8.5 Health and Sustainability Assessment	p. 200
8.6 Summary	p. 201
Chapter 9 General Conclusions	p. 203
Appendices	p. 205
Appendix 1 Questionnaire Used to Carry Out a Census of All the Land-Use Units in the Village	p. 206
Appendix 2 Questionnaire Used for Indicator Measurement at the Land-Use Unit Level	p. 208
Index	p. 223

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