Issue

Vol. 7 No. 1 (2023): APRIL

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Living through crises due to successive commodity booms and busts: Investigating the changing peasants' farming style in rural Indonesia

https://doi.org/10.24259/fs.v7i1.21545
Muchlas Dharmawan Tualle
Tim Layanan Kehutanan Masyarakat (TLKM) Foundation, Makassar, Indonesia
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4180-7340
A. Mujetahid
Faculty of Forestry, Universitas Hasanuddin, Makassar, Indonesia
Muhammad Dassir
Faculty of Forestry, Universitas Hasanuddin, Makassar, Indonesia
Nurhady Sirimorok
Forest and Society Research Group (FSRG), Forestry Faculty, Universitas Hasanuddin, Makassar, Indonesia
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4041-6396
A. Khalid Muhammad
Tim Layanan Kehutanan Masyarakat (TLKM) Foundation, Makassar, Indonesia
Andi Vika Faradiba Muin
Faculty of Forestry, Universitas Hasanuddin, Makassar, Indonesia
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9021-8032
Aryo Dwi Prasetyo
Tim Layanan Kehutanan Masyarakat (TLKM) Foundation, Makassar, Indonesia

Corresponding Author(s) : A. Mujetahid

mujetahid@unhas.ac.id

Forest and Society, Vol. 7 No. 1 (2023): APRIL

Abstract

This study aims to explain how a peasant community makes decisions in response to recurring crises in order to maintain their farms, and the extent to which vulnerability contexts and (external) institutions influence peasants’ decision-making regarding their livelihoods. In doing so, we present a case study of the Village of Ranga, in the South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia, where data collected through semi-structured interviews, observation, and Focus Group Discussion (FGD). Data regarding farmers' livelihood strategies in responding to the crises, in the form of commodity booms and busts, is analyzed by employing a sustainable rural livelihoods framework, while a Chayanovian “balance” approach is used to understand peasants’ decision making and the extent to which they retain operations as ‘peasant farms’. We found that the most critical vulnerability that directly contributes to changes in the peasants' livelihood trajectories is successive shocks in the form of physical disturbances to plants and land. In making decisions regarding changes in livelihood strategies when facing crises, farmers seem to be pushed to abandon various balances they previously upheld, except to some extent the labor-consumption balance. This change potentially deepens the vulnerability of the Ranga Village peasants by adding more exposure to volatile markets and environmental pressure (such climate-induced hazards, pests, disease, and water crisis). This research can help us to understand the nature of the peasant responses in times of crises, and therefore help to inform the scanning of potential strategic measures for rural agricultural development in order to increase agricultural resilience.

Keywords

Peasant Crises Commodity Booms and busts Livelihood strategies Balances
Tualle, M. D., Mujetahid, A. ., Dassir, M., Sirimorok, N. ., Muhammad, A. K. ., Muin, A. V. F., & Prasetyo, A. D. . (2023). Living through crises due to successive commodity booms and busts: Investigating the changing peasants’ farming style in rural Indonesia. Forest and Society, 7(1), 95-115. https://doi.org/10.24259/fs.v7i1.21545
Download Citation
Endnote/Zotero/Mendeley (RIS)
BibTeX
References
  1. Batiran, K. B. (2013). Pertanian Skala Kecil Versus Dampak Perubahan Iklim: Kasus Desa Tompobulu, Kabupaten Pangkep, Sulawesi Selatan. Jurnal Transformasi Sosial-Wacana, 29, 91-112.
  2. Brugnach, M., De Waard, S., Dubois, D., & Farolfi, S. (2021). Relational quality and uncertainty in common pool water management: an exploratory lab experiment. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-94517-6
  3. Carney, D., Drinkwater, M., Rusinow, T., Neefjes, K., Wanmali, S., Singh, N. (1999). Livelihood approaches compared: A brief comparison of the livelihoods approaches of the UK Department for International Development (DFID), CARE, Oxfam, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). DFID.
  4. Chambers, R., Conway, G. R. (1992). Sustainable rural livelihoods: practical concepts for 21st century. IDS Discussion Paper 296. Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex.
  5. Chayanov, A. V. (1966)[1925]. The Theory of Peasant Economy. (Manchester University Press.
  6. Creswell, J. W., Hanson, W. E., Clark Plano, V. L., & Morales, A. (2007). Qualitative research designs: Selection and implementation. The Counseling Psychologist, 35(2), 236-264. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0011000006287390
  7. Ellis, F. (1998). Household strategies and rural livelihood diversification. Journal of Development Studies, 35(1), 1–38. https://doi.org/10.1080/002203898084 22553
  8. Ellis, F. (2000). Rural Livelihoods and Diversity in Developing Countries. Oxford University Press.
  9. Etwire, P. M., Koomson, I., & Martey, E. (2022). Impact of climate change adaptation on farm productivity and household welfare. Climatic Change, 170(1), 1-27. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-022-03308-z
  10. Glaser, B. G., & Strauss, A. L. (2017). Discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. Routledge.
  11. Howden, S.M., Soussana, J-F., Tubiello, F. N., Chhetri, N., Dunlop, M., Meinke, H. (2007). Adapting Agriculture to Climate Change. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 104(50), 19691-19696. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0701890104
  12. Junquera, V., & Grêt-Regamey, A. (2019). Crop booms at the forest frontier: Triggers, reinforcing dynamics, and the diffusion of knowledge and norms. Global Environmental Change, 57, 101929. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2019. 101929
  13. Kallio, M. H., Hogarth, N. J., Moeliono, M., Brockhaus, M., Cole, R., Bong, I. W., & Wong, G. Y. (2019). The colour of maize: Visions of green growth and farmers perceptions in northern Laos. Land Use Policy, 80, 185-194. https://doi.org/10.1016/ j.landusepol.2018.10.006
  14. Kaplinsky, R., & Morris, M. (2000). A handbook for value chain research (Vol. 113). Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex.
  15. Kelley, L. C., & Prabowo, A. (2019). Flooding and land use change in Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia. Land, 8(9), 139. https://doi.org/10.3390/land8090139
  16. Leeuwis, C., Hall, A., Weperen, W. V., & Preissing, J. (2013). Facing the challenges of climate change and food security: the role of research, extension and communication for development. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
  17. Lenin, V. I. (1961)[1906]. The Agrarian Question and the 'Critics of Marx [Collected Works]. Foreign Languages Publishing House.
  18. Li, T. M. (2012). Why so fast? rapid class differentiation in upland Sulawesi. Revisiting rural places: pathways to poverty and prosperity in Southeast Asia. In Jonathan Rigg, J., & Vandergeest, P. (Eds.), Revisiting Rural Places: Pathways to Poverty and Prosperity in Southeast Asia (pp. 193-210). National University of Singapore Press/University of Hawaii Press.
  19. Morris, A., (2015). A practical introduction to in-depth interviewing. SAGE Publication
  20. Pain, A. & Lautze, S. (2002). Addressing Livelihoods in Afghanistan. Issue Paper Series. Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit.
  21. Promphakping, B., Chamaratana, T., Somaboot, P., Weeranakin, P., Promphakping, N., Phatchaney, K. (2021). Why Does Tobacco Agriculture in Thailand Persist?. Journal of Forest and Society, 5(2): 543-558, November 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.24259/fs.v5i2.13587
  22. Quarantelli, E.L., Boin, A., Lagadec, P. (2018). Studying Future Disasters and Crises: A Heuristic Approach. In Rodríguez, H., Donner, W., Trainor, J. (Eds.), Handbook of Disaster Research. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-63254-4_4
  23. Rerkasem, K., Yimyam, N., & Rerkasem, B. (2009). Land use transformation in the mountainous mainland Southeast Asia region and the role of indigenous knowledge and skills in forest management. Forest Ecology and Management, 257(10), 2035-2043. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2008.11.008
  24. Ribot, J. C., & Peluso, N. L. (2003). A theory of access. Rural Sociology, 68(2): 153-181. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1549-0831.2003.tb00133.x
  25. RPJMDes. (2016). Peraturan Desa Ranga No. 1 Tahun 2016 Tentang Rencana Pembangunan Jangka Menengah Desa Ranga Tahun 2016-2021. Pemerintah Desa Ranga.
  26. Ruf, F. (2002). From Rice to Cocoa through a Political Economy of Dishonesty, Sulawesi, Indonesia. Conference 17th Symposium of the International Farming Systems Association (IFSA). University of Florida.
  27. Ruf, F., Ehret, P., Yoddang (1996). Smallholder Cocoa in Indonesia: Why a Cocoa Boom in Sulawesi?. In Clarence-Smith, W.G. (Eds.), Cocoa Pioneer Fronts since 1800 (pp. 212–231). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-24901-5_12
  28. Ruf, F. (2007). The cocoa sector: Expansion, or green and double green revolutions. Overseas Development Institute.
  29. Sahide, M. A. K., Fisher, M. R., Erbaugh, J. T., Intarini, D., Dharmiasih, W., Makmur, M., ... & Maryudi, A. (2020). The boom of social forestry policy and the bust of social forests in Indonesia: Developing and applying an access-exclusion framework to assess policy outcomes. Forest Policy and Economics, 120, 102290. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forpol.2020.102290
  30. Scoones, I. (1998). Sustainable Rural Livelihood: A Framework for Analysis. IDS Working Paper No. 72. Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex.
  31. Scoones, I. (2015). Sustainable Livelihoods and Rural Development. Fernwood Publishing - Practical Action Publishing. https://doi.org/10.3362/978178044 8749
  32. Sirimorok, N. (2013). Menuju Ekologi Politik: Sketsa Kajian Perubahan Iklim dan Kebencanaan di Indonesia. Jurnal Transformasi Sosial-Wacana, 29, 17-42.
  33. Valdés-Rodríguez, O.A & Pérez-Vázquez, A. (2011). Sustainable Livelihoods: An Analysis of the Methodology. Journal of Tropical and Subtropical Agroecosystems, 14(1), 91-99.
  34. van der Ploeg, J. D. (2013). Peasants and the art of farming: A Chayanovian manifesto. Practical Action Publishing.
  35. WBG & ADB. (2021). Climate Risk Country Profile: Indonesia (2021). The World Bank Group & Asian Development Bank.
  36. Wijayanti, R., Baiquni, M., Harini, R. (2016). Strategi Penghidupan Berkelanjutan Masyarakat Berbasis Aset di Sub DAS Pusur, DAS Bengawan Solo. Jurnal Wilayah dan Lingkungan, 4(2), 133-152. https://doi.org/10.14710/jwl.4.2.133-152
  37. Zain, M. M., Bakri, S., Ibrahim, H., & Dirawan, G. D. (2016). Analysis of factors marketing of commodities rice inter-island in South Sulawesi. Man In India, 96(5), 1697-1702.
Read More

Author Biographies

Muchlas Dharmawan Tualle, Tim Layanan Kehutanan Masyarakat (TLKM) Foundation, Makassar, Indonesia
   
A. Khalid Muhammad, Tim Layanan Kehutanan Masyarakat (TLKM) Foundation, Makassar, Indonesia
   
Aryo Dwi Prasetyo, Tim Layanan Kehutanan Masyarakat (TLKM) Foundation, Makassar, Indonesia
   
Download this PDF file
PDF