Developing farmers' autonomy to move towards more sustainable systems

Farmer autonomy has become a research issue and a key factor for the farming systems transition. However, there is no consensual definition of what farmer autonomy at work is, nor any way of describing it to promote it. To contribute to this challenge, the aim of this paper is to identify the underlying dimensions of farmers' work autonomy processes, as well as the conditions that have favored or prevented it. We approach it as a process of renormalization and learning at work. To this end, we have combined two methods of data collection: individual interviews of farmers and the confrontation of an individual trajectory with the collective. In this way, we identified how important it is for these farmers to choose their own system and finding meaning, in spite of being confronted with the norms of the local environment. Participating in collectives that set new professional norms is a way of promoting transition.We have shown that their posture is a condition conducive to experimentation and renormalization. Finally, articulating renormalization theories and valuation is essential to understanding autonomy at work. These results open up avenues for reflection on designing collective training settings that mobilize individual trajectories to achieve collective and individual learning.