Rising concerns about agricultural productivity and food security in rapidly changing economic and environmental contexts have led to renewed interest in agricultural development. But the extent to which new policies and programs will enable socially just and environmentally sustainable futures for rural communities remains a matter of intense debate. This book contributes to such debates by critically examining the intersection of agricultural histories, heterogeneous social contexts and new technological developments in rural communities across the Global South. It shows how experiences of the previous Green Revolution can inform new agricultural programs and enable equitable and participatory development in rural places. Through close engagement with rural communities, this book ensures that rural voices become part of the debate on agricultural development and suggests pathways for building on the gains of the Green Revolution without necessarily repeating its problematic social, technological and environmental aspects. This book was published as a special issue of the International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability.

Genetically modified crops have become a key element of development strategies across the Global South, despite remaining deeply controversial. Proponents hail them as an example of 'pro-poor' innovation, while critics regard them as a threat to food sovereignty and the environment. The promotion of biotechnology is an integral part of 'new Green Revolution for Africa' interventions and is also intimately linked to the rise of 'philanthrocapitalism,' which advances business solutions to address the problem of poverty. Through interviews with farmers, policymakers and agricultural scientists, Jacqueline Ignatova shows how efforts to transform the seed sector in northern Ghana – one of the key laboratories of this 'new Green Revolution' – may serve to exacerbate the inequality it was notionally intended to address. But she also argues that its effects in Ghana have been far more complex than either side of the debate has acknowledged, with local farmers proving adept at blending traditional and modern agricultural methods that subvert the interests of global agribusiness.

‘In this insightful critique of arguments for and against GMOs as a remedy for poverty, inequality and hunger in Africa, Ignatova illuminates the way the “new Green Revolution” serves as a vehicle for philanthrocapital – generating markets and wealth for global agribusiness in the name of “pro-poor” development.’ Sara Berry, Professor Emeritus, John Hopkins University, USA ‘Ignatova’s important book illuminates profound problems with public-private partnerships that skirt democratic accountability and empower wealthy interests at the expense of local communities. But it’s not a despairing account: she centres Ghanaian activists and policy-makers who are pioneering a new type of philanthropy, one emphasizing interdependency and social justice over anti-democratic efforts to privatize seed commons. A revelatory and insightful study.’ Linsey McGoey, Professor of Sociology, University of Essex, UK ‘Like a combine through a field of genetically modified maize, Jacqueline Ignatova cuts through the rhetoric surrounding the ‘Green Revolution for Africa’ to reveal the underlying power, politics and inequities that shape agricultural development in contemporary Ghana. Full of rich empirics and analytical insights, this book is essential reading for those seeking a comprehensive understanding of how public-private partnerships and philanthropy-driven initiatives are reshaping smallholder agriculture across the African continent.’ Marcus Taylor, Associate Professor and Head of Department, Global Development Studies, Queen’s University, Canada

Awarded honourable mention for the 2024 GFASG Book Award. How do we achieve food security for a global population now over 7 billion people and trending towards 10 billion by 2050? This study of the global dairy industry examines how to balance our needs with those of animals and the environment. It scrutinises ruminant bovines' worrying exhaling of methane, a greenhouse gas which, fortunately, evidence shows can be reduced by adding seaweed to cattle feed. Are the multi-thousand-cow mega-dairies of the USA appropriate models for Africa and Asia's high-growth dairy regions, where so many women are smallholders? Is it ethical to keep cows in confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs), eating unnatural high-energy/low fibre diets when they prefer grazing pasture? Other issues include hormones for oestrus stimulation, and GMOs for milk yield, stressing cows' immune systems and drastically shortening longevity. This book offers multifaceted discussion of the central and ancillary issues relevant to dairying, and consumption of plant- and laboratory-based foods in the 21st century. No book to date offers such a comprehensive overview, linking ethics, environment, health and policy-making with in-depth coverage of the major dairy farming regions of the world.

A synthesis of the agricultural history of the Green Revolution The Green Revolution was devised to increase agricultural production worldwide, particularly in the developing world. Agriculturalists employed anhydrous ammonia and other fertilizing agents, mechanical tilling, hybridized seeds, pesticides, herbicides, and a multitude of other techniques to increase yields and feed a mushrooming human population that would otherwise suffer starvation as the world’s food supply dwindled. In The Green Revolution in the Global South: Science, Politics, and Unintended Consequences, R. Douglas Hurt demonstrates that the Green Revolution did not turn out as neatly as scientists predicted. When its methods and products were imported to places like Indonesia and Nigeria, or even replicated indigenously, the result was a tumultuous impact on a society’s functioning. A range of factors—including cultural practices, ethnic and religious barriers, cost and availability of new technologies, climate, rainfall and aridity, soil quality, the scale of landholdings, political policies and opportunism, the rise of industrial farms, civil unrest, indigenous diseases, and corruption—entered into the Green Revolution calculus, producing a series of unintended consequences that varied from place to place. As the Green Revolution played out over time, these consequences rippled throughout societies, affecting environments, economies, political structures, and countless human lives. Analyzing change over time, almost decade by decade, Hurt shows that the Green Revolution was driven by the state as well as science. Rather than acknowledge the vast problems with the Green Revolution or explore other models, Hurt argues, scientists and political leaders doubled down and repeated the same missteps in the name of humanity and food security. In tracing the permutations of modern science’s impact on international agricultural systems, Hurt documents how, beyond increasing yields, the Green Revolution affected social orders, politics, and lifestyles in every place its methods were applied—usually far more than once.

This collection explores why engineering communication constitutes sociotechnical communication. Sociotechnical communication acknowledges that engineering communication occurs not in a vacuum but shapes and is shaped by multiple social forces. Through diverse research cases, the authors show how sociotechnical communication disrupts common myths in engineering communication: the myth that communication can be purely technical and neutral, and that data speak for themselves. The book highlights these myths, considering first how styles, types, and means of sociotechnical communication played pivotal—and differing—roles in the evolution of wind power technology in Denmark and Germany. The role of myth in engineering blogs in also examined, wherein the effect of engineers maintaining "objective" or "neutral" personae, accentuating technical facts over their social relevance, and eschewing controversy, is to decrease public interest in engineering issues. We see the myths emerge again via product development engineers, whose narrow technical roles constrain their identities and may contribute to constraining their design innovation capacities, in contrast to more holistic, flexible spaces that foster innovation. The myths are also apparent in constructing bridges across Millennial-Baby Boomer generational divides, to facilitate engineering collaboration and knowledge transfer among engineers. Finally, the myths are situated in light of related myths and broader research trends in engineering communication. This book was originally published as a special issue of Engineering Studies.

Anomalous climatic outcomes such as higher temperatures, intense rainfall and flood, frequent and severe droughts are now at the new level. Without appropriate adaptation measures, climate change is bound to exacerbate vulnerability of society, place food security and human health at risk, threaten the lives of growing urban population and impede the goal of attaining sustainable development. The human and social dimensions of climate change, including climate policy, are essential parts of our response to the many challenges emanating from climate change. By focusing on a wide range of topics and involving a diverse array of scholars, this book sheds lights on human and social dimensions of climate change; topics neglected and often poorly understood by scholars and policymakers.

This book presents a selection of the best papers from the 16th International Conference on Business Excellence, “New Challenges of the Century. Digital Economy and the Green Revolution” (ICBE 2022), held in Bucharest, Romania, in March 2022. Showcasing research findings and perspectives on the new challenges posed by the digital economy and research systems, the book offers valuable insights into the present context of global crisis, together with solutions for the real-world challenges we face today.

This book explores the social, economic, and policy problems associated with introducing new agriculture and aquaculture technology to developing nations as a means for expanding food supplies and increasing well-being. The contributors examine three general facets of planning for technology transfer and consider methodologies that enable effective

Shows how the engineering curriculum can be a site for rendering social justice visible in engineering, for exploring complex socio-technical interplays inherent in engineering practice, and for enhancing teaching and learning Using social justice as a catalyst for curricular transformation, Engineering Justice presents an examination of how politics, culture, and other social issues are inherent in the practice of engineering. It aims to align engineering curricula with socially just outcomes, increase enrollment among underrepresented groups, and lessen lingering gender, class, and ethnicity gaps by showing how the power of engineering knowledge can be explicitly harnessed to serve the underserved and address social inequalities. This book is meant to transform the way educators think about engineering curricula through creating or transforming existing courses to attract, retain, and motivate engineering students to become professionals who enact engineering for social justice. Engineering Justice offers thought-provoking chapters on: why social justice is inherent yet often invisible in engineering education and practice; engineering design for social justice; social justice in the engineering sciences; social justice in humanities and social science courses for engineers; and transforming engineering education and practice. In addition, this book: Provides a transformative framework for engineering educators in service learning, professional communication, humanitarian engineering, community service, social entrepreneurship, and social responsibility Includes strategies that engineers on the job can use to advocate for social justice issues and explain their importance to employers, clients, and supervisors Discusses diversity in engineering educational contexts and how it affects the way students learn and develop Engineering Justice is an important book for today’s professors, administrators, and curriculum specialists who seek to produce the best engineers of today and tomorrow.