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Farming for a Just Degrowth World? A Case Study of Agroecological Community Supported Agriculture in Sweden

Westerhaus, Jana LU (2024) HEKM51 20241
Department of Human Geography
Human Ecology
Abstract
Degrowth identifies capitalist colonial appropriation of the Global North as the driver for global environmental and social crises, calling for a new economy centred around human needs. Degrowth also proposes a societal transformation that requires a redefinition of human-nature relations. Industrial agriculture, dominated by profit-oriented multinationals, contributes to and intensifies existing environmental and social crises. Alternatives to industrial agriculture like agroecological market gardening and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) have (re)emerged, promoting local food sovereignty and direct farmer-community relationships. However, CSAs have been criticised for perpetuating social inequalities by being inaccessible to... (More)
Degrowth identifies capitalist colonial appropriation of the Global North as the driver for global environmental and social crises, calling for a new economy centred around human needs. Degrowth also proposes a societal transformation that requires a redefinition of human-nature relations. Industrial agriculture, dominated by profit-oriented multinationals, contributes to and intensifies existing environmental and social crises. Alternatives to industrial agriculture like agroecological market gardening and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) have (re)emerged, promoting local food sovereignty and direct farmer-community relationships. However, CSAs have been criticised for perpetuating social inequalities by being inaccessible to society’s majority. In this ethnographic case study of one CSA farm, I explore how degrowth principles manifest in agroecological small-scale CSAs to address injustices caused by industrial agriculture. The degrowth principles of frugal abundance, care, decommodification, commoning, autonomy and conviviality have been found to be of importance for this CSA farm. Farm members’ actions contribute to social and environmental justice by altering food production, distribution and consumption in their local surroundings, contributing to food sovereignty. Efforts to enhance practices of food justice include solidarity shares, collective care and conviviality. Financial constraints are a significant barrier for the farm to structurally address systemic injustices in the industrial food system. The farm can contribute to an equitable degrowth world through its transformational bottom-up approach, but structural changes of the wider economic system are needed to enhance the farm’s impact. (Less)
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author
Westerhaus, Jana LU
supervisor
organization
course
HEKM51 20241
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), agroecology, degrowth, market gardening, food justice, metabolic rift theory
language
English
id
9151855
date added to LUP
2024-07-24 11:11:48
date last changed
2024-07-24 11:11:48
@misc{9151855,
  abstract     = {{Degrowth identifies capitalist colonial appropriation of the Global North as the driver for global environmental and social crises, calling for a new economy centred around human needs. Degrowth also proposes a societal transformation that requires a redefinition of human-nature relations. Industrial agriculture, dominated by profit-oriented multinationals, contributes to and intensifies existing environmental and social crises. Alternatives to industrial agriculture like agroecological market gardening and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) have (re)emerged, promoting local food sovereignty and direct farmer-community relationships. However, CSAs have been criticised for perpetuating social inequalities by being inaccessible to society’s majority. In this ethnographic case study of one CSA farm, I explore how degrowth principles manifest in agroecological small-scale CSAs to address injustices caused by industrial agriculture. The degrowth principles of frugal abundance, care, decommodification, commoning, autonomy and conviviality have been found to be of importance for this CSA farm. Farm members’ actions contribute to social and environmental justice by altering food production, distribution and consumption in their local surroundings, contributing to food sovereignty. Efforts to enhance practices of food justice include solidarity shares, collective care and conviviality. Financial constraints are a significant barrier for the farm to structurally address systemic injustices in the industrial food system. The farm can contribute to an equitable degrowth world through its transformational bottom-up approach, but structural changes of the wider economic system are needed to enhance the farm’s impact.}},
  author       = {{Westerhaus, Jana}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Farming for a Just Degrowth World? A Case Study of Agroecological Community Supported Agriculture in Sweden}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}