Farmer Centered Agroecology Research (FCAR) is a research platform that produces solutions for small-scale farmers practicing agroecological farming methods. It decentralizes the research process and puts the farmers in the center. FCAR was initiated in 2014 through a formal collaboration between SAT and SUA (the Sokoine University of Agriculture in Morogoro) to foster dialogue between scientists and organic farmers by creating channels for fusing local knowledge with conceptual thinking. Since then, identifying a problem, designing, conducting research, and evaluating products (innovations) have been done collaboratively by drawing experiences from academic and indigenous knowledge systems to better understand the constraints in the currently applied techniques. This helps to modify and adapt according to the farmers’ needs.

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FCAR aims to develop scalable and applicable solutions, tailormade for small-scale farmers, produced through participatory action research. Subsequently, farm productivity, sustainability, and resilience shall be increased and hence positively impact farmers’ livelihoods.

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Our objectives

1. Farmers are visited by SAT to seek their concerns and ideas.
2. Farmer’s challenges are evaluated by using Participatory Rural Appraisal.
3. A preliminary workshop with farmers and lecturers from SUA is organized to refine the problems.

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Objective 1: Research topics and concepts developed by farmers and students

A workshop for participatory research design (WPRD) – the core of the process – is a platform that brings together organic farmers and pastoralists, undergraduate and postgraduate students, lecturers, researchers, and research supervisors from SUA. It is organized to refine existing problems related to land management, marketing, organic crop, livestock production, and the use of information and communication technologies in ago-ecology and engage to participate together in planning demand-driven research.

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It includes

• Lectures on agroecology and participatory research
• Research presentation of former FCAR
• Farmers’ presentation on problems and inclusive discussion
• Designing possible research concepts in workgroups

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After WPRD, students are invited to submit concept notes based on the developed research topics. Then selected students are invited to submit a full research proposal and make a presentation to farmers.

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• After farmers have presented refined problems, students and farmers develop research questions and discuss the chosen topics. Later, these are summarized into specific research clusters designed to cover the most urgent issues for farmers.
• Students are invited to submit concept notes based on the developed research topics. Then selected students are invited to submit a full research proposal and make a presentation to farmers.

Objective 2: Research on specific clusters brings insights and practical solutions to problems, as…

• …research is always carried out in villages in collaboration with farmers.
• …farmers are involved through all stages of the research.
• …farmers’ recommendations are noticed during proposal presentation, and if necessary, the proposals are changed to align with farmers’ needs.

After research has been done, research results and findings are presented. The final research presentation takes place in the villages. Farmers then have the opportunity to share their thoughts regarding the applicability and practicability of the results.

Objective 3: Gained practicable solutions are shared with and scaled to a broader network

When research has been accomplished and results have been submitted to SAT, we summarize the results and prepare a policy brief in collaboration with SUA. The gained research results are scaled through our Farmer Training Centre, the Farmers Magazine MkM, consultancies, and the SAT website. Also, SAT presents the FCAR approach and its results in various workshops and conferences.

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The project is kindly supported by

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