Considerations for enabling the ecological redesign of organic and conventional agriculture: A social ecology and psychosocial perspective

Abstract

The main aim of this 'critical position' chapter is to provide a foundation and framework for developing effective local, contextual, collaborative, integrated planning and action for achieving sustainability within our food systems. Deep (eco-design/redesign-based) organics is distinguished from shallow (substitution-based) organics by the originator of these terms. A discussion is provided of the redesign implications for a transition from conventional agriculture and shallow organics to the more sustainable deep organics, using social ecology and associated 'testing questions' relating to personal, social, ecological and general aspects, as a framework for implementation. In addition to documenting the historical origins of these concepts and arguing for their relevance to achieving sustainability within food systems, emphasis is placed on the need to understand and address the psychological and psychosocial roots of the unsustainability challenges to modern societies. Failure to do this is considered as a main reason for the limited progress that has been made in addressing most current problems. Also, proactive, ecodesign-based preventative approaches to problems are advocated over reactive, curative approaches. An Efficiency-Substitution-Redesign (ESR) progression in relation to change is illustrated using pest control to characterise the differences between the stages involved. It is acknowledged that the changes being advocated here will require a fundamental shift in the paradigms underlying current dominant thinking and action. An innovative, proactive approach to enabling such a shift and facilitate meaningful change, based on 'lying', is provided.