Article: Ecological transition of agricultural systems: which challenges for managing knowledge?

Nathalie GIRARD

Abstract

Agronomic sciences were built on an initial project of agricultural production optimization, using the available natural resources and a knowledge management system relying on 'Transfers of technology' between researchers producing universal knowledge and farmers 'applying' these science-driven innovations. With health crises and overproduction,together with environmental issues, erosion of biodiversity, food security and climate change, this model of agricultural development is now strongly questioned. Many requalifications of agriculture have thus emerged, all putting forward an ecological approach of processes involved in agricultural activity and its relationship to natural resources. As a consequence, new issues in terms of production and management of agronomic knowledge appeared. We are here defending the point of view that the challenge for agricultural research is not to produce more knowledge for greater certainty in agricultural activity, but to develop strategies of knowledge management that take into account the uncertainty of action, the learning capacities of stakeholders involved in the designing of new agricultural practices and the distributed nature of agricultural organizations. We illustrate this point of view drawing on two previous studies in the agricultural sector.

The author

Nathalie Girard est directrice de recherches à l'Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, dans le département Sciences pour l'Action et le Développement, UMR AGIR de Toulouse. Après une thèse en Ingénierie des Connaissances sur la modélisation de connaissances expertes, elle travaille depuis 15 ans sur les stratégies et outils de gestion des connaissances dans des situations d'apprentissage collectif, en particulier dans le domaine du rôle des systèmes d'élevage dans la gestion des ressources naturelles. En 2012, elle a soutenu une HdR en Sciences de Gestion à l'Université Paris-Dauphine.