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Rapid Rural Appraisal (RRA) and Ecological Methods For Community Based Agro Forest (AF) Research
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The methods for agroforestry in general and community based AF research in particular must constitute a radical departure from traditional agronomy and even from many of the farming systems research methods that have become established in formal scientific circles. Whether in formal or informal research programme the approach should often be more ecological than agronomic, the focus on the place of trees, wood lands and savannas in the habitat of farmers and herders.
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Within ecology, both qualitative and quantitative sampling and monitoring techniques have been developed to study whole systems and the complex relationships between organisms and their environments (Odum, 1984) (Conway, 1985). Moreover, the theory and the methodology are well suited to a sliding scale of analysis from tree soil interactions to regional land use systems, (Odum, 1984: Rochlean, 1983: Hart, 1985; Conway, 1985), where as agronomy is firmly rooted in the plot.
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The development of AF and Woodland management systems for rural landscapes can benefit particularly from the convergence of methods in 2 sub fields of ecology-ethnobotany and agroecology. While ethnobotany draws its methods from human ecology and ethnographic. Traditions in anthropology (Pasey, 1981) and naturalist traditions in plant and animal ecology methods more from environmental management and systems ecology (Hart, 1981; Altieri, 1983; Conway, 1986).
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and agroecology provide tools for studying existing natural ecosystems, traditional AF systems and recent innovations by rural people. Their methods present ample scope for incorporating indigenous technical knowledge, indigenous capacity for experimentation in to the identification of species for domestication and the design and testing of new Af and woodland management systems .
Rapid rural Appraisal (RRA)
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Rapid rural appraisal (RRA) techniques can combine readily with ethnoecological methods. However, it is the style rather than the speed of RRA which is most critical.
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For example, researchers can nest ethnoecological data and saple. Collection methods within a series of informal interviews with rural community groups of 15 to 30 people, followed by chains of household level and individual interviews, mapping of farms and collection areas and participation in gathering trips, processing and other activities. Ruing subsequent stages of research the same kinds of information gathering activities can be used for monitoring and evaluation of experiments are on station, on farm or in the forest , over a wide range of user- and researcher partnerships with respect to experimental design and management.
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The possibilities range from research designed experiments on station to rural people’s own on site experiments that are simply discovered and documented by research institutions. Most programmes are based on a more direct collaboration between the 2 groups, which includes a variety of roles for land users and formal research institutions in experimental design and management (Feldstein, Poats and Rocheleau, 1987).
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Most of the immediate work in community based agro forestry research will focus on ecological adaptations of RRA combined with experimental situations where the user is also a researcher. However, the exact choice of methods and how to combine and apply them is still largely a matter of taste, style and available resources. For most professional researchers, first attempts with such an approach will be somewhat of a personal experiment to derive a coherent methodology from an eclectic collection of methods to answer research questions framed in response to local circumstances.
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The 2 cases which framed follow are not models, but examples of such experiments. The emphasis is on lessons learned and implications for follow – up. An example from Kenya – trials , errors and hindsight Plant domestication –Local knowledge and chain of interviews.
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Participants