Variables Influencing Increased Agricultural Yields in Areas of Socioeconomic Transition

当代农业生产的一个显著特征是，在国家农业数据库中登记的以妇女为户主的农场和小型生产者组织（例如为公平贸易市场生产的农场）的数量迅速增加。虽然很明显，妇女在这些正式登记机构和生产者团体中的人数越来越多，但尚不确定这种趋势是否与妇女越来越多地获得有保障的土地、信贷和农业服务有关；加强对地方治理的参与；或者增加国内的经济决策权。根据联合国粮食及农业组织的数据，如果女性和男性能够获得相同的资源，农业产量可能会增加20-30%。此外，许多环境保护和全球气候变化减缓计划都是基于农民将从事植树或保护濒危物种等活动的想法，但相对较少的研究评估了女性农民是否以及如何应对这些环境倡议。全球妇女农民人数的增加肯定会对有关减轻贫穷和环境管理的政策产生深远的影响。考虑到稳定的农业生计对移民、粮食安全、环境保护和禁毒执法等北美问题的重要性，更好地了解妇女和农业符合我们的切身利益。肯塔基大学的Sarah Lyon和Tad mutersaugh博士探讨了与EQ-GVCs（道德质量全球价值链）相关的活动是否与性别平等的衡量标准相关。这项研究将在墨西哥的高原咖啡产区进行，在十多年的时间里，参与认证有机和公平贸易咖啡生产的女性农民的比例从9%增加到40%以上。瓦哈卡还以广泛的文化和组织异质性为特征。该项目探讨了两个问题：首先，评估这种增长如何影响地方治理中的性别平等，以及它是否增加了妇女的土地持有量以及她们获得信贷和农业培训的机会。其次，它考察了女性如何耕种，询问与男性相比，女性是否有不同的做法和期望。为了回答这些问题，研究人员将调查咖啡地块；采访女性和男性农民；并观察和参与与咖啡生产、生产者组织和社区生活有关的活动。研究人员还将采访咖啡买家、捐赠者和咖啡行业参与者，以便更好地了解性别生产实践与更大的市场转型之间的联系。这项研究将有助于确定妇女参与农业的障碍，目的是为未来的政策和项目提供信息，以促进性别平等和妇女获得生产资源。这不仅将有助于探索发展中国家增加农业产出的方法，而且还将评估这些战略在多大程度上提高后代的生活前景。

One striking feature of contemporary agricultural production is the rapidly increasing number of women-headed farms registered in national agricultural databases and with small producer organizations, such as the ones producing for fair trade markets. While it is clear that women are increasingly represented in these formal registries and producer groups, it is less certain that this trend is correlated with women's increased access to secure land holdings, credit, and agricultural services; heightened participation in local governance; or increased economic decision-making power at home. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, if women and men had access to the same resources, agricultural yields could increase 20-30%. In addition, many environmental conservation and global climate change mitigation programs are based upon the idea that farmers will undertake activities such as planting trees or protecting endangered species, yet relatively few studies have assessed whether and how women farmers will respond to these environmental initiatives. The expanding number of women farmers across the globe will certainly have far-reaching implications for policies related to both poverty alleviation and environmental management. Given the importance of stable agricultural livelihoods to North American issues such as migration, food security, environmental conservation, and drug enforcement, a better understanding of women and agriculture is in our vital interests.Dr. Sarah Lyon and Dr. Tad Mutersbaugh of the University of Kentucky explore whether activities associated with EQ-GVCs (ethical quality global value chains) correlate with measures of gender equity. This research will be conducted in highland coffee producing areas of Mexico where the percentage of women farmers participating in certified organic and fairtrade coffee production has increased from just 9% to well over 40% in a little over a decade. Oaxaca is also marked by extensive cultural and organizational heterogeneity. The project explores two questions: First, it assesses how this increase affects gender equity in local governance and whether it increases women's land holdings and their access to credit and agricultural training. Second, it examines how women farm, asking whether women have different practices and expectations in comparison with men. To answer these questions, researchers will survey coffee plots; interview both women and men farmers; and observe and participate in activities related to coffee production, producer organizations, and community life. Researchers will also interview coffee buyers, donors, and coffee industry participants in order to better understand the links between gendered production practices and larger market transformations. The research will help identify barriers to women's participation in agriculture with the goal of informing future policies and programs to promote gender equity and women's access to productive resources. This would not only help explore methods for increasingly agricultural output in developing countries, but also assess the scale at which these strategies enhance the life prospects of future generations.