A conceptual framework to support adaptation of farming systems – Development and application with Forage Rummy

The context of agricultural production, climate change in particular, increasingly requires adaptations to the structure and management of farming systems. As a result, farmers need to develop their adaptive capacity. To support this process, agricultural research has developed two main approaches: hard approaches that are mainly science-driven and rely on simulation models, and soft approaches that rely fully on stakeholders' knowledge. Both approaches present several drawbacks to achieve relevance to real-world decision-making and management. In this article, I elaborate a conceptual framework hybridizing hard and soft approaches to develop farmers' adaptive capacity. First, based on the literature, I define the requirements (systemic, situated, integrating multiple perspectives, etc.) for research approaches aimed at developing farmers' adaptive capacity. According to these requirements, I clarify the scope for hybridization of hard and soft approaches. For instance, hard approaches enable integration of up-to-date scientific knowledge while soft approaches ensure local relevance, thanks to stakeholders' knowledge. However neither approach is able to synergize the two knowledge types (scientific and empirical). Building on this analysis, the proposed conceptual framework relies on participatory group (researchers and stakeholders) modeling workshops. During these workshops, stakeholders are involved in an iterative process consisting of designing and evaluating candidate adaptation solutions using boundary objects encapsulating scientific and empirical knowledge. An application example of the conceptual framework is presented with Forage Rummy. Playing this board game, farmers' groups use their empirical knowledge to select and combine sticks and cards representing forage crop and grassland production and animal feeding, production and reproduction from a range of possibilities to design a livestock system. The system designed is instantaneously evaluated using a spreadsheet informing among other things about the matching of forage production and animal feeding requirements. Past workshops show that Forage Rummy stimulates farmers' discussions and knowledge exchange about farming practices. By supporting collective thinking about adaptation of livestock systems to changes in the production context e.g. climate change, it develops farmers' adaptive capacity.