Socio-ecological insights into the development of agrarian professionals

There is a lack of information about the factors responsible for the effectiveness of environmental policies in Brazilian agriculture.This study aimed at identifying the perception and practices of agrarian professionals.The data analysis was carried out using a survey and methodological approaches focusing on environmental complexity and categorization of environmental actions.Quantitative analysis was based on descriptive statistics.Atmospheric problems were perceived as the main problems for the current and next two generations,while hydrological problems were indicated as those deserving most urgent solutions.On the other hand,the main developed actions and those planned to be carried out were classified within the responsibility category.Because of the reductionist perceptions,introduction of the concept of a socio-ecological system is indicated by means of methodological interventions during the development of agrarian professionals;also,in order to stimulate actions related to the competence and citizenship category,a methodological intervention focusing on resilience thinking is proposed.Typical actions of individuals with either reductionist or complex conceptions of the environment can be captured and,therefore,educational strategies can be traced based on the profiles obtained.

Nonformal environmental education:a case study with farmers in a town of the South Minas Gerais state,Brazil

Brazil is a central place in the international agricultural markets and this fact has been demanding environmentally oriented agricultural practices by Brazilian farmers and professionals involved in the agricultural market chain.A concise and structured questionnaire was applied to obtain the environmental perception of a group of Brazilian farmers in a town of the south Minas Gerais state,using herbicides as the topic for a case study.A highly variable opinion about taking the environment into account when choosing the most appropriate herbicide was found.Anyway,efficacy has been indicated as the most important factor when choosing an herbicide,followed by the environment and price.The outcomes from the questionnaires,i.e.the insufficient conception and importance given to environment when choosing the herbicide,motivated the creation of a teaching-learning model for the nonformal environmental education using the concept of socio-ecological resilience.This routine puts in practice the resilience thinking currently invoked as a major tool to achieve the conservation of the socio-ecological system,as well as it is complimentary to the outcome-oriented optimization for conservation theory.For the case study about farmers and the use of herbicides,we conclude that a complex reasoning and,ultimately,pro-environmental actions can be improved after experiencing the recommended model for environmental education.