Agriculture and the Environment: Perspectives on Sustainable Rural Development (World Bank Symposium)

Agriculture in developing countries has been remarkably productive during the last few decades; however, the production levels were achieved at the cost of placing more stress on natural resources and the environment. This volume brings together state-of-the-art applied, practical research related to agriculture, development, and the environment in the developing world. It attempts to distill current knowledge and to summarize it in readable form for development practitioners. Where possible, authors use specific examples to indicate which approaches have worked and which have not, under which conditions, and why. Introduction / Ernst Lutz, Hans P. Binswanger, Peter Hazell, And Alexander Mccalla -- Part 1: Policy Perspectives -- Integrating Environmental And Sustainabilty Concerns Into Rural Development Policies / Peter Hazell And Ernst Lutz -- Policy-induced Effects Of Natural Resource Degradation: The Case Of Colombia / John Heath And Hans P. Binswanger -- Toward More Conducive Policies For Sustainable Agriculture / Jules N. Pretty -- Small-farmer Decisionmaking, Market Imperfections, And Natural Resource Management In Developing Countries / Stein T. Holden And Hans P. Binswanger -- Agricultural Trade Reforms, Research Initiatives, And The Environment / Kym Anderson -- Property Regimes In Economic Development: Lessons And Policy Implications / Daniel W. Bromley -- Equity And Environmental Modifiers For Rural Development Policies / Peter Hazell -- Part 2: Institutional And Social Perspectives -- Participatory Rural Development / Deepa Narayan -- Involving Local Organizations In Watershed Managment / Jacqueline A. Ashby, Edwin B. Knapp, And Helle Munk Ravnborg -- Innovative Approaches To Technology Generation And Dissemination For Low-income Farmers / John Farrington And Graham Thiele People-centered Agricultural Development: Principles Of Extension For Acheiving Long-term Impact / Roland Bunch -- Making Market-assisted Land Reform Work: Initial Experience From Colombia, Brazil, And South Africa / Klaus Seininger -- Decentralization And Biodiversity Conservation / Julian Caldecott And Ernst Luntz -- The Importance Of Gender Issues For Environmentally And Socially Sustainable Rural Development / Anges R. Quisumbing, Lynn R. Brown, Lawrence Haddad, And Ruth Meinzen-dick -- Part 3: Technical Issues And Perspectives -- The Costs And Benefits Of Soil Conservation In Central America And The Caribbean / Ernst Luntz, Stefano Pagiola, And Carlos Reiche -- Toward A Strategy For Mainstreaming Biodiversity In Agricultural Development / Jitendra Srivastava, Nigel Smith, And Douglas A. Forno -- Integrated Pest Management: Strategies For Effective Implementation / Tjaart W. Schillhorn Van Veen, Douglas A. Forno, Steen Joffe, Dina L. Umali-deininger, And Sanjiva Cooke -- Toward Reduced Pesticide Use For Cereal Crops In Asia / Prabhu L. Pingali And Roberta V. Gerpacio -- The Economic And Environmental Impacts Of Irrigation And Drainage In Developing Countries / Ujjayant Chakravorty -- Livestock And The Environment: Issues And Options / Henning Steinfield, Cornelis De Haan, And Harvey Blackburn -- Public Policies To Reduce Inappropriate Tropical Deforestation / David Kaimowitz, Neil Byron, And William Sunderlin -- Costs, Benefits, And Farmer Adoption Of Agroforestry / Dean Current, Ernst Luntz, And Sara Scherr -- Part 4: Conclusions Edited By Ernst Lutz ; With The Assistance Of Hans Binswanger, Peter Hazell, And Alexander Mccalla. Includes Bibliographical References. The World Bank has, over the past two years, revisited its rural development strategy and in turn developed a new one, through a renewed commitment to sound development in the rural sector, and seeks to encompass farmers and their communities alike, as well as policymakers. This report gathers applied and practical research related to agriculture and the environment in the developing world, summarizing current knowledge through specific examples, stating the approaches and conditions which worked or not, and the reasons for failure. The observations and findings suggest that environmentally sound increases in productivity will be harder to achieve than in the past, though a significant potential for attaining these increases do exist. To this end, reforms are necessary, so that policy and institutional frameworks support an intensified sustainable agriculture, conducive to an environment that gives way to technological innovation. The authors in this report, review subjects from, integrating environmental concerns in rural development policies, natural resources degradation, small-farmer decisionmaking, to agricultural trade reforms, research initiatives, property regimes, etc. Institutional and social perspectives, together with technical issues and perspectives are also analyzed through various subjects in this volume.