ABSTRACT

The transformative claim of agroecology research draws on transdisciplinarity and participatory action research to operationalize horizontal learning and experimentation for knowledge co-creation and change in action. Drawbacks to recent research strategies in this field are lack of action orientation, and limited roles and low level of control attributed to farmers, particularly in defining scope and methods for collaboration and joint experimentation. In response, in this article we conceptualize a co-inquiry approach for agroecology research adopted from participatory action research and explore its operationalization and outcomes with a group of organic horticultural farmers in Argentina. We assess how co-inquiry considers farmers’ experience in the knowledge co-creation process to achieve contextualized research questions and actionable results, and reflect on potentials and constraints of extended roles attributed to farmers and their increased control over inquiry process and contents. We found that co-inquiry facilitates extended roles of farmers as co-researchers and thereby encourages horizontal learning based on systems thinking, through a joint explorative assessment of the systems operators’ purposes, context, and experience, and through joint choice of methodology, experimentation and reflection.

摘要

农业生态学研究的变革性主张利用跨学科和参与性行动研究来实施横向学习和实验，以实现知识的共同创造和行动的改变。该领域最近研究策略的缺点是缺乏行动导向，农民的作用有限和控制水平低，特别是在确定合作和联合试验的范围和方法方面。作为回应，在本文中，我们概念化了一种从参与式行动研究中采用的农业生态学研究的共同探究方法，并与阿根廷的一组有机园艺农民探讨其实施和结果。我们评估了共同探究如何考虑农民在知识共创过程中的经验，以实现情境化的研究问题和可操作的结果，并反思归因于农民的扩展角色的潜力和限制，以及他们对探究过程和内容的增强控制。我们发现，共同调查促进农民作为共同研究人员的扩展角色，从而鼓励基于系统思维的横向学习，通过对系统运营商的目的、背景和经验的联合探索性评估，以及通过方法的联合选择、实验和反思。