NEW PUBLICATION

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Farmer Field Schools: Emerging Issues and Challenges (2003) 

CIP-UPWARD, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines. ISBN 971-614-026-6

This volume is a 434-page compilation of papers presented at the International Learning Workshop on FFS held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia on 21-25 October 2002 co-organized by the International Potato Center (CIP) through its UPWARD Network, the Farmers’ Initiatives for Ecological Livelihood and Democracy (FIELD) Indonesia, and The Rockefeller Foundation.

Twenty-four (24) of the 31 papers in the volume discuss case experiences highlighting key issues and challenges in

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Adaptation of FFS for various crops, systems and constraints, beyond the pioneering rice IPM in Indonesia. FFS experiences in crop-livestock systems, forest management, plant breeding, tree crops, and even in empowering farmers in the face of a changing rural economy are described.

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Application of FFS for research, extension, and other learning purposes: these are experiences in the use of the FFS methodology as a mechanism for farmer-based advocacy, for farmer-led research, as a framework for a culturally-relevant agricultural extension system, as well as for popular education in HIV.

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FFS monitoring and evaluation issues and challenges, highlighting experiences in design, implementation, and use of results.

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FFS institutionalization, scaling up and policy development, as part of mainstreaming processes.

The seven (7) thematic papers offer a broader perspective and synthesis of the various country experiences.

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