Gender and local soil knowledge: Linking farmers' perceptions with soil fertility in two villages in the Philippines |
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| Authors: | Maria Elisa Christie Mary Parks Michael Mulvaney |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Office of International Research, Education, and Development, Virginia Tech, Virginia, United States;2. Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, West Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Florida, United States |
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| Abstract: | Scientists often turn to farmers to understand soil management. This process reveals differences and overlaps between local and scientific soil knowledge but rarely considers women and gender issues. This paper examines men's and women's local knowledge of soils in upland, smallholder farms in two villages in Mindanao, the Philippines, using focus group discussions, semi‐structured household interviews, field visits, GIS and soil testing. Farmers' field areas were calculated and delineated based on their perceptions of the different types of soils on their land. Men and women chose the same plots for what they considered their best soil but differed on what they felt were their worst. The fertility of the soils that women considered to be the best and worst was not significantly different from that of the men's respective choices. There was a difference in fertility, however, between the best and worst soils regardless of gender. Although soil fertility analyses showed that the women's chosen soils were similar to men's, analyses of qualitative data showed that their knowledge of soils was different and was based in part on a gendered division of labour. A multidisciplinary approach helped bridge the gap between sociocultural and physical research. |
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| Keywords: | ethnopedology gender local knowledge mixed methods multidisciplinary research soil fertility |
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