Tapping unused local knowledge Subsistence farmers living in hundreds of ecological zones have acquired invaluable knowledge of genetic stock, cultivating techniques, and natural resource management that can contribute to developing sustainable farming systems of the future But lit tle of this heritage of learning and insight is ever recorded. The key to further advances lies in building institutional bridges between farmers and research and extension services. Giving smallholders access to services, knowledge, and technology Because they are isolated, rural communities often do not receive technical information generated at the national and international levels. Connecting rural people to knowledge networks is key to developing sustainable farming systems. The informati on technology revolution is provides opportunities to reach farmers much more cost-effectively than in the past.
Education is especially valuable for blending indigenous knowledge with new technologies.
However, many commun ities are designing and implementing effective community-based systems for managing these resources. Giving rural people a voice Several important opportunities are missed in the quest for rural growth unless the poor are listened to, learned from, and engaged with. Only if partners have a say in why, what, and how programs and projects and can be made to work for them can real development occur. A bottom-up approach in which communities are actively involved in designing, implementing, and monitoring projects may be slower and more difficult. But it works better and leads to more sustainable projects.