Download - Transformational adaptation - Mark Howden
Transformational adaptation
Mark Howden, Snow Barlow, Sarah Park, Usay Nidumolu and Lauren RickardsPresentation to the CCRSPI Conference, Melbourne, February 2011, Copyright CSIRO
• Transformational advertising associates product usage with certain feelings, images, or meanings that then transform the experience of using the product
Transformation, transformation….
• Transformational leadership - e.g. aims to move the staff member beyond their own self interests toward those of the organization
• Transformation in political dialogues – e.g. to distance the speaker from a particular position or situation
• Transformational policy – e.g. attempts at systemic, sweeping change
• Transformational technologies – e.g. internet• Transformational science – e.g. re-branding of old
work so as to keep the publication record going• Transformational adaptation in agriculture …
Transformation everywhere ….
Different degrees of adaptation
Varieties, planting times, spacing
Stubble, water, nutrient and canopy management etc
Production chain approaches
Climate change-ready germplasm
Diversification and risk management
Transformation from landuse or distribution change
New products such as ecosystem services
Climate change
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(Howden et al. 2010)
• Suggest let’s not get hung up on precise definitions
– e.g. timescales
• An enterprise manager making decisions is trying to make the ones that best meet with their values and needs– how scientists define the decision is not
important to them
Transformation definitions
• Sheep to beef change-over in central Qld in the 1800’s (McKeon et al. 1990)
• Goyders Line in 1800’s (Meinig 1962)• Irrigated industries• Cropping on heavy soils in northern Australia• Dairy industry restructure (Edwards 2003)• Eucalyptus globulus in western Victoria• ….
• Transformative adaptation to climate change
Transformation in agriculture is not new …
• Brown Bros buy up in Tasmania
Wine industry
Rice industry
Laurie Arthur to present on this
Peanut Company of Australia
‘High rainfall zone’ cropping
An extra 52000ha cropped: Nidumolu (2010)
• Not in the business of promoting transformation nor predicting it
– risks of normative views or top-down decisions– reduction in diversity which may increase risk– flawed assumptions about what drives decisions
– unable to capture serendipity and contingency • Supporting effective decisions by decision-
makers, not making these decisions ourselves• Should learn from the failures of DSS in terms of
incremental and systems management and not repeat them for transformation
The role of science
• Understanding the transformational process via longitudinal case-studies
– What drives it ?– What are barriers and facilitating factors ?– What information is used ?– How do the transformers feel afterwards ?– How do the people and communities ‘left behind’
feel ? – What would they do differently ?– What is needed to help ?
• Sarah Park will present on this
Climate Adaptation Flagship transformation project
• Predictive research on the options for transformation
• Katherine (NT) peanut example– helping design new, sustainable farming systems– evaluation of yields, C and N cycling and losses,
water resources, climate change effects, pests and pathogens, GHG emissions
• Peter Thorburn will present on this
Climate Adaptation Flagship transformation projects
• Roslyn Prinsley will present on this
Exploration of new rural industries
• Establish public/private good rationale • Audit and adjust institutional arrangements so they
don’t unnecessarily limit innovation• Establish policies that address potential maladaptation
as part of normal process (e.g. food quality, NRM impacts, GHG emissions etc)
• Provision of appropriate and accessible information• R&D that expands the options available and their
consequences• Communicating successes: ‘The Transformers’ akin to
the MCVP ‘Climate Champions’
The potential role of government
• Transformational change – thought of as failure and undertaken in response to threat (Chris Sounness)
• Our experience is different – high profile (often lauded) and taken in response to opportunity
• Our hypothesis is that by emphasising the human potential for creativity, proactive transformational adaptation offers a welcome sense of possibility and control (Anderson 2010; Rickards 2010)
Different viewpoints
Thank you
Climate Adaptation FlagshipDr Mark HowdenTheme Leader
Phone: +61 2 6242 1679Email: [email protected]
Contact UsPhone: 1300 363 400 Email: [email protected] Web: www.csiro.au
Website: www.csiro.au/org/ClimateAdaptationFlagship