Katharina Schiller | International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (original) (raw)

Papers by Katharina Schiller

is much more than just a thesis and much more than the sum of its parts (a sentiment I assume man... more is much more than just a thesis and much more than the sum of its parts (a sentiment I assume many doctoral researchers share). My PhD journey has been amazing and unexpected, a wild ride and an incredibly steep learning curve, and has changed my life for the better in both the professional and personal senses. It has been very challenging and also extraordinarily fun. Although I cherish the experiences and memories made with many people whom I met over the course of my research-e.g. farmers and research assistants I was lucky enough to work with-several individuals have played especially important roles in the journey that led to the experience of researching and writing this dissertation. Tanya Kerssen, through working together at a restaurant, our friendship grew and you were the first person who got me interested in agriculture and food systems-who knew that was my passion! A special thank you for opening my eyes to ethical issues and problems of justice and equity in food production and consumption. Katrin Winkler, by taking a chance on me in supporting my admittance to the University of Hohenheim's MSc program in 'Environmental Protection and Agricultural Food Production', you paved the way for my being able to do a PhD. Without you, none of this would have been possible-thank you for believing in me back then! Onno Giller, I am everlastingly grateful that you were my colleague and friend during the first times at KTI, in Wageningen, and in Nicaragua-thank you for showing me the ropes both inside and outside of WUR! Marijn Poortvliet, thank you for your inspiration for, and your long-lasting support through, the many revisions and iterations of the interminable gender chapter! Thanks for opening my eyes to, and helping me wade my way through, new (to me) questions of social psychology and quantitative data analyses. Wendy Godek, I cannot thank you enough for your mentorship, your friendship, your advice, and our many hours of intense conversation on topics both professional and personal. I'm really excited for our future collaborations. Thank you for continuing to inpire me! Laurens Klerkx, you brought me on board at KTI after mentoring me in the final round of the Erasmus Mundus PhD competition. You were the best first supervisor I can imagine-always supportive, always reachable, always with an idea when I had a question about my research, but also always critical, challenging me to solidify my argumentation, read more, think more intensely or connectively about issues, and really straightforward. I have passed on two bits of your wonderfully idiosyncratic advice to many others: "No one cares about your PhD but you" and "Kill your darlings" (in reference to paper-writing). This and much other advice, challenge, and inspiration from you have helped me to become a solid and very happy scientist. Thank you! Mi amor Diego Gutierrez Sanchez, gracias totales a vos por tu amistad, por enseñarme la vida salvaje en Managua, por nuestros viajes juntos cruzando Nicaragua y, claro, por las horas, días y noches de música. Días de ciencia fascinante al pegue, noches de música en nuestro Chante en Monseñor Lezcano y los bares de Managua ... ¿qué podría haber sido mejor? Gracias por compartir este viaje loco de la vida conmigo. Te amo. And of course, to my parents, family, and close friends that have supported me in innumerable ways in all the iterations of this journey-thank you from the bottom of my heart! A special and incredibly large thank you goes to my sister Cornelia Schiller Tremann for proofreading the entire thesis.

Acta Horticulturae, 2016

With the United Nations discussing the adoption of Sustainable Development Goals for the post-201... more With the United Nations discussing the adoption of Sustainable Development Goals for the post-2015 era, sustainability is back on the world development agenda. Indicators to monitor development for sustainability at the global or national level have been developed in the past. However, little research has been conducted to identify agricultural sustainability at the technology level, although only these technologies will be worthwhile promoting in the future. To assess specific innovations on their sustainability and productivity-enhancing effects, an analytical framework was developed. It comprises all relevant sustainability criteria and was validated through an expert consultation process. In this study, the framework was applied to two productivity-enhancing horticultural innovations contributing to healthy nutrition. The two innovations assessed are suitable specifically for poor and vulnerable people in developing countries, namely riverbed vegetable farming (Nepal) and vegetable production in sacks (Bangladesh). For the assessment process based on the framework, experts were asked to provide information on selected criteria determining the environmental resilience, economic viability, social acceptability and technical appropriateness of an innovation. Additional field studies were conducted for the two selected innovations between March and December 2013 to comprehensively validate the information provided by experts. Composite sustainability indicators were calculated based on the analytical framework with the addition of nutrition-related criteria. Results are presented graphically and compared with reference technologies. The analytical framework is discussed in terms of its applicability to horticultural innovations from the tropics with a data-scarce background.

Global Sustainability

Non-technical summary Accelerated decarbonization of academic conferences is necessary and urgent... more Non-technical summary Accelerated decarbonization of academic conferences is necessary and urgent. Despite the window of opportunity that COVID-19 created for rethinking conferences, there is a risk of slipping back into old habits now that restrictions are lifted. This commentary reports on recent experiences with a unique, sustainable approach to academic conferencing involving an international partnership and hub model across three continents. There is a need to continue to experiment with and implement new modes of sustainable academic conferencing. Technical summary In response to increasing demands to move away from carbon-intensive academic conferences, and a need to address social justice issues, the author-team designed, implemented, and experimented with a new conference model. Three key-design choices informed the model. First, instead of the common single-host-single-location approach, we established a partnership between three universities across three continents. Secon...

RePEc: Research Papers in Economics, 2021

There is a need for concepts and methods to develop generic insights across cases in transitions ... more There is a need for concepts and methods to develop generic insights across cases in transitions studies and to analyse "transformational system failures" in policy. This paper identifies dimensions for a system level analysis and illustrates their application to compare cases and identify possible entry points for policy. System dimensions are grouped into the function of the socio-technical system, its characteristics, the context and its agency. Transformation dimensions address drivers and barriers, politics and dynamics of the system. The illustrations for German bioeconomy and sustainable mobility in the Netherlands both indicate directionality failures and contested policy goals. This results in reflexivity failures in the German bioeconomy, because clear goals are not set, impeding the monitoring of progress. In contrast, mobility initiatives in the Netherlands are constantly adapting to moving targets. Governance structures facilitating system change need to avoid capture by vested interests influencing the routes of change. Both illustrations allow to draw general conclusions as to the value of a structured systems and transformation analysis to support policy analysis and practice.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2023

Supporting transitions to sustainable, resilient agri-food systems is important to ensure stable ... more Supporting transitions to sustainable, resilient agri-food systems is important to ensure stable food supply in the face of growing climate extremes. Agroecology, or diversified farming systems based on ecological principles, can contribute to such systems. Based on a qualitative case study of Nicaragua, a forerunner in agroecology, this paper unpacks an ongoing transition to agroecology, focusing on how the transition has been shaped by knowledge flows and intermediary actors. Using a niche development framework based on knowledge processes, we analyze the growth of the agroecological niche in Nicaragua over three phases of niche development. The findings show how knowledge processes’ emphases have shifted over time, as have functions enacted by intermediaries. Dedicated, diversified intermediaries have been key in creating momentum for agroecology, as have individual actors moving between niche and regime. Agency in niche development has come from both niche and regime actors. Fin...

Environmental innovation and societal transitions, Dec 1, 2021

Abstract Dominant agricultural and food systems lead to continuous resource depletion and unaccep... more Abstract Dominant agricultural and food systems lead to continuous resource depletion and unacceptable environmental and social impacts. While current calls for changing agrifood systems are increasingly framed in the context of sustainability transitions, they rarely make an explicit link to transition studies to address these systemic challenges, nor do transition scholars sufficiently address agri-food systems, despite their global pertinence. From this viewpoint, we illustrate several gaps in the agri-food systems debate that sustainability transition studies could engage in. We propose four avenues for research in the next decade of transition research on agri-food systems: 1) Crossscale dynamics between coupled systems; 2) Social justice, equity and inclusion; 3) Sustainability transitions in low- and middle-income countries; 4) Cross-sectoral governance and system integration. We call for a decade of new transition research that moves beyond single-scale and sector perspectives toward more inclusive and integrated analyses of food system dynamics.

Global Sustainability, 2023

Accelerated decarbonization of academic conferences is necessary and urgent. Despite the window o... more Accelerated decarbonization of academic conferences is necessary and urgent. Despite the window of opportunity that COVID-19 created for rethinking conferences, there is a risk of slipping back into old habits now that restrictions are lifted. This commentary reports on recent experiences with a unique, sustainable approach to academic conferencing involving an international partnership and hub model across three continents. There is a need to continue to experiment with and implement new modes of sustainable academic conferencing.

How can processes of innovation towards sustainable intensification, particularly among smallhold... more How can processes of innovation towards sustainable intensification, particularly among smallholders, best be supported? Farmer-led experimentation and innovation processes are central to increasing food security among smallholders worldwide, especially in the knowledge-intensive realms of sustainable intensification and agroecological farming. Research and development streams have recognised that successful innovation is a co-evolutionary process, in which technological change occurs with related social and institutional change. Territorial Innovation platforms (IPs), consisting of key actors in a territory (eg. farmers’ organisations, cooperatives, government institutions, NGOs) have increasingly focused on brokering interactions among actors in the agricultural innovation system (AIS). The ‘mixed crop-livestock-tree’ IP in Esteĺı, Nicaragua is an example of such an IP. One goal of the IP is to bring together organisations that work with local smallholders on sustainably intensify...

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, 2019

Latin America has historically been a vanguard of agroecology. In Nicaragua, an agroecological tr... more Latin America has historically been a vanguard of agroecology. In Nicaragua, an agroecological transition is occurring, with three decades of building a groundswell based on the farmerto-farmer movement and the recent institutionalization of agroecology in national law. Yet, problems remain with agroecology's diffusion. We introduce the Technological Innovation Systems approach to examine systemic barriers to the agroecological transition and cycles of blockages caused by barriers' interactions. Based on qualitative data from north-central Nicaragua, we find the main barriers hindering the agroecological transition include weak guidance of the search for agroecology, insufficient capacities and quantities of resources, and lacking market development. Beyond the Nicaragua case, the analysis points at the importance of using socio-technical systems analysis to better understand and address the root causes behind issues blocking national agroecological transitions.

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, 2019

Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the 1980s and was translated into nati... more Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the 1980s and was translated into national policy in 2011. Using the Multi-Level Perspective on sustainability transitions (MLP), this paper explores whether the rise of agroecology has fundamentally transformed Nicaragua's agri-food system. Drawing on the findings of a qualitative study including a range of agroecological actors and organizations, we create a rich innovation history timeline of Nicaragua's agroecology development at different levelsthe agroecological niche (space in which heterogenous actors nurture innovations) and the regime (dominant agri-food system paradigm). MLP analysis is used to explore the extent to which agroecology's growth has transformed the national agrifood regime. We find that although the term 'agroecology' is used widely by government, incentives for transitions to agroecology are only weakly implemented. This stems partly from the co-optation of the agroecological niche's discourse by regime actors. Currently, it seems the transition process is not a reconfiguration of the agri-food system, but rather that agroecology has been added to the regime without deeper changes.

Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, 2021

Dominant agricultural and food systems lead to continuous resource depletion and unacceptable env... more Dominant agricultural and food systems lead to continuous resource depletion and unacceptable environmental and social impacts. While current calls for changing agrifood systems are increasingly framed in the context of sustainability transitions, they rarely make an explicit link to transition studies to address these systemic challenges, nor do transition scholars sufficiently address agri-food systems, despite their global pertinence. From this viewpoint, we illustrate several gaps in the agri-food systems debate that sustainability transition studies could engage in.
We propose four avenues for research in the next decade of transition research on agri-food systems: 1) Crossscale dynamics between coupled systems; 2) Social justice, equity and inclusion; 3) Sustainability transitions in low- and middle-income countries; 4) Cross-sectoral governance and system integration. We call for a decade of new transition research that moves beyond single-scale and sector perspectives toward more inclusive and integrated analyses of food system dynamics.

Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, 2021

The sustainability transitions research field continues to broaden rapidly, engaging scholars fro... more The sustainability transitions research field continues to broaden rapidly, engaging scholars from a wide variety of disciplinary backgrounds. As highlighted in the STRN research agenda, transitions research relies on a broad range of methodological approaches; yet the methodological diversity of transitions studies has remained somewhat limited. In this article, we investigate if this verdict still applies to transition studies published since 2016. While our findings suggest that the recent literature became methodologically more diverse especially with regard to theoretical frameworks and research questions, other methodological dimensions continue to suggest a lack of diversity. Based on our literature review we propose three particularly promising areas for further diversifying future research on socio-technical transitions towards sustainability: theoretical bridging, novel methods, and multi-scalarity across multiple sectors.

Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, 2021

Research on sustainability transitions in the Global South has evolved since its inception a deca... more Research on sustainability transitions in the Global South has evolved since its inception a decade ago. Yet, many issues concerning the hegemony of Western knowledge systems and practices continue to impact research on transitions in the Global South. This viewpoint suggests several ways to address these issues through decolonialising transitions research: namely through acknowledging everyday struggles faced in the Global South, explicitly addressing questions of power, informal institutions, inequality and injustice that permeate transitions in the Global South and integrating truly participatory research methods that value research 'subjects' and embrace the transformative activities and communities of practices. Drawing on half a decade of formal and informal knowledges exchanges led by "Transitions in the Global South" thematic group of STRN, it is time for our community to embrace a fresh and alternative approach to understanding, mainstreaming and implementing transitions in the Global South.

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, 2019

Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the 1980s and was translated into nati... more Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the 1980s and was translated into national policy in 2011. Using the Multi-Level Perspective on sustainability transitions (MLP), this paper explores whether the rise of agroecology has fundamentally transformed Nicaragua’s agri-food system. Drawing on the findings of a qualitative study including a range of agroecological actors and organizations, we create a rich innovation history timeline of Nicaragua’s agroecology development at different levels – the agroecological niche (space in which heterogenous actors nurture innovations) and the regime (dominant agri-food system paradigm). MLP analysis is used to explore the extent to which agroecology’s growth has transformed the national agri-food regime. We find that although the term ‘agroecology’ is used widely by government, incentives for transitions to agroecology are only weakly implemented. This stems partly from the co-optation of the agroecological niche’s discourse by regime actors. Currently, it seems the transition process is not a reconfiguration of the agri-food system, but rather that agroecology has been added to the regime without deeper changes.

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems , 2019

Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the 1980s and was translated into nati... more Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the
1980s and was translated into national policy in 2011. Using the
Multi-Level Perspective on sustainability transitions (MLP), this
paper explores whether the rise of agroecology has fundamentally
transformed Nicaragua’s agri-food system. Drawing on the
findings of a qualitative study including a range of agroecological
actors and organizations, we create a rich innovation history
timeline of Nicaragua’s agroecology development at different
levels – the agroecological niche (space in which heterogenous
actors nurture innovations) and the regime (dominant agri-food
system paradigm). MLP analysis is used to explore the extent to
which agroecology’s growth has transformed the national agrifood
regime. We find that although the term ‘agroecology’ is
used widely by government, incentives for transitions to agroecology
are only weakly implemented. This stems partly from the
co-optation of the agroecological niche’s discourse by regime
actors. Currently, it seems the transition process is not
a reconfiguration of the agri-food system, but rather that agroecology
has been added to the regime without deeper changes.

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, 2019

Latin America has historically been a vanguard of agroecology. In Nicaragua, an agroecological tr... more Latin America has historically been a vanguard of agroecology. In Nicaragua, an agroecological transition is occurring, with three decades of building a groundswell based on the farmer-to-farmer movement and the recent institutionalization of agroecology in national law. Yet, problems remain with agroecology’s diffusion. We introduce the Technological Innovation Systems approach to examine systemic barriers to the agroecological transition and cycles of blockages caused by barriers’ interactions. Based on qualitative data from north-central Nicaragua, we find the main barriers hindering the agroecological transition include weak guidance of the search for agroecology, insufficient capacities and quantities of resources, and lacking market development. Beyond the Nicaragua case, the analysis points at the importance of using socio-technical systems analysis to better understand and address the root causes behind issues blocking national agroecological transitions.

Desde la experiencia nicaragüense, la autora evalúa prácticas agrocológicas y su relación con la ... more Desde la experiencia nicaragüense, la autora evalúa prácticas agrocológicas y su relación con la capacidad de resiliencia ante los efectos del cambio climático, mientras realiza un análisis comparativo con sistemas de producción no agroecológicos que, además, afectan el desarrollo de los emprendimientos campesinos no directamente relacionados con ellos.

Acta Horticulturae, 2016

Global Sustainability

RePEc: Research Papers in Economics, 2021

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2023

Environmental innovation and societal transitions, Dec 1, 2021

Global Sustainability, 2023

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, 2019

Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, 2021

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, 2019

Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the 1980s and was translated into nati... more Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the 1980s and was translated into national policy in 2011. Using the Multi-Level Perspective on sustainability transitions (MLP), this paper explores whether the rise of agroecology has fundamentally transformed Nicaragua’s agri-food system. Drawing on the findings of a qualitative study including a range of agroecological actors and organizations, we create a rich innovation history timeline of Nicaragua’s agroecology development at different levels – the agroecological niche (space in which heterogenous actors nurture innovations) and the regime (dominant agri-food system paradigm). MLP analysis is used to explore the extent to which agroecology’s growth has transformed the national agri-food regime. We find that although the term ‘agroecology’ is used widely by government, incentives for transitions to agroecology are only weakly implemented. This stems partly from the co-optation of the agroecological niche’s discourse by regime actors. Currently, it seems the transition process is not a reconfiguration of the agri-food system, but rather that agroecology has been added to the regime without deeper changes.

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems , 2019

Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the 1980s and was translated into nati... more Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the
1980s and was translated into national policy in 2011. Using the
Multi-Level Perspective on sustainability transitions (MLP), this
paper explores whether the rise of agroecology has fundamentally
transformed Nicaragua’s agri-food system. Drawing on the
findings of a qualitative study including a range of agroecological
actors and organizations, we create a rich innovation history
timeline of Nicaragua’s agroecology development at different
levels – the agroecological niche (space in which heterogenous
actors nurture innovations) and the regime (dominant agri-food
system paradigm). MLP analysis is used to explore the extent to
which agroecology’s growth has transformed the national agrifood
regime. We find that although the term ‘agroecology’ is
used widely by government, incentives for transitions to agroecology
are only weakly implemented. This stems partly from the
co-optation of the agroecological niche’s discourse by regime
actors. Currently, it seems the transition process is not
a reconfiguration of the agri-food system, but rather that agroecology
has been added to the regime without deeper changes.

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, 2019

Latin America has historically been a vanguard of agroecology. In Nicaragua, an agroecological tr... more Latin America has historically been a vanguard of agroecology. In Nicaragua, an agroecological transition is occurring, with three decades of building a groundswell based on the farmer-to-farmer movement and the recent institutionalization of agroecology in national law. Yet, problems remain with agroecology’s diffusion. We introduce the Technological Innovation Systems approach to examine systemic barriers to the agroecological transition and cycles of blockages caused by barriers’ interactions. Based on qualitative data from north-central Nicaragua, we find the main barriers hindering the agroecological transition include weak guidance of the search for agroecology, insufficient capacities and quantities of resources, and lacking market development. Beyond the Nicaragua case, the analysis points at the importance of using socio-technical systems analysis to better understand and address the root causes behind issues blocking national agroecological transitions.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, 2023

The global agri-food system is simultaneously a major contributor to, and severely affected by, c... more The global agri-food system is simultaneously a major contributor to, and severely affected by, climate change. Agroecological farming systems can contribute to creating resilient agri-food systems. Based on a multiyear qualitative case study, we use a niche development framework to explore knowledge flows and intermediaries in the emergence of agroecology in Nicaragua. The results highlight diversity within transition processes. In some aspects, change may be substantial and in others not. Agency for transitions may come from both niche and regime actors, and individuals able to move between regime and niche are key agents in fomenting change. We draw lessons for transitions in other areas (e.g., creation of financial-and market-focused intermediaries during the stabilization phase).

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, 2020

Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the 1980s and was translated into nati... more Agroecology started to amplify agroecology in Nicaragua in the 1980s and was translated into national policy in 2011. Using the Multi-Level Perspective on sustainability transitions (MLP), this paper explores whether the rise of agroecology has fundamentally transformed Nicaragua’s agri-food system. Drawing on the findings of a qualitative study including a range of agroecological actors and organizations, we create a rich innovation history timeline of Nicaragua’s agroecology development at different levels – the agroecological niche (space in which heterogenous actors nurture innovations) and the regime (dominant agri-food system paradigm). MLP analysis is used to explore the extent to which agroecology’s growth has transformed the national agri-food regime. We find that although the term ‘agroecology’ is used widely by government, incentives for transitions to agroecology are only weakly implemented. This stems partly from the co-optation of the agroecological niche’s discourse by regime actors. Currently, it seems the transition process is not a reconfiguration of the agri-food system, but rather that agroecology has been added to the regime without deeper changes.

Growing agroecology in Nicaragua: Towards a multi-scale perspective on agroecological transitions, 2023

This dissertation explores the transition from conventional agriculture to agroecology in Nicarag... more This dissertation explores the transition from conventional agriculture to agroecology in Nicaragua using a socio-technical systems lens. The objectives of the thesis are i) to document Nicaragua's agroecological transition, specifically the involved processes, institutions, and stakeholders and their interactions; and ii) to explore how interactions between processes, institutions, and stakeholders produce and shape the agroecological transition, and which factors enable or limit the development of the agroecological transition. Quantitative and qualitative data was gathered in Nicaragua in 2014 and 2016-2018, using a variety of methods (e.g. semi-structured interviews; participant observation; a closed-question survey; farm visits and walks; participation at local and national agroecology fairs, workshops, and conferences; review of grey and scientific literature and government documents). The overarching conceptual framework of the thesis is based in the multi-level perspective on sustainability transitions, and frames the transition to agroecology as the formation of a new agroecological niche within the conventional agricultural regime. Each of the empirical chapters investigates how the agroecological transition is unfolding at a different location in the framework: at the micro-level of individual farmers; at the micro-meso level of individuals and organizations working in support of the agroecological niche; and at the niche-regime border, where the micro-meso levels interact with the macro level. The synthesis chapter identifies overarching themes that emerge when the empirical chapters' findings are brought together, and discusses these in light of the agroecology and sustainability transition literatures. From the cross-cutting analysis, main issues are identified that have implications for agroecological policy and practice. Recommendations are given for how these issues may be addressed by different stakeholder groups (national governments, civil society, private sector).