Global Networks in Local Agriculture: A Framework for Negotiation

Agricultural systems operate through the enrollment of local actors into social networks. These social networks share common idioms and expectations concerning appropriate knowledge and practices. Interaction and competition between social network segments creates the potential for technological change and sustainable production. In the past, global actors enrolled local actors into the networks of modern agriculture through the success of the technology transfer model. However, the innovation to resolve the current problems of local agroecologies requires a more reflexive approach. The adaptive management model facilitates the negotiation of boundaries between networks while addressing the most pressing issues of sustainable local agriculture.