scholarly journals RURAL DATA DIVIDES: CRITICAL FACTORS OF DIGITAL AGTECH ADOPTION ON AUSTRALIAN FARMS

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amber Marshall ◽  
Krystle Turner ◽  
Carol Richards ◽  
Marcus Foth ◽  
Michael Dezuanni
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Barriers To Adoption ◽  
Agricultural Technologies ◽  
Remote Sensors ◽  
Data Translation ◽  
On Farm ◽  
Digital Farming

This paper details a qualitative investigation of human factors relating to adoption of digital agricultural technologies on Australian farms. We employed an ‘ecosystems’ approach to undertake a case study of a cotton farm’s transition to digital farming. Interviews and participant observation were conducted across the farm’s supply chain to understand how the experiences, perceptions, and activities of different stakeholders constituted a community-level orientation to digital agriculture, which enabled and constrained on-farm adoption. Technology providers installed a variety of data-generating technologies – remote sensors, automation, satellite crop imagery, WiFi/4G connectivity, and a customised data dashboard on the farm. However, the farmers lacked digital and data literacy skills to access, manage and use data effectively and independently. Specialist expertise for data translation was required, and support and resourcing for the farmers to acquire data capabilities was limited. This ‘data divide’ between the generation and application of farm data was complicated by broader issues raised by participants about data ownership, portability, privacy, trust, liability, and sovereignty, which have been observed internationally. The paper raises questions about the level of expertise farmers should be expected to attain in the transition to digital farming, who in the ecosystem is best placed to fill this ‘data divide’, and what interventions are necessary to address significant barriers to adoption in rural communities. It also highlights a tension between farmers’ $2 as decision-makers on their own properties and their $2 on digital technologies – and the ecosystems that support uptake of digital AgTech – to inform on-farm decisions.

COMMENT ON ‘DE ROO ET AL. (2019). ON-FARM TRIALS FOR DEVELOPMENT IMPACT? THE ORGANIZATION OF RESEARCH AND THE SCALING OF AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGIES’

2019 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 185-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
PATRICK C. WALL ◽  
CHRISTIAN L. THIERFELDER ◽  
ISAIAH NYAGUMBO ◽  
LEONARD RUSINAMHODZI ◽  
WALTER MUPANGWA
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Research ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Scaling Up ◽  
Successful Development ◽  
Agricultural Technologies ◽  
Eastern And Southern Africa ◽  
On Farm ◽  
Scaling Out

SUMMARYIn their recent paper ‘On-farm trials for development impact? The organization of research and the scaling of agricultural technologies’, de Roo, Andersson and Krupnik report on three case studies, each undertaken by one of the authors, of projects conducting on-farm research. They reach conclusions on the limitations of the projects themselves and the effects of ‘donor dependency’, and propose a strategy to overcome these issues. However, the description of the philosophy, strategies and conduct of the projects reviewed in the southern African case study is incomplete and misleading, and shows that the case study author did not understand or overlooked important project components. Due to this the conclusions reached, insofar as this case study is concerned, are largely either invalid or already contemplated in the project activities. Here, we describe more fully the philosophy and strategies followed by the series of projects on which the case study was conducted, which were designed to facilitate, through the upscaling of project methodologies, the eventual outscaling and widespread adoption of more sustainable farming systems by smallholder farmers in eastern and southern Africa. We propose these methodologies as a valid comprehensive approach to the organization of agricultural research for development for the successful development, scaling-up and scaling-out of agricultural technologies.

A Development Impact Assessment on the Use of ICT (Mobile Phone) in Rural Areas of Bangladesh

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahfuz Ashraf
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Mobile Phone ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Information Diffusion ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Group Discussion ◽  
Interview Participant ◽  
Study Context ◽  
The Impact

In the context of the rapid growth of mobile phone penetration in developing countries, mobile telephony is currently considered to be particularly important for development as it may provide an opportunity to address the informational challenges. The research objective is to develop and examine a framework for assessing the impact of mobile phone towards the development of fsocio-economic stipulation in a remote area of Bangladesh as an innovative and effective way. To conduct this research, the authors have promoted an interpretive qualitative research style within a case study context. This research grounded on Communications for Development (C4D) approach for enquiry, analysis and testing. In this research, one of the mobile phone services named Krishi Jigyasha 7676 (agri-solutions service) has been used as ICT intervention in rural areas of Bangladesh. Furthermore, data was collected through personal interview, participant observation, group discussion and questionnaires from the rural community involving in agricultural activities and received information from Krishi Jigyasha 7676 services about their farming. The field results have been analyzed according to Communications for Development (C4D) approaches. Therefore, the field data reflected that how information diffusion improve and resolve the rural communities' agricultural queries and problems to enhance their livelihood.

scholarly journals Digital Agriculture and Labor: A Few Challenges for Social Sustainability

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 5980
Author(s):  
Louisa Prause
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Social Sustainability ◽  
Agricultural Policies ◽  
Labor Control ◽  
Political Debates ◽  
Migrant Laborers ◽  
Depth Interviews

Academic and political debates on the digitalization of agriculture have addressed sustainability mainly from an ecological perspective. Social sustainability, particularly questions of labor, has been largely neglected in the literature thus far. This is particularly problematic since digitalization could fundamentally change farming practices and labor processes on farms, with possibly far-reaching consequences for rural development, rural communities as well as migrant laborers. Looking at the case study of Germany, this article asks how digital technologies are changing labor processes on horticultural and arable farms. The aim of this paper is to bring labor into the debates around agriculture and digitalization and to offer a detailed picture of the impacts of digital technologies on labor in agriculture. The case study builds on fourteen in-depth interviews conducted from June 2020 to March 2021, participant observation, and digital ethnography. The results show new forms of labor control and an intensification of the work process linked to methods of digital Taylorism, as well as risks of working-class fragmentation along age lines. A deskilling of workers or farmers due to digitalization has not been observed. The suggestion of an increased dependency of workers due to the loss of employment opportunities in agriculture is contested. The results stress the importance of designing agricultural policies that foster fair and equitable working conditions.

What Clinicians Need to Know About Early Literacy Development in Children With Hearing Loss

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Runnion ◽  
Shelley Gray
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Early Literacy ◽  
Skill Development ◽  
Reading Proficiency ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Literacy Skill ◽  
Early Literacy Development ◽  
Literacy Skill Development ◽  
Children With Hearing Loss

PurposeChildren with hearing loss may not reach the same level of reading proficiency as their peers with typical development. Audiologists and speech-language pathologists (SLPs) have important roles to play in preventing this problem early in children's development. In this tutorial, we aim to communicate how the habilitation practices of audiologists and intervention services of SLPs can support early literacy skill development in children with hearing loss.MethodWe describe key findings from peer-reviewed research articles to provide a review of early literacy skill development, to explain the relationship between early literacy skills and conventional reading skills, and to highlight findings from early literacy skill intervention studies that included children with hearing loss who use spoken language. We conclude with a hypothetical case study to illustrate how audiologists and SLPs can support early literacy acquisition in children with hearing loss.ConclusionFindings from studies of young children with hearing loss suggest that a promising approach to improving reading outcomes is to provide explicit early literacy instruction and intervention.

Mobile Money - A Catalyst for Financial Inclusion in Developing Economies: A Case Study of Zimbabwe using FinScope Survey Data

GIS Business ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 45-56
Author(s):  
Kingstone Mutsonziwa ◽  
Obert K. Maposa
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Developing Economies ◽  
Adult Population ◽  
Financial System ◽  
Financial Inclusion ◽  
Viable Option ◽  
Mobile Money ◽  
Bank Branches ◽  
Financial Transactions

Mobile money in Zimbabwe has extensively extended the frontiers of financial inclusion to reach millions who were earlier excluded within a relatively short space of time. The growing use of mobile phones in transferring money and making payments has significantly altered the countrys financial inclusion landscape as millions who had been hitherto excluded can now perform financial transactions in a relatively cheap, reliable and secure way. The FinScope results found out that 45% of the adult population use mobile money services. Of those using mobile money, 65% mentioned that is convenient, while 36% mentioned that it is cheap. Mobile money is accessible. These drivers are in the backdrop of few or no bank branches in rural communities as well as time and cost of accessing the bank branches. In Zimbabwe, mobile money is mostly used as a vehicle for remittances. While some people are enjoying mobile money services, it is important to mention that there are still people who are excluded from the formal financial system. The reasons why people do not use mobile money are mainly related to poverty issues. Mobile money remains a viable option to push the landscape of financial inclusion in Zimbabwe and other emerging markets where the formal financial system might not be strong.

Film Marketing: the Case of the New Horizons Association

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 75-94
Author(s):  
Marcin Ptasznik
Keyword(s):  
Film Industry ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Study Participant ◽  
Cultural Institutions ◽  
Literature Study ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Changing Environment ◽  
New Horizons ◽  
Marketing Actions

Approaches to marketing actions in culture are exhibiting rising significance in the modern dynamically changing environment. This paper is focused on the identification of possible applications of marketing in the sphere of culture, with particular reference to the film industry, field of operations of the New Horizons Association. The author’s research was based on a literature study, participant observation, and an online questionnaire, enabling creation of a case study on the New Horizons Association. Empiri-cal research allowed for exploration of the perception of marketing actions of this organization, as well as identifying possible directions for its development. Changes in the needs of modern consumers are related to ongoing virtualization and globalization of culture, and allow for academic discussion about the future of innovative cultural institutions and audio-visual ventures, including within the context of the current global coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic.

scholarly journals Automated pastures and the digital divide: How agricultural technologies are shaping labour and rural communities

2019 ◽  
Vol 68 ◽  
pp. 112-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Rotz ◽  
Evan Gravely ◽  
Ian Mosby ◽  
Emily Duncan ◽  
Elizabeth Finnis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Digital Divide ◽  
Agricultural Technologies

scholarly journals Online collaboration and identity work in a brony fandom: Constructing a dialogic space in a fan translation project

2021 ◽  
pp. 204275302098892
Author(s):  
Liudmila Shafirova ◽  
Kristiina Kumpulainen
Keyword(s):  
Participant Observation ◽  
Collaborative Writing ◽  
Online Collaboration ◽  
Identity Work ◽  
Ethnographic Case Study ◽  
Internet Users ◽  
Affinity Groups ◽  
My Little Pony ◽  
Dialogic Space

Online collaboration has become a regular practice for many Internet users, reflecting the emergence of new participatory cultures in the virtual world. However, little is yet known about the processes and conditions for online collaboration in informally formed writing spaces and how these create opportunities for participants’ identity work. This ethnographic case study explores how four young adults, fans of the show My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic (bronies), negotiated a dialogic space for their online collaboration on a fan translation project and how this created opportunities for their identity work. After a year of participant observation, we collected interviews, ethnographic diaries and participants’ chats, which were analysed with qualitative content and discourse analysis methods. The findings showed how the Etherpad online writing platform used by the participants facilitated the construction of dialogic space through the visualization of a shared artefact and adjustable features. It was in this dialogic space where the participants negotiated their expert identities which furthered their discussions about writing, translating and technological innovations. The study advances present-day knowledge about online collaboration in affinity groups, engendering the construction of a dialogic space for collaborative writing and participants’ identity work.

scholarly journals Forging Political Cadres for Re-Peasantization: Escuela de Acción Campesina (Spain)

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 4061
Author(s):  
David Gallar-Hernández
Keyword(s):  
Food Sovereignty ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Training Process ◽  
Ethnographic Interviews ◽  
Participatory Workshop ◽  
Global North ◽  
Training Schools ◽  
Ethnographic Methodology ◽  
La Via Campesina

Bolstering the political formation of agrarian organizations has become a priority for La Vía Campesina and the Food Sovereignty Movement. This paper addresses the Spanish case study of the Escuela de Acción Campesina (EAC)—(Peasant Action School), which is a tool for political formation in the Global North in which the philosophical and pedagogical principles of the “peasant pedagogies” of the Training Schools proposed by La Vía Campesina are put into practice within an agrarian organization in Spain and in alliance with the rest of the Spanish Food Sovereignty Movement. The study was carried out over the course of the 10 years of activist research, spanning the entire process for the construction and development of the EAC. Employing an ethnographic methodology, information was collected through participant observation, ethnographic interviews, a participatory workshop, and reviews of internal documents. The paper presents the context in which the EAC arose, its pedagogical dynamics, the structure and the ideological contents implemented for the training of new cadres, and how there are three key areas in the training process: (1) the strengthening of collective union and peasant identity, (2) training in the “peasant” ideological proposal, and (3) the integration of students as new cadres into the organizations’ structures. It is concluded that the EAC is a useful tool in the ideological re-peasantization process of these organizations.

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