Overview of Flagship Project 1
Flagship Project 1: Sustainable and Transformative Agrarian and Rural Trajectories (START)
This Project will open a new conversation about the future of agriculture in India. What are the societal choices that will inform the second green revolution, and how will this be negotiated in India’s contemporary political economy? What should be the focus of the new agrarian ecosystem, and how should it balance the interests of farmers, agricultural labour, the food industry, distribution networks and supply chains, consumers and those involved in providing support services and inputs to this sector? How might different production systems, ranging from small-holder family farms to large-scale commercial production respond to these different needs and interests, of men and women, across generations? What is the relative importance of improving yields and efficiency, ensuring ecological sustainability, and ensuring equitable and inclusive outcomes that leave no one behind?
To address these issues, we will run a series of structured dialogues designed to challenge existing thinking and provide opportunities to articulate alternative visions for the future of Indian agriculture. Activities will include:
- Deliberative workshops and facilitated dialogues across the diverse agro-ecological regions of India, with wide representation across a diverse set of stakeholders.
- In-depth follow up interviews with key thought leaders, and those promoting innovative strategies to address challenges, including rapid field research in a selection of demonstrator case studies.
- Policy workshops in India and the UK, with embedded engagement between the research and policy community through the Centre for Science and Policy’s Policy Fellowship Programme.
- The development of alternative visions and scenarios for the future of Indian agriculture, with implications for the activities of the other Flagship Programmes.