Beyond resilience: Surviving agricultural treadmill in a global village (a case study of farming styles in Ubud, Bali, Indonesia)

Abstract

Since agricultural modernization, farming practices in Indonesia have been forced to follow the prescriptions, which mostly came from the so-called experts. The proposed 'modernity' in agriculture, however, had also showed the ugly side of it. It created problems such market dependency, diminishing local knowledge and unhealthy competitions, which have forced the farmers to run in the 'treadmill'. In Ubud, one of the touristic villages in Bali, the flow of knowledge that influence its agricultural practices is overwhelming. The question is, to what extent are farmers able to cope with such chaotic constellation? This paper aims to explore how different structures that exist in a global village such as Ubud, are perceived by farmers and what strategies do they came up with in order to maintain their existence. The study was a case study, which applied Actor Oriented Approach in order to analyse the point of view of key actors in responding to their situation. Data were gained through in-depth interview with various key actors. The results showed that the interrelationships between various institutions have shaped the room for manoeuvre for farmers to exercise their agencies, which manifested in various strategies emerged in the micro level. These diversities of farming styles and strategies showed that farmers have capabilities to perceive and cope with their problems. Thus, their capabilities based on their localities is the manifestation of their resilience, which is not to be ignored, as it might be the seed for future agriculture development.