'Knowledge creation' is a metaphor for learning that deserves special attention when designing developmental activities for organic farming

Francis, Charles

Seppänen, Laura

English

Organic Eprints

5FORSKNINGSNYTT ￿ Nr 2 ￿ 2006använda importerade fodermedel som, vi inte vet om, eller kanske redan vet bidrar med stora negativa miljöeffekter i andra delar av världen. Inom kon-ventionell djurhållning används stora mängder soja och palmfrökaka m.m. som har både ekologiska och sociala konsekvenser som inte skulle vara ac-ceptabla om de förekom i Sverige. Om man kopplar ihop vårt jordbruk med hela världen är det inte OK, oavsett om det ger bättre foderutnyttjande, mindre växtnäringsläckage och bättre djurhälsa. Lösningarna på eventuella problem om man utgår från det första perspektivet måste hittas lokalt genom ekologisk inpassning, andra fodermedel m.m. Där kan jag som ekologisk forskare bidra.3. Om vi tror att vi i framtiden kommer att hitta ny billig energi som kan ersätta olja eller om vi inte tror det (eller ens vill det). Liksom hur stor tilltro vi har till teknikens möjlighe-ter att lösa de stora miljöproblemen. Detta avgör om man anser att de stora lösningarna skulle kunna ﬁ  nnas i  GMO, storleksrationalisering, ett jordbruk som bygger på att använda kemiska bekämpningsmedel med precision och att det är där som den stora mängden forskningsmedel ska satsas. Eller om man istället ställer sin förhoppning till forskning kring ekologiska lösningar, där t.ex. diversitet och lokal anpassning är två viktiga redskap som kräver en helt annan typ av forskningsunderstöd.Jag delar ambitionen att med min forskning bidra till mer hållbara livs-medelssystem med många konventio-nella lantbruksforskare, men utifrån min värdegrund och omvärldsanalys är det rimligare att utgå från ett lantbruk som bygger på etiska principer om kretslopp, naturlighet, försiktighet och rättvisa än ett lantbruk som bygger på kontroll och teknisk precision, systematisk använd-ning av kemiska bekämpningsmedel och stora mängder inköpt gödsel. Jag tror dock att det är bra att det ﬁ  nns forskare med en annan ansats än min egen därför att så väl i naturen som i forskningen är mångfald bra. Johanna BjörklundE-post: Johanna.Bjorklund@sol.slu.se■Enhancing R&D in organic agriculture – with what type of learning?A variety of actors take part in maintaining and developing organic food and farming, but generally the best recognised actors in this sense are found in research and development (R&D). If developing the organic sector is viewed as learning, then what is the basis for understanding lear-ning? This basis undoubtedly affects how we design and organise developmental activities such as education, advisory ser-vices and research. The three metaphors for learning, examined by Hakkarainen et al. (2004), are brieﬂ  y described below and evaluated in the light of characteris-tics and challenges of organic agriculture. The three metaphors to learning are: 1) knowledge acquisition, 2) participation, and 3) knowledge creation. It is conclu-ded that all the metaphors are needed, but knowledge creation deserves special attention in designing developmental activities in organic farming.Learning as knowledge acquisitionThe  acquisition meta  phor is most com-mon, and views learning as a process in which knowledge is transmitted into an individual actor. It is the inner knowledge capacity and structures of the mind that are of interest here. Mind can be seen as a container, and learning is a process that ﬁ  lls the empty vessel with knowledge. The traditional form of agricultural extension, a transfer of tech-nology (TOT) model, is one illustration of this metaphor.  The acquisition metaphor often assumes that knowledge is ready and given. At-tention is not paid to situations in which knowledge is used. Ecological prin-ciples, administrative rules for organic farming and other ‘facts’ to be learnt show learning in the light of knowledge acquisition.Learning as participationThe metaphor of participation emphasizes the role of social communities in lear-ning. Through participation, people learn to become full members of a commu-nity, and simultaneously they re-shape their identities. Knowledge, according to this view, does not exist only in the individual’s mind, but rather it is one dimension of cultural participation. ”Knowledge creation” is a metaphor for learning that deserves special attention when designing developmental activities for organic farming, says the author of this article, Laura Seppänen.6FORSKNINGSNYTT ￿ Nr 2 ￿ 2006concepts, material tools and practices. This is not to say that knowledge ac-quisition and participation have no role in organic agriculture. Yet enhancing knowledge creation means that attention is paid to diversity of perspectives and learning tools. They can be tables, ﬁ  gu-res, measurement devices, and especially hands-on activities, and often many of them are needed. Models or other types of presentations of the state-of-the-art practices, or activities that help actors articulate their desired goals, can faci-litate the knowledge-creation process. See Seppänen and Francis (2006) for case examples of networks, participation and knowledge creation.The three metaphors have different roles in R&D.  Knowledge acquisition is neces-sary for complementing the individual’s current knowledge base. With participa-tion, learning may be seen as a process in which new actors gradually become full members of the organic food and farming community. This is also essential, where there are ambitious national goals for organic food production and sales, but Both values and practices in organic agriculture differ from those in conven-tional farming, and thus we often can speak about an organic community into which newcomers join (learn) by parti-cipation. Networks and partnerships are of importance here. Although organic agriculture is now being institutiona-lized, it is still seen to maintain its own value-based, movement kind of activism, which emphasizes learning as participa-tion. But with cultural practices, the focus of this metaphor is on managing existing knowledge of the community, without aiming at conceptual or social changes. Farmers are often viewed as the most important sources of knowledge about organic agriculture, since universities have limited experience in research in this area.Learning as knowledge creationAlthough both of the previous metaphors may include certain innovative elements, neither of them consciously focus on the creation and enhancing of new knowledge. The aim of the third metaphor is both to create new knowledge and to deve-lop corresponding social practices. The interest lies in those processes, practices and tools that encourage new knowledge and innovation.Organic farming is often diverse and location speciﬁ  c and relies on complex ecological processes, which makes it very knowledge-intensive. Organic agricul-ture also needs to face many challenges in a dynamic way, and thus the metaphor of knowledge creation suits well. Also the actual knowledge society empha-sizes the need of knowledge creation. In it, learning means collective striving towards understanding and developing a certain issue. A community is organised around a common object for developing it. There are many theories and models for knowledge creation which mostly emphasize the mediating character of LiteratureHakkarainen, K., Palonen, T., Paavola, S. & Lehtinen, E. 2004. Communities of networked expertise: Professional and educational perspectives. (First edition). Oxford, UK: Elsevier Ltd. Seppänen, L. & Francis, C. 2006. Design of farmer education and training in orga-nic agriculture. In: The Science in Orga-nic Agriculture (Eds: Kristiansen, P, Taji, A. and Reganold, J.), CSIRO Publishing, Australia. ISBN: 0643090908.the funds for new programs are still scarce. Because of the dynamic character of organic agriculture, perhaps the big-gest challenge in organic agriculture is to learn to develop techniques and practices further by reshaping them or creating new ones. This can be achieved through knowledge creation. Laura Seppänen & Charles FrancisTel: +358 191 44 122E-mail: laura.seppanen@helsinki.ﬁ  Laura Seppänen works as a research director at the University of Helsinki, Ruralia  Insti-tute, University of Helsinki.NYBIRT EFNINY LITTERATURUUSI KIRJALLISUUSBok om långliggande fältförsökISOFAR – den internationella organi-sationen för forskning inom ekologiskt lantbruk – har börjat ge ut en vetenskap-lig rapportserie där den första volymen handlar om långliggande fältförsök i ekologiskt lantbruk. Den innehåller information om tolv utvalda långtidsför-sök under skilda förhållanden i Tyskland, USA, Italien, Danmark, Schweiz, Öster-rike och Israel. Varje försök har sitt unika upplägg, men gemensamt är syftet att undersöka ekologiskt lantbruks speciﬁ  ka karaktär när det gäller jordbördighet samt skördarnas storlek och kvalitet.■■Raupp, Joachim, Carola Pekrun, Meike Oltmanns, Ulrich Köpke (Eds.)Long Term Field Experiments in Organic Farming ISOFAR Scientiﬁ  c Series No 1. 2006. Verlag Dr. Köster, Berlin, GermanyMer info: www.isofar.org/publica-tions/scientiﬁ  c-01.html

Enhancing R&D in organic agriculture - with what type of learning?

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