6pgs, A nationwide study was undertaken in China to understand why public interest has shifted away from agriculture and to discuss approaches that may help restore interest and support for agriculture. The study collected 2586 questionnaires from 242 cities in 31 provinces in mainland China. The results suggest that agriculture is still of public interest, but interest has shifted from traditional farming to the consumer perspective in food safety, nutrition and health, food security and agricultural history. Two groups in this study, the younger generation and those with college degrees, show less interest in production agriculture. The accelerating shift in population from rural China to urban areas explains why these two groups are less connected with agricultural issues. The authors contend that it is critically important to keep the urban population knowledgeable of the importance of agriculture and suggest ways to improve communication and support from this educated, city-dweller point of view in order to ensure a stable and secure future. The approach of science appreciation (ways to effectively communicate science to general publics) is proposed to effectively gain renewed interest and engagement with the public in the science of agriculture in order to optimize the needs and benefits from agriculture to society.
Broughton, Duncan (author) and Win, Su Su (author)
Format:
Research summary
Publication Date:
2019
Published:
Myanmar: Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics, Michigan State University, East Lansing.
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 166 Document Number: D11673
Notes:
7 pages., Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security Policy, Research Paper 131, Burma Food Security Policy Project (FSPP)., Analysis revealed that Myanmar has one of the smallest, most underfunded agricultural research systems in Southeast Asia. It is cited as having critical gaps in research capacity, an agricultural research capacity that is highly fragmented, weak linkages between research and extension at local level, and lack of overall strategy for development of agricultural research and extension. Strong economic justification was cited for higher rates of investment in agricultural research, along with recommendations for action.
13 pages., Via online journal., Agricultural research in developing countries often involves collaboration between dispersed multicultural teams of scientists from developed and developing countries. The teams use information and computing technologies (ICTs) to communicate between team members, who originate from different cultures using different languages. This paper investigates the usability and utility of a range of ICTs used for communication between team members from different cultures. The research used an intercultural heuristic evaluation tool, or I‐CHET, to evaluate nine ICTs used by Australian and Lao scientists for team communication. The evaluation showed that asynchronous ICTs (e.g., e‐mail) were preferred by non‐native English speakers, while synchronous media (e.g., audio conferencing, instant messaging, Skype) presented considerable problems between team members from different cultures. Most ICTs evaluated in the study demonstrated little consideration for non‐native English speakers and for inexperienced ICTs users. However, all evaluated ICTs demonstrated the ability to transmit information and encourage communication between information users in scientific collaborations. The I‐CHET assessment tool highlights the ongoing need for a “toolbox” of communication ICTs for research collaborations that can be adapted to suit the cultural and professional needs of multinational teams, worldwide.
Van Mele, Paul (author), Salahuddin, Ahmad (author), Bashar, Md. Khairul (author), and Husain, Musherraf (author)
Format:
Book chapter
Publication Date:
2005
Published:
Bangladesh
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Document Number: C24702
Notes:
Pages 209-220 in Paul Van Mele, Ahmad Salahuddin and Noel P. Magor (eds.), Innovations in rural extension: case studies from Bangladesh. CABI Publishing, Oxfordshire, England. 307 pages.
Ou, Li (author), Xiaoyun, Li (author), and Zhaohu, Li (author)
Format:
Book chapter
Publication Date:
1999
Published:
China
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Document Number: C14402
Notes:
Chapter 15 in Gordon Prain, Sam Fujisaka and Michael D. Warren (eds.), Biological and cultural diversity: the role of indigenous agricultural experimentation in development. Intermediate Technology Publications, London. 1999. 218 pages
