Agriculture, Food Systems, and Global Governance — Key Terms (Vocabulary)

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms from the lecture notes.

Agroecology

A holistic approach to agriculture that integrates ecological science, local knowledge, and social equity in food systems.

Agroecosystem

A managed ecosystem for agriculture, including crops, animals, soil, water, and humans.

Low External Input Agriculture

Relying on local resources and minimal synthetic inputs.

High External Input Agriculture

Depends heavily on purchased inputs like fertilizer, pesticides, and machinery.

Subsistence Agriculture

Growing food mainly for household use.

Commercial Agriculture

Producing crops or livestock for market and profit.

Extensive Agriculture

Uses large land areas with low inputs.

Intensive Agriculture

Uses smaller land with high inputs and outputs.

Shifting Cultivation

A traditional method where land is farmed temporarily and then left fallow to regenerate.

Bush Fallow Rotation

A type of shifting cultivation where land is left to naturally regenerate between crop cycles.

Milpa Polycrop

A Mesoamerican system intercropping maize, beans, and squash for mutual benefit.

Monocultures

Growing only one crop over a large area, often for efficiency, but with ecological risks.

Intercropping

Growing two or more crops together to improve biodiversity, reduce pests, and stabilize yield.

Agroforestry

Integrating trees with crops/livestock for ecological and economic benefits.

Precision Agriculture

Using technologies like GPS, sensors, and data to optimize inputs and outputs.

Apiculture

Beekeeping—the management of bees for honey and pollination.

Managed Bees

Domesticated honeybee colonies used in agriculture for pollination.

Shipping Bee Colonies

Transporting beehives across regions for crop pollination.

Almond Crop Pollination

Highly reliant on transported honeybee colonies for pollination due to large monoculture.

Food Access

The ability to afford and use food.

Food Availability

Whether food is physically present.

Food Security

Reliable access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food for all people at all times.

Food Sovereignty

The right of communities to control their food systems, emphasizing local food and justice.

Urban Agriculture

Growing food in cities—rooftop gardens, community plots, etc.

Global Food Supply Chains

Systems that move food from farms to consumers across borders and continents.

Food Production and GHG Emissions

Agriculture is a major contributor to greenhouse gases through livestock, fertilizer use, and land use.

Hybridization

Breeding of different species or varieties to create desired traits in plants or animals.

Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)

Organisms whose DNA has been altered for traits like pest resistance or yield.

CRISPR/Cas Genome Editing

A precise gene-editing tool used in agriculture and biotechnology.

United Nations

An international organization that promotes global cooperation, development, and peace.

World Bank

Lends money and advice to developing countries; promotes infrastructure and economic reforms.

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Provides financial assistance and loans, often with austerity conditions.

FAO

Food and Agriculture Organization—a UN agency focused on defeating hunger and improving agriculture.

World Trade Organization (WTO)

Governs global trade rules, including disputes on agricultural subsidies and tariffs.

Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs)

Loan conditions from IMF/World Bank requiring privatization, deregulation, and budget cuts.

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)

Investment by a firm or individual into business interests in another country.

International Farmland Investment

Foreign purchase or lease of land for farming—linked to land grabs.

La Via Campesina

A global farmers' movement advocating food sovereignty, land reform, and agroecology.

Agricultural Labor

The division of farming work along lines of gender, citizenship, and class; includes seasonal, migrant, and often underpaid workers.

Elinor Ostrom

Economist who challenged the 'tragedy of the commons' by showing that communities can manage shared resources sustainably.

Garrett Hardin

Ecologist who theorized the 'tragedy of the commons,' arguing that individuals overusing shared resources leads to depletion.

Commons

Shared resources (land, water, etc.) that are accessible to all members of a community.

Tragedy of the Commons

Overexploitation of shared resources due to individual self-interest, leading to resource depletion.

Resilience in Agriculture

The ability of a farming system to absorb shocks and recover sustainably.

Pesticide Treadmill

A cycle where pests develop resistance, requiring stronger or more frequent pesticide use.

Broad Spectrum Pesticides

Chemicals that kill many types of pests—including beneficial ones—raising ecological concerns.

Agricultural Subsidies

Government payments or support to farmers to stabilize food prices or promote certain crops.

Agroecology and Productivity

Agroecology can increase productivity through ecological interactions rather than synthetic inputs.

Land Tenure

The system of land ownership and use rights, including formal and informal arrangements.

Statutory Tenure Systems

Systems defined by state law.

Customary Tenure Systems

Land rights governed by traditional practices and social norms.

Hybrid Tenure Systems

A combination of formal legal titles and customary practices coexisting in land governance.

Formal Land Title

A government-recognized document proving legal ownership of land.

Legal Pluralism

The coexistence of multiple legal systems in governing land rights.

Household-Level Tenure Analysis (CRL)

Understanding land tenure by analyzing rights and roles within a household using the 'bundle of rights' framework.

Bundle of Rights

Different rights associated with land—such as access, use, transfer, and exclusion—often divided among actors.

Resource Control

Authority to make decisions about a resource's use and access.

Resource Tenure

Rules and norms governing who can use, manage, or transfer a resource.

Land Grabs

Large-scale land acquisitions—often by foreign or corporate actors—that displace local users.

‘Green’ Grabs

Land grabs justified by environmental goals like conservation or carbon offsetting.

Carbon Offsets

Allowing polluters to compensate for emissions by funding projects that absorb carbon.

LSLAs (Large-Scale Land Acquisitions)

Purchases or leases of vast land areas by foreign investors or states for agriculture or resource extraction.

Making Land Just Another Asset Class

Commodifying land to be bought, sold, and traded like stocks or bonds.

Land Governance

The formal and informal institutions that control how land is accessed, used, and transferred.

TIAA

A U.S.-based pension fund that has invested in global farmland, raising questions about land justice.

Pension Fund Investment

Use of retirement funds to invest in assets like farmland, sometimes contributing to land grabs.

Lake Chad Basin (LCB)

A region in Africa facing ecological degradation, displacement, and land competition due to shrinking water sources.

Open Access Lands

Lands with no clearly defined ownership or access rules, often vulnerable to overuse or appropriation.

Geography

The study of Earth's landscapes, environments, and spatial relationships of people and resources.

GIS and GIScience

GIS: Geographic Information Systems—tools for mapping and analyzing spatial data; GIScience: the study of these systems and their implications.

Agrochemical Intensification

Increased use of synthetic fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides to boost yields—often with environmental costs.

Large-scale Animal Production

Industrial livestock systems focused on maximizing output, often linked to pollution and animal welfare issues.

Planted Forests as Agriculture

Forests planted for timber or carbon offset purposes—may displace native ecosystems or local land use.

Eminent Domain

The government's power to take private land for public use, with compensation.

1973 Oil Crisis

Triggered global economic disruption and highlighted the vulnerability of energy-dependent food systems.

Tariffs

Taxes on imported goods, used to protect domestic agriculture or influence trade.

Flex Crops

Versatile crops used for food, fuel, or industry—often linked to land grabs and deforestation.

Austerity

Government budget cuts to reduce debt, often mandated by IMF loans—can reduce agricultural or social supports.

Dependency Theory and ISI

Poor countries depend on rich ones; ISI (Import Substitution Industrialization) aims to reduce dependency by growing domestic industries.

ISI (Import Substitution Industrialization)

Strategy to reduce dependency by growing domestic industries.

Financialization

The growing influence of financial actors and motives in agriculture and land use.

Conditionalities

Requirements imposed by lenders in exchange for loans—often include privatization, deregulation.

Currency Devaluation

Lowering a currency’s value to make exports more competitive—can raise import costs, including food.

Debt

Borrowed money owed by countries—can shape agricultural policy and food imports.

Latin American Debt Crisis (1980s)

A period of economic turmoil caused by rising debt and interest rates, leading to IMF/World Bank intervention.

Third World Debt Crisis

Massive foreign debt in developing nations in the 1980s–90s, causing long-term austerity and SAPs.

Loan Principal and Interest

Principal: the original amount borrowed. Interest: the additional cost of borrowing.

Non-Tariff Trade Barriers (NTTBs)

Regulations like quotas or standards that restrict trade without using direct tariffs.

Food Self-Sufficiency

A country's ability to meet its food needs without relying on imports.

Global Food Crisis (2007–2008)

A spike in global food prices driven by biofuels, speculation, climate shocks, and export bans—causing hunger and unrest.

Water Diversion and the Aral Sea

Overuse of rivers for agriculture caused this inland sea in Central Asia to shrink drastically.

Studying Up

Anthropological method of studying powerful institutions (e.g., corporations, governments), not just marginalized communities.