FICHA TÉCNICA
Autores: Vários
Título: Desenvolvimento e Ruralidades no Espaço Europeu
Sub-título: Actas do VIII Encontro Nacional da APDR – Volume 1 © Associação Portuguesa para o Desenvolvimento Regional
Reservados todos os direitos, de acordo com a legislação em vigor
Novembro de 2000 Iª edição
Capa: Eduardo Esteves
Paginação e composição: Fernanda Gonçalves e Vera Melato Impressão e acabamento: Gráfica de Coimbra, Lda.
Edição e distribuição:
Associação Portuguesa para o Desenvolvimento Regional IERU - Colégio S. Jerónimo, Largo D. Dinis, Apartado 3060 3001-401 COIMBRA - PORTUGAL Telefones: 239820938 / 239820533 Fax: 239820750 E-mail: apdr@mail.telepac.pt Internet: www.apdr.pt ISBN: 972-98803-0-1 Dep. Legal:
Colecção APDR
DESENVOLVIMENTO E
RURALIDADES NO ESPAÇO
EUROPEU
Actas do VIII Encontro Nacional da APDR
Volume 1
Associação Portuguesa para o Desenvolvimento Regional IERU – Colégio de S. Jerónimo, Largo de D. Dinis, Apartado 3060
Nota de abertura
O VIII Encontro Nacional da APDR realizado em Vila Real entre os dias 29 de Junho e 1 de Julho de 2001 teve com tema principal “Desenvolvimento e Ruralidades no Espaço Europeu”. Participaram mais de 160 investigadores nacionais e de treze outros países que apresentaram 103 comunicações. Na sessão plenária, dedicada ao tema principal do Encontro, proferiram palestras os convidados Mark Shucksmith, Costis Hadjmichalis e José Portela, tendo o Encontro terminado com uma Mesa-Redonda sobre a necessidade de, na Europa, as associações da Regional Science se envolverem mais activamente no processo de acompanhamento e avaliação das políticas regionais, em especial as associações dos países que são os principais destinatários das ajudas regionais comunitárias. Participaram nessa mesa-redonda Denis Maillat (Presidente da associação de língua francesa), José María Mella (representante da associação espanhola) e Luís Valente de Oliveira (a convite da associação portuguesa). A todos os participantes e convidados a Direcção da APDR gostaria de agradecer o contributo dado ao êxito científico deste Encontro e relembrar o excelente trabalho da Comissão Organizadora Local, encabeçada pelo nosso associado Francisco Diniz. Por último, gostaríamos de mencionar o valioso apoio concedido pela Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro.
Os dois volumes que se publicam correspondem às comunicações apresentadas na Sessão Plenária e nas 30 Sessões Paralelas que se realizaram, agrupadas por sessão e ordenadas de acordo com o Programa Final do Congresso.
Índice – Volume 1
Capítulo 1 – Comunicações da Sessão Plenária.... ... ... ... ... ... .. .... . 13
Development and ruralities in Europe: processes of change and social exclusion in rural areas.. .... ... ... ... ... .. .... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. ...
Mark Shucksmith
15 Imagining rurality in the new Europe and dilemmas for spatial policy. ... .... .
Costis Hadjimichalis
37 Revisiting “development” in Trás-os-Montes: between (neo)romanticism and field observations……….
José Portela
49
Capítulo 2 – O desenvolvimento da região duriense.... ... ... ... ... ... .... .... 63
A modernidade agrária da Região do Douro e o desenvolvimento regional.. ....
Manuel F. Colaço do Rosário
65
Candidatura do Alto Douro vinhateiro a património mundial... ... ... ... . ....
Fernando Bianchi de Aguiar
83
Technical efficiency and productivity growth in the farming system of the Douro Region, Portugal: a stochastic frontier approach (SFA). ... ... ... ... ....
José Vaz Caldas; João Rebelo
91
O desenvolvimento turístico no Vale do Douro: um destino em fase de afirmação, uma rede institucional em discussão... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. ....
António Fontes; Luís Ramos
109
Social networks and employment opportunities among rural youth in the Douro Valley, Portugal. . .... ... ... ... ... ... .. ... ... ... ... ... ... ...
Chris Gerry; Patrícia António
125
Promotores públicos e privados no Leader II: o caso da Nute Douro... ... ... ...
Francisco Diniz; Fernanda Nogueira
143
Análise do turismo cultural de museus no Corredor do Douro. ... ... ... ...
Luis César Prieto; Jorge José Figueira; Paula Odete Fernandes
163
Capítulo 3 – Agricultura, ruralidades e desenvolvimento rural... ... ... . 185
Utilisation des aménités des territoires pour valoriser un produit alimentaire.L’analyse à partir du «packaging» du cas des fromages de chèvre...
Dominique Coquart; Michaël Pouzenc
Problems of regional development and unemployment in agricultural areas in Russia……… … ………… ……… ..… ………...
Tatiana V. Blinova; Victor A. Rusanovsky
197
Keystone sector methodology applied to Portugal a new approach to rural regional development strategy…… ……… …… ………… ………. …
Pedro Guedes de Carvalho
213
Tale of two systems (the CES and rural extension in Portugal); “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”.... ..… ……… ……… …… …
Timothy L. Koehnen
235
Agriculturas familiares: tipologia das famílias/explorações……… …………
Maria da Graça Ferreira Bento Madureira
247
O papel das organizações associativas nos espaços rurais de fraca densidade demográfica – o caso da Região de Lafões……… ………
António Martins; Alfredo Simões
257
A criação e venda da vitela de Lafões: uma análise de rendibilidade… …… …
António Martins; Carla Simões
273
Origines et limites de la montée des territoires dans la politique de développement rural en France… ……… …… ………… ……… …… ……
Guilhem Brun; Corinne Meunier
283
Analyse du contexte agricole pour un aménagement du territoire intégré… …..
Christine Gatabin; Roland Prélaz-Droux; Séverine Vuilleumier
295
Comportamiento de la productividad total del sector agrario en las Regiones y Provincias Españolas… ………… ……… ……… …… ……
Pilar Expósito Díaz; Pilar González Murias; Xosé Antón Rodríguez González
315
O Turismo no Espaço Rural: uma digressão pelo tema a pretexto da situação e evolução do fenómeno em Portugal……… ………
J. Cadima Ribeiro; Maria Marlene de Freitas; Raquel Bernardette Mendes
329
Desarrollo de candidatura a la iniciativa comunitaria Leader + en 7 municipios de la Provincia de Pontevedra (Galicia) España……… ……… …… …..
C. Alvarez López; J. Blanco Ballón; M.Teijido Sotelo
343
O programa LEADER e o desenvolvimento da região de Sicó……… … …....
Alfredo Pires Simões; Ana Sofia Lopes; João Paulo Barbosa de Melo
357
O campo e a cidade: uma oportunidade de desenvolvimento turístico………..
Ana Paula Figueira
373
Perspectivas de desenvolvimento dos produtos agro-alimentares de qualidade – a percepção dos agentes locais……… ……… ……… …… …... .
Alfredo Simões; Carla Simões
383
Amenidades e desenvolvimento dos espaços rurais: o caso dos produtos agro-alimentares de qualidade na região de Sicó……….………
Henrique Albergaria; Sara Pires
“L’Aubrac: une race, un pays, des hommes”: Analyse d’un système de production d’aménités dans un territoire de moyenne montagne………
Jean Pilleboue
411
Tourisme et agriculture: synergie et/ou concurrence dans la valorisation des aménités en espace rural………
Valérie Olivier; Jean Simonneaux
431
O turismo e o desenvolvimento dos espaços rurais de fraca densidade………..
Henrique Albergaria; Sara Pires
441
Capítulo 4 – Desenvolvimento local e regional………… ……… 461
“A necessidade aguçou o engenho?” Emigração e desenvolvimento local em quatro décadas que mudaram o mundo: o caso de Peso (Covilhã)……… ... ….
José Madeira
463
Participation and social exclusion: the role of migration in the development process; a micro-study from the Concelho of Vila Real……… ……… … …...
Patricia Goldey
479
Assessment of job creation opportunities and regional development strategies for the Permian Basin of Texas (USA)……….
Bernard L. Weinstein
491
O impacto do CNIM (centro internacional de negócios da madeira) na
economia madeirense………...………
António Martins de Almeida
505
Valorização da identidade do território, globalização e agentes de
desenvolvimento local em Portugal………..
Zoran Roca
521
Subsídios a uma tipologia das empresas industriais brasileiras… ……… … ….
Paulo Furtado de Castro; Carlos Wagner de A. Oliveira; Leandro Magnussion
535
Território e globalização………..
Paulo Alexandre Neto
547
Desenvolvimento regional e processo da globalização………
Alain Tobelem
565
City of art as a HC local system and cultural districtualisation processes: the sub-cluster of art-restoration in Florence………..
Luciana Lazzeretti
577
Meios inovadores / desenvolvimento sustentável: que convivência?...…………
Licínia Serôdio
595
Sistemas territoriais de inovação: quadro conceptual, metodológico e estudo de caso……….
Domingos Santos
Crecimiento económico: concentración geográfica y especialización regional en la industria de Portugal y España………
Isidro Frías Pinedo; Ana Iglesias Casal
627
Níveis de desenvolvimento na União Europeia: uma análise comparativa inter-regional………
Alexandra Manuela Gomes
647
Capítulo 5 – As cidades, as metrópoles e as regiões... ... ... ... ... ... ... 667
Demand for housing and urban services in Brazil: a hedonic approach……….
Maria da Piedade Morais; Bruno de Oliveira Cruz
669
Mobilidade e território da região de Lisboa e Vale do Tejo: pistas para uma análise integrada. ……….... .……… …... .
Cristina Oliveira; Duarte Rodrigues
689
Reverter a degradação urbana: desafios para estratégias regionais de
qualificação das cidades………... ... .. ... ... ... ... ... ... .. ...
Isabel Breda-Vázquez; Paulo Conceição; Miguel Branco-Teixeira
709
Residential segregation and social exclusion in Brazilian housing markets…….
Maria da Piedade Morais; Bruno Cruz; Carlos Wagner Oliveira
725
Capítulo 6 – O comércio e os serviços……….. 751
Produção subcontratada e distribuição “franqueada”: dois pesos e duas medidas na flexibilidade da Benetton no Brasil………
Liana Carleial; Maria Madalena Bal
753
El empleo en el sector servicios venta en España y Portugal: análisis
comparativo del comercio y hostelería... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. ...
Emilia Vázquez Rozas; Pilar Expósito Díaz;Ana Iglesias Casal
779
Projectos especiais de urbanismo comercial: algumas considerações a
propósito da implementação do PROCOM em Vila Verde (Minho)…………..
J. Cadima Ribeiro
793
Factores de macrolocalização comercial: evidência empírica a partir dos
centros comerciais portugueses……….
J. Cadima Ribeiro; J. Freitas Santos;Isabel Vieira
815
A importância do comércio retalhista no desenvolvimento das cidades: o caso da cidade da Guarda………... .
Marta Ribeiro; Ricardo Rodrigues
235
Tale of two systems
(the CES and rural extension in Portugal);
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..."
Timothy L. Koehnen
*Abstract
The Cooperative Extension Service (CES) and Rural Extension in Portugal: What are the strengths of each system? What are the similarities? Key components of each will be compared and discussed within the context of differing rural and agricultural populations and conditions. The comparison will be of the technology transfer and non-formal educational programs.
*
Professor Associado Departamento de Economia e Sociologia Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Apartado 202 - 5001-911 Vila Real, Portugal.
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1. Introduction
The Cooperative Extension Service (CES) and Rural Extension in Portugal: What are the strengths and weaknesses of each system? What are the similarities? Key components of each will be compared and discussed within the context of differing rural and agricultural populations and conditions. The comparison will be of the technology transfer and non-formal educational programs.
A traditional aspect for both the CES and Rural Extension in Portugal remains the technological and informational transfer process that attempts to reach a target group or user with information or technology. Portela and Cristóvão (1991), Cristóvão (1994) and Koehnen (1998) have criticized this component of Rural Extension in Portugal for the weak interface with agricultural research and the farmer. The criticisms extend to the development and transfer of available technology that is more supply oriented and lacks demand by the potential users.
Buttel, 1991, Rogers, 1989 and Flora and Flora, 1989 have described, historically, the technological and informational transfer debate associated with this component in the United States. Historically, the CES has maintained their commitment to the farming and rural issues, since the farming population was 80% of the national workforce to the present day level at about 2%. However, there have been intense debates that have influenced changes in research and extension policies.
2. Historical review: the tale of the CES
Agricultural societies (elite leadership) played an important role in the establishment of a national system of state land grant institutions, experimental stations and eventually the agricultural extension service in the United States. These leaders (landowners, bankers and educators) were instrumental in promoting the improvement of United States agriculture through an idea based on progress and scientific improvement. This elite core influenced the establishment of the Land Grant College and the CES.
The legislation that established at least one Land Grant College for each state in the United States was the Morrill Act signed by President Lincoln in 1862. This federal legislation of 1862 passed when all the southern states representatives were absent (this paper excludes the legislation that created the 1890s land grant institutions). The federal government through the Morrill Act provided parcels of lands that would be used to support and finance the agricultural colleges to teach agriculture and mechanics. This legislation instituted the on-campus agricultural education programs that assist today in preparing agricultural scientists, agricultural extension educators, and farm operators. This legislation was the initiation of the resident instruction component of the Land Grant Colleges for the development of human resources to promote agricultural improvement.
The federal legislation that assisted the teaching staff to interface their scientific agriculture curriculum to pertinent research results was the Hatch Act of 1887. The Hatch Act provided federal funds for agricultural research at the agricultural colleges to be matched by funding from their state government. This agricultural research was to
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address the local farming needs and be carried out at the experimental stations within each state. The decentralized process for local level agricultural research facilitated the development of appropriate technology and information for the farmer in each of the states. This decentralized policy (innovative at the time) has been important in the development of an efficient technology transfer system responsive to local needs of agricultural landowners.
The Hatch Act initiated the system outlined by Buttel, 1991 as the transfer "of public-domain, non proprietary information". The legislation also established an additional component within the Land Grant Universities organizational structure. After 1887, the Land Grant Colleges had an organizational structure which included both agricultural teaching and research. These two pillars were primarily focused on the on-campus constituent, because of the limited time for educational contacts off-campus.
To address the off-campus constituents in the United States, an additional component in the organizational structure of the Land Grant College came into existence as the agricultural extension system or better known as the CES. This component was instituted in the Land Grant College to assist in diffusing useful information to rural and agricultural audiences. The demonstration agent from these colleges demonstrated agricultural cultural practices and home economic innovations to rural and agricultural audiences off-campus (Flora and Flora, 1989). These agents existed in a few Land Grant Colleges prior to the federal legislation and were financed by local, state and private funds.
From these scattered seeds of interest in agricultural extension, the federal government intervened through legislation. The federal legislation responsible for the creation of the CES was the Smith-Lever Act of 1914. The Smith-Lever Act established the extension component to be supported by federal, state and local government funding (Lindley, 1983, Flora and Flora, 1989 and Rogers, 1989). The initial non-formal educational programming of the agent included the areas of agricultural production, home economics, youth clubs and community development.
This additional component of the Land Grant College permitted the establishment of 1) an agricultural research and technology transfer system and 2) a non-formal educational programming process which encouraged local participation. The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 also concluded the triad of on-campus agricultural educational instruction, research and extension for the Land Grant College.
The historical development of the Land Grant College with the three pillars of teaching, research and extension spanned a federal legislation period of 52 years. This accomplishment occurred through a sustained effort by the agricultural leadership. From the founding in the 1800s, these Land Grant Institutions can still be found in every state within the United States. The survival of this system is attributed to local agricultural leadership that has played an important role in both the formative and developmental period.
The survival and continuous functioning of the agricultural extension system can be contributed to a viable agricultural leadership. This diverse leadership includes farmers, educators, researchers, agricultural commodity input business people and members of agricultural associations and co-operatives.
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3. Land grant components in the region of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro
The Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD) was transformed from a university institute in 1986 and has an important role of resident instruction for the agricultural sciences in the region of Trás-os-Montes. The institute´s leadership played a critical role in the strengthening of a university that incorporated the Land Grant components such as teaching, agricultural research and outreach. The UTAD outreach program and the institutional linkage to the Direcção Regional de Agricultura de Trás-os-Montes (DRATM) that is responsible for rural extension completes the construction of a system comparable to the Land Grant Colleges in the USA.
In addition, an innovative program (1998) within the sphere of UTAD was implemented through the strong leadership of the Rector. The recent program focuses on rural development within the region of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro and is called the Serviço
Cooperativo de Extensão. This service is articulated to a network of computer stations
through an internet service with the local communities in Trás-os-Montes region. The UTAD service will promote the transfer of information to these communities in partnership with the Regional Directorate. The educational performance of this type of innovative communication tool will need to be assessed in the upcoming years both in Portugal and the United States.
4. Rural extension as technology transfer in Portugal
Rural Extension system in Portugal was established by the National Assembly in 1977 (Decreto-Lei nº 221/77). This system has been primarily responsible for the transfer and communication of information and technology. As was the case in the USA, the seeds of rural extension in Portugal existed prior to the legislation as a centralized bureaucracy in Lisbon. The legislation created a de-centralized rural extension system administered at seven regional locations throughout Portugal. The regionalization of Rural Extension in Portugal in 1977 was considered to be an innovative organizational chart. The DRATM is one of the seven regional directorates.
The DRATM had the responsibility for the transfer of technology in Trás-os-Montes through rural extension and farmer training. The Regional Directorate is also involved in the promotion and strengthening of farmer organizations and animal health and sanitation associations. It is planned that these local associations become more autonomous and immersed in the transfer of technology. This transfer of technology was facilitated by applied research from the institutional linkages to the Instituto Nacional de Investigação Agrária (INIA) and UTAD.
In Portugal, the Portuguese Ministry of Agriculture through INIA (created in 1974 by Law Nº 539/74) has experimental stations concentrated around Lisbon that carryout commodity specific agricultural research. (Moreira, 1992). The UTAD like other higher educational institutions lies outside this network of experimental stations, through their autonomous experimental stations. In combination with INIA, the higher agricultural institutions form a more diverse network of experimental stations. This is possible because of a national policy of open competition for research funds that permit
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researchers from INIA and higher educational institutions like UTAD to submit research proposals for assessment.
Rural Extension in Portugal has lacked in some situations a dynamic contribution at the local level with “home-grown” and multi-faceted leadership. The “home-grown” young leaders need stregthening through rural extension that provides continuous supervision and orientation as well as leadership training.
5. Agricultural technology transfer: a comparison
This aspect (technology transfer) has been altered in the United States as a result of the debate initiated in the 70's which encompassed two contradictory vertentes (Buttel, 1991). One of the contradictory arguments for change in the technological and informational transfer system was advanced by Hightower, 1973. He concluded that the commodity type of research at the Land Grant Colleges that served as the technological and information source for the CES biased and marginalised the rural poor and family farm. The system neglected the rural poor and the family farm and targeted the commodity farming system. These farming systems are integrated with agribusiness firms and the elite commercial farmers. Rural Extension in Portugal has also benefited the elite commercial farmers and commodity production systems (Portela e Cristóvão, 1991).
An additional outcome from the development and then the transfer of technology and information in the United States was the environmental degradation of soils and ground water. The development and transfer of technology and information occurred without any preoccupation about the biological effects on the rural environment or the negative consequences to a rural constituent group (Rogers, 1989). The environmental degradation in many rural areas in Portugal has been less severe than the United States. However, the tomato production system in the south and the recent expansion of flower production via green house expansion may also have negative consequences to soil and ground water quality.
The conventional argument for a change in the Untied States was established by National Research Council, 1972, and known as the "Pound Report" (Buttel, 1991). This report promoted the strengthening of basic research and the necessity to limit the “locally-adapted” agricultural research. The report discouraged a research-extension system that used a pivotal extension specialist in transferring “locally-adapted” commodities. The process for a "public-domain, non proprietary information system" had less appeal for the 1980s in the United States. Federal research funding would favor the vertente that strengthened the cutting edge of basic research (contradictory to Hightower, 1972). The Land Grant College's role for the development and transfer of technology would change from the historical role as the main supplier of non-proprietary “locally-adapted” commodity research to promoting biotechnology ("genetic engineering").
This “locally adapted” commodity research and transfer system benefited the various agricultural productions systems (i.e. corn, soybean, cotton ). This non-proprietary role was passed to a proprietary research and transfer system and was taken up by agribusiness or the private sector. Agribusiness would be responsible for the
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development and transfer of technological and informational inputs for the commodity production farming systems.
The Land Grant Colleges agricultural research and extension system (that had been "locally adapted commodity oriented") transformed their task to assist alternative farming systems ("low input, sustainable agriculture") and commercial farmers. This alternative focus was to counter the economic and social outcomes of favoring an elite commercial farming system. The alternative farming systems made up of family farms were less damaging to the rural environment and considered the biological effects on the environment. The cultural practices for the alternative farming system take into consideration alternative planting systems (crop rotations with legumes), tillage practices favoring soil conservation, and minimizing chemical inputs (integrated pest management). The families associated to the alternative farming system were recognized as a target group for the CES.
In addition, the alternative focus is on “added-value crops” or “livestock opportunities”. A multi-disciplinary research and extension team using agricultural economists, crop scientist, extension educators, rural sociologist, agricultural engineers, and animal science specialist investigate production and marketing alternatives for specialty crops or opportunities to develop quality agricultural products. A similar activity in Portugal involves the promotion, production and marketing of traditional agricultural products with a certificate of quality (Denominação de Origem e Certificação de Qualidade) without the multi-disciplinary research and extension team.
The public agricultural research and CES continue to assist the farmer commodity associations to evaluate the proprietary agricultural innovations promoted by the private sector. And, the extension specialists strengthened their role as the advocate between farmer associations and the private proprietary information sector (i.e. corn, soybean and cotton).
The CES actors assume a neutral role in assessing the privatized proprietary inputs or innovations directed toward their constituents (commercial farms and family farms) by agribusiness. In this way, the CES develops and transfers objective information on the proprietary products developed by the private sector.
This proprietary research and transfer system in Portugal remains a mixture of private and public and in some limited cases, a collaboration between the two. However, the Directorates (Rural Extension) in Portugal are very weak in the role of advocate or assessing these proprietary inputs or innovations for their rural populations.
The policy change for the technology transfer component of the CES resulted from open and interactive debate. Debate is pertinent for the survival of the CES and Rural Extension in Portugal. The mechanisms identified for open and interactive debate include:
1. intense social interaction between research and extension organizational staff at both the public and the private sector;
2. exchange of views through newsletters and reports; 3. meetings;
4. a planning process which involves a diverse group of interested scientists, educators, farming groups, agri-business personnel, local, regional and national governmental leaders, and members of diverse farm organizations and associations
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represented through an on-going advisory councils; and continuous interactive evaluations and assessments within the system (Koehnen, 1998).
In support for these mechanisms in Portugal, Mota, 1997 has criticized the lack of meetings between extension and research. Meetings have been identified as a means to develop interactive debate between institutions. This criticism documented by Mota pertains to the insufficient encounters between agricultural research, extension and farmer. In Portugal, debate needs to be strengthened by increasing the use, number and frequency of interactive mechanisms such as meetings. This debate cannot be artificial and be turned on and off for the benefit of the social-communication organization.
6. The non-formal educational programs
In this section, a description of the non-formal educational process will be discussed to avoid misunderstanding the organizational aspects of technology transfer and communication. The extension educational process involves both an informational (communication) and educational perspective. The communication process can be linked more directly to the research-extension technology transfer function in which useful information is communicated to the farmer about innovations developed from agricultural research. While, the non-formal educational process involves educational practices, procedures, and techniques to assist the farm and rural populations to strengthen their decision-making, problem solving and leadership skills to react to a fast-pace globalization process.
In Portugal, the informational aspect appears to have higher priority then the educational perspective. Cristóvão, 1994 suggests a reflection concerning a new Rural Extension that includes among other points an implementation of non-formal education or animation in the Portuguese system.
Specifically addressing the communication or informational perspective, there are innovative applications for enhancing the communication process as discussed previously with the internet services. However within the research-technology transfer function in the United States, the diffusion of innovations by the CES (i.e. locally adapted agricultural commodity inputs) has less importance because of the Land Grant College policy changes, overproduction within specific agricultural production commodities and the superior educational level of many farm operators. For these instances, the communication process has been allied to the informational and computer technologies. The reason for the use of informational technologies is that many farm operators want direct access to technology. For this reason, the web sites assist those highly educated farm operators to access the information they need by going directly to the source and skipping over the CES agents.
However, in spite of this leap froging, the role for the CES within the communication process will continue today and into the future. The CES staff use the communication process to serve as advocates (neutral position) for assisting the rural populations to make decisions about information. The extension specialist evaluates the inputs and innovations coming from the privatized (non-public) proprietary agricultural research and then communicates the results to the commodity production system (farmers).
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In addition, the CES communicate messages about biological concerns for the environment. Some of these issues and concerns are involved with sustainable agriculture, pollution, soil erosion and overproduction. Rural Extension in Portugal also uses informational technologies to inform their public by using television, radio, print and other means. The concern and many of the messages differ, but many of the forms remain the same.
Turning to the other dimension or perspective, the non-formal educational process continues today to be as an important educational dimension of the CES. The educational process continues to be relevant for the CES because of a sustained format in developing and implementing the educational programs. The programming process is a continuous and ongoing event involving the rural clientele in planning and evaluation of their educational programs. It has something to offer the entire rural-farm family. There are educational programs from childhood to old age. These progressive and relevant initiatives of the public educational organization (CES) have been discussed and developed at national, state and local levels. These planning sessions assist in sustaining a relevant non-formal educational dimension. This program planning process is weak or non-existent in the Rural Extension system of Portugal.
A few of the non-formal educational initiatives from planning will be elaborated without focusing on the equally important family, health and nutrition programming issues and concerns of the CES. The discourse will only review the following program initiatives: 1) preparation of the young for the future (human resource development); 2) competitiveness and profitability in agriculture; 3) conservation of natural resources; and 4) sustaining rural America through community development.
One educational program of the CES since the formative years has been the non-formal educational programs directed at young people through a youth organization. The CES initiatives attempt to integrate and complement the family and the formal schooling educational systems. The non-formal educational programming for youth by the CES establishes extra-curricular educational activities to prepare them for future careers as well as to develop their leadership skills.
The CES multiplies their presence in these program initiatives by using volunteers from the community. These volunteers serve as the educational supervisors of these youth organizations. The CES staff, through training, will orient and prepare the volunteers and para-professionals in their communities to implement the educational activities. They (extension agents and extension specialists) develop and design educational materials for these clubs. In this way, the educational initiatives for young people will build a bridge that spans the generations. For this reason, the CES has continuity in human resource development from the young people to the adult volunteer. More importantly, these youth become adults, who form the lobbies that attend to the maintenance of the CES. These Rural Extension activities in Portugal are non-existent. The CES non-formal educational program linked to the competitiveness and profitability in agriculture are off-shoots of the early Land Grant College policy of developing and transferring the "public-domain, non proprietary information" to increase agricultural production. However in today's environment, the CES has become equally aware of the limited resource family farm in the rural community and not just the commercial farm. The issue and concern for US agriculture to compete in a global market has resulted in educational programs with interdisciplinary teams from extension and experiment station research.
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These teams are assisting the family farm and commercial farm to change their mentality about agriculture production for the global market. In order to export farm goods, the agricultural producers must consider not only commodity production, but integrate marketing, management and financial decisions into a whole farm system. The CES, agricultural research scientists and on-campus instructors at the Land Grant Institutions are studying innovations for a whole farm system. The non-formal educational program is attempting to strengthen the decision making capacities of producers to reflect upon the whole farm system (crop and animal production, management, marketing and financial aspects) to increase profitability.
An additional program initiative is concerned with the conservation of natural resources. The educational programming process assists in developing, designing and implementing extension activities to improve the decision making skills of citizens concerning the use and protection of natural resources at the local, state and national level. The CES also develops and implements non-formal educational programs in partnership with Soil Conservation Service.
In the non-formal program for sustaining rural America through community development, the initiatives include: a) community leadership development b) assisting decision makers to identify and prioritize concerns for the revitalization of the rural communities effected by changes in social structures and c) guiding communities to increase off-farm employment opportunities. The non-formal educational programs assist citizens and local leaders to make decisions about community economic, political and social problems such as aging populations, crime, recreation and tourism, community services and facilities.
The extension agent and specialist use a variety of educational methods and techniques to strengthen the capacities of their constituents to be problem solvers and capable leaders within their communities and organizations. The methods fall within the categories of individual and group contacts. The educational methods, techniques, procedures and practices articulate to an on-going planning process which develops and implements programs that are relevant for the "ever-changing situation" of the local communities (Lindley, 1983). These programs articulate to the educational needs through involvement of advisory council members made up from the local constituents and community leaders. The participatory planning process for the non-formal educational programs has contributed to a viable and functioning CES. This participatory planning process for non-formal educational programs in Portugal is quite weak.
Interestingly, the Economic and Sociology Department at UTAD is evaluating a non-formal educational program for rural women in the Directorate of the Beira Litoral. This program is for and with rural women. The identification of educational topics starts with the participation of the women and falls within three broad educational programming categories; family improvement, community improvement and occupational education. The facilitator plans educational programs with over 20 women groups in the rural areas who meet on a weekly basis during October to May. Although early in the evaluating process for this program, it is obvious that this unique educational project in Portugal reflects the same planning philosohy of the CES.
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7. Involving the Constituents
The constituent participation in the CES in the formative years was organized by agents through farm bureaus and the involvement of the elite farm leaders. These farm bureaus eventually transformed into the national Farm Bureau Federation. The CES organized these farm bureaus to form a constituency for the land grant institutions including as well the agricultural experiment station research component and resident instruction (Flora and Flora, 1989). The Farm Bureaus were a driving force for CES appropriations at the state legislature level. From this early involvement of constituents, the CES, a publicly funded, lifelong educational system has profited in the educational programming process through advisory councils at local, state and national level.
These advisory councils identify local, regional and national educational needs for program planning of the CES. Advisory councils are relevant for both the informational and educational dimension of the extension educational process in the CES. The CES in the planning process for the development and implementation of educational programs and policies must bring their clientele into the debate.
The CES role in transferring agricultural information and technology is strengthened by the interactive debate. The advisory council for the transfer of technology includes a diverse representative group involving family farms, basic and commodity agricultural researchers, farm associations, the Farm Bureau in many states, and agribusiness representatives. The participatory interaction is pertinent in maintaining the research-extension linkage for the transfer of technology and the non-formal educational programs. In this type of institutional activity for identifying issues and problems, the CES has a proactive role of informing the researcher of their clientele needs and designing non-formal educational programs that articulate to local and state level problems and needs.
Farm Bureau membership and elite leaders were and still are pertinent as the defenders of the CES. Today, the constituents have expanded, but continue to be active and are organized by the CES. This organizational capacity to involve the clientele in the planning and evaluation of CES activities has been instrumental in the survival and the transformations of the lifelong educational system. These participants have been responsible for the maintenance of the CES.
The Rural Extension system in Portugal lacks this type of mechanism or alternative mechanisms to organize their constituents. The constituents and target groups should be organized to address not only the non-formal educational programming process, but also the system for transferring agricultural innovations and technology.
8. Conclusions
The lessons to be learned from this comparison of two systems are: 1) leadership has been crucial in the creation and continuity of these systems; 2) open and public debate is relevant for the survival of any extension system in the worldwide arena. Some of the mechanisms for debate are: a) intense interaction between research and extension organisational staff at both the public and the private sector with the rural communities;
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b) exchange of views through newsletters and reports; c) meetings; and d) continuous interactive evaluations and assessments of the system; 3) continuous development, design and implementation of non-formal educational programs that address the ever-changing needs of the constituents and the use of appropriate educational practices and procedures; and 4) the initiation of an organisational capacity to involve the clientele through approaches such as an advisory council. The participatory approach to be organised by the extension system should involve the constituents in the planning and evaluation of educational activities.
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