Seminar
Rica Joy Flor: Innovation systems and technological lock-in for Integrated Pest Management
Integrated pest management (IPM) has been introduced in Cambodia for the past 20 years but with little success in scaling out. The technology is interesting in the way it has been positioned around sustainability, farmer learning, increased production, alternative technologies, and as countering pesticide overuse in general. I am starting a project that looks into the lock-in mechanisms that affect IPM in Cambodia.
Conceptual integration and questions on methods
In this presentation, I will share plans about studying the lock-in mechanisms, including what we have found so far regarding broader issues (e.g. review of previous programs, narratives, trends in the policy and markets) that have affected the spread of IPM. I have started to approach this using concepts of innovation systems, technological trajectories and lock-in, but I would be interested in possible ways to broaden the frameworks, and integrate it with more nuanced analysis of socio-technical practices of farmers and farming communities.
I would also be interested in further discussions around the methods. Initially, the focus is on the technical practices and arrangements that pre-condition the lock-in of pesticides at farmer level. Such methodological approach however touches upon concerns around comparing pesticide as the dominant technology with IPM. Such view may not necessarily reflect how farming communities see these technologies.