Robert Richardson

Colorado State University

Ph.D.

New York University

M.B.A.

Tulane University

B.S.

Confronting Tradeoffs Between Agricultural Ecosystem Services and Adaptation to Climate Change in Mali

Kurt B Waldman, Robert B Richardson

2018

Changing climatic conditions present new challenges for agricultural development in sub-Saharan Africa. Sorghum has proven to be an adaptable and resilient crop despite limited funding for crop development. Recent breeding efforts target hybrid and perennial technologies that may facilitate adaptation to climate change. Advantages of perennial crops over their annual counterparts include improved soil quality and water conservation and reduced inputs and labor requirements. In contrast, hybrid crops are often bred for improved grain yield and earlier maturation to avoid variable conditions. We use discrete choice experiments to model adoption of sorghum as a function of attributes that differ between these technologies and traditional varieties in Mali. Overall, the main perceived advantage of perennial crops is agricultural ecosystem services such as soil improvement, while adoption of hybrid crops is hampered by the inability to reuse seed. Women farmers are less concerned about higher labor requirements associated with perennial crops and the ability to reuse hybrids seeds than male farmers. Farmers prefer traditional sorghum to perennial sorghum and are indifferent between traditional and hybrid sorghum. These findings have important policy implications for understanding tradeoffs that are central to farmer decision making when it comes to breeding technologies for climate adaptation.

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Assessing the Potential for Small-Scale Aquaculture in Cambodia

Robert B Richardson, Murari Suvedi

2018

Fisheries in Cambodia play an important role in supporting household food security and livelihoods throughout the country. Inland fisheries production is largely dependent on numerous ecosystem services, particularly the floodwaters of the Tonle Sap Lake basin, which has been degraded from increased fishing pressure because of population growth and a rising demand for fish. To address the dual problem of food insecurity and overfishing, an integrated food security and climate change program involved the promotion of small-scale aquaculture through semi-intensive pond management. The objective of this study is to examine perceptions of small-scale aquaculture by participants in this program in order to assess the potential for aquaculture to contribute to household food security and conservation of the Tonle Sap Lake ecosystem. Focus group discussions and a household survey were conducted among current and previous fish farmers. Results demonstrate that most farmers continue to practice small-scale aquaculture as a means to supplement household food availability and income. Numerous barriers to adoption of small-scale aquaculture were identified, including access to water, prices of commercial fish feed, selling price of fish in markets and concerns about profitability. Seasonal water scarcity is the most prominent challenge in promoting aquaculture technologies, so aquaculture development should be expanded in areas where there are abundant supplies of water, or where use of water storage techniques is feasible. Aquaculture technology appears to have the potential to contribute to food security, nutrition and household income and to the conservation of the wild fisheries of the Tonle Sap Lake.

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Maize-legume intercropping in central Malawi: determinants of practice

Timothy R Silberg, Robert B Richardson, Michele Hockett, Sieglinde S Snapp

2017

In Malawi, population growth has reduced opportunities for farmers to expand and cultivate new land. The country's primary farming population is comprised of smallholders, many who cultivate monocultures of maize (Zea mays). To reduce negative outcomes from this practice, intercropping maize with legumes has been promoted. The sustainable intensification (SI) practice was once widely used, but has declined in recent decades. Little is known about the determinants of intercropping or its role in agricultural development. The objective of this study was to examine the drivers of intercropping among smallholders. We used multiple logistic regression analysis to estimate the determinants of intercropping based on a survey of 324 households. Smallholders who sold legumes were more likely to intercrop, contrary to literature positing intercropping as a practice primarily intended to enhance food security. In addition, complementary SI practices such as fertilizer, manure and compost application were more likely to have occurred on intercropped fields relative to sole maize fields. Furthermore, smallholder farmers appeared to apply more fertilizer to their intercropped fields relative to their sole maize fields. The study highlights the value of including field-level characteristics and household socioeconomic survey data to understand farming practices as a means to inform agricultural policy.

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