316 Sustainable Farming
Farmer Field Schools
Farmer field schools are teaching programs
that help farmers find solutions to common
problems. Together with a trained facilitator,
farmers ask questions, experiment, and talk
about what they are learning. Farmer field
schools also help farmers develop skills in
solving problems, organization,
and leadership. When they are
encouraged to value their own
knowledge and skills, farmers
are better able to build on
traditional farming methods to
make farming more sustainable.
Farmers find solutions to their problems in
their own experience and in their fields.
Farmer field schools build skills and confidence
Hoa and Khanh live in Dong Phi Village, Vietnam. Their husbands help prepare
the land for sowing, and they harvest crops at the end of the season. The rest
of the year, Hoa and Khanh manage their family lands alone because their
husbands work outside the village. When Hoa noticed she was harvesting less
rice each year for several years in a row, her husband suggested buying more
fertilizer. But Hoa knew there was no money for fertilizer. When a government
agricultural agent told the villagers about farmer field schools, Hoa and her
neighbor Khanh decided to join.
As soon as they began attending sessions, they saw this school was different
from any school they had known. Together with other farmers, Hoa and Khanh
talked about crops, insects, weather, and soil. They experimented with different
farming methods and decided which ones they liked and which ones they did
not like. Hoa invited all the farmers to her land to help her understand why her
rice harvest had gone down.
A Community Guide to Environmental Health 2012