From technology transfer to innovation-based rural development: A necessary turn at the Indio Hatuey experimental station

Abstract

The collapse of the socialist bloc in the early 1990s led to a severe economic crisis in Cuba, unleashing various processes of change to confront the situation. One such process involved taking a new look at the role of the scientific sector in the management and development of science, technology and innovation, and moving from a reductionist approach to a holistic, endogenous and territorial one. This article describes a process of change that occurred at the Indio Hatuey Experimental Station for Pasture and Forage, or EEPFIH, an experimental station for research and education in Matanzas province, Cuba. This article also presents environmental outcomes obtained on farms as a result of this new approach, and institutional outcomes such as the creation of new structures making it possible to address issues such as food security and sovereignty, sustainable agriculture, and climate change at the local and provincial levels. These transformations allow the EEPFIH to respond effectively to the demands of Cuban society in collaboration with other institutions, implementing practices that stimulate these institutions to play a central role in managing their development. More horizontal spaces for exchange and innovation have been opened up, and new mechanisms for management established, consolidating alliances and connections among actors at different levels.