Darnhofer, Ika, Sutherland, Lee-Ann, Wilson, Geoff A., and Zagata, Lukas (Ed.) (2014): Transition Pathways Towards Sustainability in Agriculture. Case Studies from Europe. Cabi.

Based on the research of an interdisciplinary team of sociologists, geographers and economists, this book focuses on understanding farm-level transitions in Europe. Using case studies from various countries in the EU (United Kingdom, Greece, Germany, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Portugal and France) the book adopts a novel analytical approach based on transition management theory. It discusses the importance of understanding transition pathways towards sustainability in European agriculture at a time of economic recession, outmigration of young people from rural areas, and increasing global competition in agro-commodity chains. It also discusses the utility of transition management concepts for addressing contemporary issues, and identifies future research needs and possible approaches.

Content

• I: Contributors
• II: Glossary
• III: Acknowledgements
• 1: Introduction
• 2: Socio-technical transitions in farming: key concepts
• 3: Understanding the diversity of rural areas
• 4: Utilising the multi-level perspective in empirical field research:methodological considerations
• 5: Lifestyle farming: countryside consumption and transition towards new farming models
• 6: More than just a factor in transition processes? The role of collaboration in agriculture
• 7: High nature value farming: environmental practices for rural sustainability
• 8: Transition processes and natural resource management
• 9: On-farm renewable energy: a ‘classic case’ of technological transition
• 10: ‘The missing actor’: alternative agri-food networks and the resistance of key regime actors
• 11: Local quality and certification schemes as new forms of governance in sustainability transitions
• 12: Transdisciplinarity in deriving sustainability pathways for agriculture
• 13: Conceptual insights derived from case studies on ‘emerging transitions’ in farming
• 14: Conclusions

CABI: www.cabi.org/bookshop/book/9781780642192