Agro-Ecology – an Understanding and Practicing with The Indigenous Ethnic Minority Community in Mekong Countries
Agro-ecology is a short name which combined Cultivation and Ecology in one term “Agro-ecology”.
Agro-ecology is: 1) an ethical visionary view towards a harmonious relationship between farming and ecosystem; 2) a wise strategy in sustaining natural diversity and community identity via local knowledge and technology; 3) a righteousness based land use practice for gaining win-win solution for all living organism of an ecosystem without abusing (agriculture which respects the material, energy and information flows from its ecosystem); 4) an adaptable methodology of farming which nurtures the unique ecological characteristic of a landscape naturally; 5) a way of healing and sustaining community livelihood identity and wellbeing inter-generationally. In summary, agro-ecology supports the value of Community Wellbeing over that of Community Production.
Agro-ecology applicable rules and principles which concern basically: 1) localized small scale production vs. large scale globalized production; 2) sustaining local native species via local wisdom and technology for self-sufficiency and self-reliance vs. applying new hybrid species via new technology of genetic modification, chemical fertilizers and pesticide for market dependency; 3) enriching production ecologically for nurturing natural diversity vs. promoting chemically supported mono-crop production; 4) community solidarity economy vs. globalized capitalist economy; 5) Harmony with the ecosystem vs. harming and abusing the ecosystem.
Therefore, agro-ecology prefers the indigenous wisdom and value of life rather than those of modern capitalist development.