The latest issue of the Stories from our CoP – a regular series that provides space to the inspiring voices of members of Agroecology TPP’s Community of Practice (CoP) – is with Lilian Beck, an agroecology extension specialist who is currently conducting her PhD project on ‘Inter-organizational learning activities to boost agroforestry dissemination’ at the University of Hohenheim’s Institute for Social Sciences of Agriculture and, at the same time, facilitating a transdisciplinary action research with small-scale farmers in Cambodia – through ATSAF Academy’s scholarship and in collaboration with CIFOR-ICRAF.
Q: Lilian, tell us a little bit about yourself and what drew you to pursue a career in agroecology?
A: The very first thig to mention is that I am passionate about facilitating learning and cocreating agroecological innovations. This is why I have been working in this field for over six years with smallholder farmers in Cambodia and with a number of stakeholders in Africa – including on projects with organizations like the University of Kassel, Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), and International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT).
More broadly though, agroecology truly resonates with my own life lessons. Going back to my childhood, when I was a small girl in Germany, I realized that I knew very little about how food is actually grown, and that sparked my curiosity. Eager to learn more, I started working on farms during school breaks, herding cows, goats, and sheep, growing vegetables, and harvesting potatoes. Along the way, I met many inspiring farmers who I call friends. All of these experiences and time spent with them made me admire and deeply respect farmers’ wealth of knowledge, deepening my understanding of just how embedded the agricultural practices are in our socio-cultural, ecological, and political systems.
I quickly learned that nature is not just a resource, but a living entity we all interact with. That’s why agroecology fits in nicely in this, as it perceives humans as part of a larger ecosystem, in which everything works in symbiosis.
Later on in life, when I started working in developing countries, interviewing farmers in Indonesia about the effects of the Green Revolution on their lives, I came to realize the potential risks associated with a top-down approach that views farmers merely as consumers of technology rather than innovators, ignoring the diversity and complexity of the socio-ecological context. I then became aware of the many harmful effects of industrial fertilizers’ usage on the ecosystem, farmers’ health, and their livelihood. At the same time, diving into studies about organic cotton versus conventional one, I learned that, among other things, sustainable agriculture also has the potential to empower people – not only protecting the ecosystem but actually regenerating it, too.
As the time went by, I became more and more excited about the promise of sustainable agriculture and was eager to promote it. When doing field research with organic cotton farmers in Kyrgyzstan, they shared important insights on the benefits and social dynamics of cooperatives, such as the key role of trust. From Balinese farmers, I then learned about the Subak System’s water-sharing commitment among farmers as well as the integrated pest management strategies. Hearing these stories directly from farmers inspired me to learn more about the soil microorganisms and the symbiotic relationships in agroforestry systems.
I went on to study cultural anthropology and the science of education for my bachelor’s degree and, eager to further contribute to the promotion of sustainable agriculture, I then chose agroecology for my master’s degree, along with studies in ethics.
Q: This is a truly inspiring story! Today, with more experience under your belt, do you feel differently about agroecology at all?
A: I appreciate it even more! To me, the real strength of agroecology is that it investigates the very complex interwovenness of different dimensions of farming and food systems, by placing farmers at the center and by giving them a voice in a truly transdisciplinary approach that aims to transform our food systems for the better, while taking into account concepts like social justice and equity.
Working alongside indigenous farmers in Cambodia only reaffirmed my passion for agroecology and transdisciplinary action research. By witnessing their profound knowledge and deep respect towards nature, understanding the potential of existing co-creation processes as well as the challenges they face, I want to stress the urgent need to identify socio-ecologically-appropriate solutions to increase resilience, and agroecology has definitely much to offer.
Just to give you a few examples: the farmers I worked with have developed locally adapted botanical pesticides. In doing so, not only did they reduce health-associated risks for themselves and consumers, but they also contributed to safeguarding the environment and soil health. Then, by adapting the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) to local conditions, farmers have increased both their yields and the resilience against the effects of climate change.
Q: You’re currently undertaking your PhD – was there a particular question or problem that made you want to follow the path of a doctoral degree and perhaps address it?
A: There are a few. One in particular that comes to mind is, when conducting research on barriers to adoption of agroecological practices among farmers in Cambodia, I realized that the existing barriers are often caused by the modality in which the knowledge is transferred within the extension service. As a collaborating researcher at CIAT, I then developed and trialed alternative extension approaches to try and overcome these barriers. At a later stage, working as a field specialist consultant for FAO, I had an opportunity to collaborate with a number of stakeholders to develop and pilot a farmer field school program on climate-resilient agriculture, realizing the immense potential of agroforestry for farmers.
I was eager to further investigate the question of how to best facilitate learning on agroecology and agroforestry, and here I am – currently facilitating a transdisciplinary action research project for my PhD with Cambodian smallholder farmers!
Q: Any insights or research findings you can share already?
A: In short, this action research includes designing, facilitating, and evaluating a learning approach together with farmers as an integral part of your typical project setting that aims to improve farmers’ livelihood while maintaining forested areas through agroforestry practices. Here, I have to pause for a second and express my gratitude for this beautiful collaboration to our farmer learning group, local partners, my supervising team and the Council for Tropical and Subtropical Agricultural Research (ATSAF) for their scholarship!
While I’m still analyzing data, I can certainly share some key insights – exclusively with members of the Agroecology TPP’s Community of Practice!
For instance:
- Most participants in this facilitation and learning process have implemented diversified agroforestry systems in an innovative and individual manner, reporting significant benefits and increased resilience to impacts of climate change within a few years. The potential of agroforestry we observed to increase resilience through diversification speaks for itself.
- At the same time, the work conducted with farmers in Cambodia clearly demonstrated the enormous potential of jointly co-creating solutions when farmers are engaged and listened to, for specific socio-ecological farming systems and individual farmers’ needs.
- It is also important to mention the multidimensional and convincing potential of farmer-to-farmer teaching.
Q: What can you say about the value that you see in the Agroecology TPP and its Community of Practice? Do you think that either or both can provide valuable input for your work and research?
A: Today, when all of us are confronted with the urgent need to transform our food systems, we need to work together and look for innovative solutions to overcome the challenges we face. Understanding the potential of agroecology to mitigate major risks to food sovereignty, it becomes ever more important to engage people in the agroecology movement. After all, agroecology is not only a vision, but a pathway towards transformation. At its core, are value and respect for different kinds of knowledge. And this is where, to me, the Agroecology TPP provides the opportunity to come together, exchange experiences, and co-create knowledge, going beyond simply agreeing on the potential of agroecology as an approach. It offers a chance to find new ways to disseminate findings and address knowledge and implementation gaps that might constrain agroecological transitions, and to integrate all of this knowledge on the ground. The platform also provides a sense of community, which will not only help come up with fresh ideas and form collaborations, but, importantly, encourage people to do so.
As for my research, the Agroecology TPP’s Community of Practice can certainly help me get a better understanding of any major issues out there that can limit learning on the topic, so that I can address those in my research and develop a useful facilitation process and contribute to the movement.
Q: Sounds wonderful. What are your plans for the near future?
A: I would love to continue working with farmers at the intersection of science and policy as a facilitator of co-creation processes for agroecological solutions. This is my true passion.
Download the full interview as a PDF here.
Connect with Lilian:
On LinkedIn: https://de.linkedin.com/in/lilian-beck-a58769139
The University of Hohenheim: https://sta.uni-hohenheim.de/en/lilian-beck
Insights into Lilian’s work on gender-sensitive participatory approaches:
Diving into integrating gender sensitivity into fieldwork ⇒
Can we generate spaces for the transformation of gender norms through extension services? ⇒ https://www.aesanetwork.org/blog-212-can-we-generate-spaces-for-thetransformation-
of-gender-norms-through-extension-services/
Further videos:
Agroforestry action research, Cambodia ⇒
Participatory approaches in agroecology ⇒
An example of an agroforestry farm in Sahel ⇒
4 steps to join Agroecology TPP’s Community of Practice:
1. Create an account with GLFx
2. Confirm your email address in the registration process
3. Once inside the GLFx platform, navigate to ‘Groups’ and choose ‘The Transformative Partnership Platform on Agroecology’
4. Select Join and complete the sign-up form