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ABSTRACT
A set of sustainability attributes was estimated in Western Guatemala by characterizing 20 small-scale farming families with the aim of exploring food security- and climate resilience-related conditions. Solidarity-based economies spawn a stronger social network among agroecological farms. Gender roles in agroecology-adopting families seem to be moving to a more balanced scenario. Differences between agroecology-based and semi-conventional farmers suggest that shares of commercialized produce, gross agricultural income, and plant diversity are significantly higher and thus more resilient in the former. Challenges to agroecological adoption, however, include limited public infrastructure, dearth of supporting policies, and external threats posed by utility-inspired economic agents.
Acknowledgments
Preliminary data from this project was presented on April 25, 2017 at the International Colloquium The Future of Food and Challenges for Agriculture in the 21st Century: Debates about who, how, and with what social, economic and ecological implications we will feed the world, held at Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain. The authors want to express their gratitude to all 20 small-scale producers in Tacaná and Sibinal who accepted to be interviewed and to the Higher Education Support Program (HESP) of the Open Society Foundations and the Central European University in Hungary where one of the authors conducted literature review for this article during the first half of 2016. USAC in Guatemala provided access to soil laboratories and time from its faculty. This research initiative was possible thanks to logistic support provided by Asociación Red Kuchub’al. USAC student Carlos Enrique Maldonado provided invaluable support during field work. Erick Holt-Giménez and Aníbal Sacbajá provided insightful comments along the process.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.