The question of how to improve farming to feed and sustain people in developing countries is as important as ever, and there are no easy solutions. One route to finding…
Contested Agronomy: Imagining different futures for food and farmers
Contested Agronomy: Four big questions to debate
We have just finished a fantastic conference co-hosted by the STEPS Centre on ‘Contested Agronomy’ with 80 participants and a vibrant discussion. I was asked to give some comments at…
A year of STEPS: 2015 highlights
As it’s nearing the end of 2015, here are some highlights you may have missed from the STEPS Centre’s last 12 months. We’ll see you next year! Our coverage of…
Has the ‘impact agenda’ helped agronomy – or harmed it?
Every agronomist or agricultural research institute with an interest in international development, and who has applied for a research grant in the last 15 years, will have had to develop…
Why we should argue about agronomy
“The real problem is that too many people are playing politics with agriculture, and poor people are suffering – agronomists should stick to the facts!” Organic agriculture, agroecology, Conservation Agriculture,…
Soil and politics
What do you think of when you think about soil? There are radically different ways to answer the question. For some scientists, it’s a subject of investigation – what do…
Arguing about agronomy: the changing politics of agronomy research
A new article in Outlook on Agriculture explores how agronomy has been affected by social change since the 1970s. The science of agronomy informs crucial decisions on development. It is often seen…