Christinck, A., K. vom Brocke and E. Weltzien. 2000. What is a variety: investigating farmers‘ concepts as a base for participatory plant breeding in Rajasthan, India. Deutscher Tropentag 2000 in Hohenheim. Poster/Tools Section I: How to make international agricultural research more farmer relevant.

Christinck, A., K. vom Brocke and E. Weltzien. 2000. What is a variety: investigating farmers‘ concepts as a base for participatory plant breeding in Rajasthan, India. Deutscher Tropentag 2000 in Hohenheim. Poster/Tools Section I: How to make international agricultural research more farmer relevant.

Anon. 2001. Quantitative Analysis of Data from Participatory Methods in Plant Breeding. Technical Report to the CGIAR Program on Participatory Research and Gender Analysis regarding the Workshop: Quantitative Analysis of Data from Participatory methods in Plant Breeding held from August 23-25, 2001 in the Justus Liebig University. Prepared by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT). November 28, 2001.

Eyzaguirre P and M. Iwanaga 1996. Participatory Plant Breeding. Proceedings of a workshop on participatory plant breeding 26-29 July 1995, Wageningen, The NetherlandsThe papers in this volume were originally presented at a workshop on participatory plant breeding. The workshop was convened to crystallize a novel approach that plant breeders, genetic resource conservationists and social scientists were demonstrating with increasing success. That approach is to place knowledge about genetic resources, as well as enhanced germplasm, directly at the disposal of farmers for them to use and develop according to their own needs and practices. Experiences indicated that in using this approach, biological and social scientists were learning a great deal about the useful diversity in target crops and farming system. Farmers were also benefiting from access to greater diversity and from the partnerships they were forming with plant breeders.

CIRAD. 2001. La Selection Participative: Impliquer les Utilisateurs dans l’Amélioration des Plantes. Montpellier, France 5-6 Sept. 2001.L’amélioration des plantes est née en même temps que l’agriculture. Son histoire commence avec la domestication des espèces cultivées, se poursuit avec leur diffusion et leur acclimatation. Sa pratique progresse au fur et à mesure de l’avancée des connaissances scientifiques, notamment en biologie, et elle ne devient un métier qu’au 18ème siècle. Les échecs de la révolution verte sont en partie attribuables à l’insuffisance de concertation entre sélectionneurs et utilisateurs paysans. La sélection participative est une réponse à cette critique : elle consiste à associer plus étroitement le petit agriculteur des zones marginales à la création de matériel génétique nouveau. De son côté, le Cirad possède une expérience active de la participation, notamment dans le domaine de l’organisation de partenariats étroits entre la recherche et les acteurs des filières de production agricole. Mais pour devenir une compétence originale relevant d’une vision cohérente, cette expérience doit être capitalisée et conceptualisée. C’est l’ambition du groupe de travail.

Ceccarelli, S., Grando, S. and R.H. Booth, 1996. International breeding programmes and resource-poor farmers: Crop improvement in difficult environments. In: Eyzaguirre, P. and M. Iwanaga, (Eds.) Participatory Plant Breeding. Proceedings of a workshop on participatory plant breeding. 26-29 July 1995, Wageningen, The Netherlands. IPGRI, Italy pp. 99-116.Farmers in stressful environments have benefitted little from the spectacular yield increases obtained by formal (or institutional) breeding programs based in environments which are naturally favorable or can be profitably made favorable by using inputs. Interactions between genotype and environment (GxE) are one of the main reasons for the failure of formal breeding to serve small, resource-poor farmers. Formal breeding has frequently adopted a negative interpretation of GxE interactions by selecting for broad adaptation and replacing locally adapted landraces with input responsive cultivars ill adapted to low input and stress conditions. By contrast, a positive interpretation of GxE interactions implies the exploitation of specific adaptation by direct selection in the target environment. To exploit specific adaptation international breeding programs need to decentralize breeding activities and encourage national programs to use their locally adapted germplasm. A second vital step is to obtain farmers\' participation in selection so as to take full advantage of their indigenous and specialized knowledge of the crop and the environment.

Description: Ceccarelli, S. and Grando, S. 1997. Increasing the Efficiency of Breeding through Farmer Participation. In: Ethics and Equity in conservation and use of genetic resources for sustainable food security. Proceeding of a workshop to develop guidelines for the CGIAR, 21-25 April 1997, Foz de Iguacu, Brazil. IPGRI, Rome, Italy.IPGRI. pp 116-121Participatory plant breeding (PPB) -- defined as farmers’ participation in selection of early segregating populations -- should become a component of formal plant breeding programs to exploit more efficiently specific adaptation, and therefore to mach more precisely crops to their environment, particularly in the case of marginal, difficult, stressful environments. PPB is the only possible approach to breed crops grown in unfavorable conditions and/or remote regions, in areas not sufficiently large to justify the interest of large breeding programs, and to breed for minor crops neglected by both private and public plant breeding programs. The paper describes decentralized and participatory selection and the relationships between them. A number of methodological issues -- such as the choice of participating farmers, the number of farmers doing the selection, the gender of who does the selection, the number of lines to use, and comparison between decentralization and participation -- are discussed as aspects of a true partnership between breeders and farmers. Participatory plant breeding should be linked not only with formal breeding programs -- providing a continuous flow of novel genetic variability -- but also with the informal seed supply system which can spread new varieties in the farmers’ communities without the unnecessary requirements of the formal seed system.

Weltzien, E. A. Christinck, K. vom Brocke, M. Dhamotharan, V. Hoffmann, T. Presterl, and O.P. Yaday. 2000. From beneficiaries to partners: Dialogue for improving farmers' pearl millet seed in Rajasthan, India. Poster presented at: Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR). Dresden (Germany), May 2000.

Weltzien, E. A. Christinck, K. vom Brocke, M. Dhamotharan, V. Hoffmann, T. Presterl, and O.P. Yaday. 2000. From beneficiaries to partners: Dialogue for improving farmers' pearl millet seed in Rajasthan, India. Paper presented at: Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR). Dresden (Germany), May 2000.

PRGA. 2000. Fitomejoramiento Participativo en América Latina y el Caribe: Memorias de un simposio internacional. (1999: Quito, Ecuador). Cali, Colombia. Aspectos Técnicos e Institucionales del Fitomejoramiento Participativo desde la Perspectiva del Sector Formal. Un análisis integral de temas, resultados y experiencias actuales.

vom Brocke, K., A. Christinck and E. Weltzien. 1999. Farmers’ seed management strategies and their effect on pearl millet populations: examples from Rajasthan, India. Deutscher Tropentag 1999 in Berlin. Session: Biodiversity and Development of Plant Genetic Resources.

Ceccarelli, S., Bailey, E., Grando, S. and Tutwiler, R. 1997. Decentralized, Participatory Plant Breeding: a Link Between Formal Plant Breeding and Small Farmers. New Frontiers in Participatory Research and Gender Analysis. Proceedings of an International Seminar on Participatory Research and Gender Analysis for Technology Development, Cali, Colombia, pp 65-74.Participatory plant breeding is discussed not only for its advantages in exploiting specific adaptation and hence in fitting crops to the environment, but also as the only possible type of breeding which is possible for crops grown in unfavorable conditions and/or remote regions, and in areas not sufficiently large to justify the interest of large breeding programs. The paper describes the evolution of a typically centralized international breeding program towards non-participatory decentralization, and eventually to a decentralized and participatory approach. A number of methodological issues C such as the choice of participating farmers, number of lines to use, and comparison between decentralization and participation C are discussed while illustrating a project on participatory barley breeding in Syria which began in 1996. Participatory plant breeding C i.e. farmers= participation in selection of early segregating populations C should become a permanent feature of formal breeding programs. It should be linked both with the formal breeding system which can provide a continuous flow of novel genetic variability, and with the informal seed supply system which can spread new varieties in the farmers= communities without the unnecessary requirements of the formal seed system.

Ceccarelli, S. 2000. Decentralized Participatory Plant Breeding: Adapting Crops to Environments and Clients. Proceedings of the 8th International Barley Genetics Symposium, Adelaide, 22-27 October, 2000, Vol. I: 159-166.In recent years there has been an increasing interest towards participatory research in general, and towards participatory plant breeding in particular. Following the early work of Rhoades and Booth (1982), scientists have become increasingly aware that users' participation in technology development may increase considerably the probability of success for the technology. In the case of plant breeding, the concept of participation is often associated with the concept of decentralization, defined as selection (not testing) in the target environment(s), and decentralizedparticipatory plant breeding has been proposed as a strategy to reach those areas and those farmers which have been so far bypassed by the benefits of the so called “formal breeding” by exploiting specific adaptation not only to various physical environments but also to various users. Social scientists have been the first to experiment with various methodologies of participatory research, while in general biological scientists have been slower in accepting this innovative way of conducting research. Even now, in the case of participatory plant breeding (PPB), who either experiment it or practice it. Therefore, the main objective of this paper is to discuss decentralizedparticipatory plant breeding from a plant breeding, rather than from a social science perspective.

Witcombe, J., L. Parr and G. Atlin. (Eds.) 2002. Breeding rainfed rice for drought-prone environments: Integrating conventional and participatory plant breeding in South and Southeast Asia. Proceedings of a DFID Plant Sciences Research Programme/IRRI Conference. 12-15 March 2002, IRRI, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines.Hard copies may be requested from:DFID Plant Sciences Programme, Centre for Arid Zone Studies University of Wales, Bangor. Bangor, Gwynedd LL57 2UW, United KingdomorDr G.N. Atlin, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), DAPO Box 7777, Metro Manila, Philippines.