Abstract

This descriptive study explored organic farmers’ perceived contribution to community resilience. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and examined for predetermined and emerging categories and themes. Ten producers and 20 workers described direct contributions to community resilience constructs, particularly increased political, economic, and natural capital; a sense of community pride and belonging; and historical responsibility. Participants described creating new spaces and opportunities for social interactions such as volunteer engagement and closer relationships with customers, farmers and social organizations. They also referred to three different types of social networks: (1) farmer-to-farmer networks (bonding); (2) farmer-to-community networks (bridging); and (3) organization-to-organization networks (linking). Findings also suggest a perceived bidirectional relationship between local food systems and strong social networks. This paper discusses existing literature; proposes a theoretical framework that supports the research approach taken by the study; and identifies specific constructs connecting local food systems to community resilience.

摘要

这项描述性研究探讨了有机农民对社区复原力的贡献。通过半结构化访谈收集数据，并检查预先确定的和新兴的类别和主题。10 名生产者和 20 名工人描述了对社区复原力建设的直接贡献，特别是增加了政治、经济和自然资本；社区自豪感和归属感；和历史责任。参与者描述了为社会互动创造了新的空间和机会，例如志愿者参与以及与客户、农民和社会组织的更密切关系。他们还提到了三种不同类型的社交网络：（1）农民对农民的网络（结合）；(2) 农民到社区的网络（桥接）；(3) 组织间网络（链接）。调查结果还表明，当地粮食系统和强大的社交网络之间存在双向关系。本文讨论了现有文献；提出一个理论框架来支持研究采用的研究方法；并确定将当地粮食系统与社区复原力联系起来的具体结构。