Networks, exchange, and adaption in smallholder farming systems: The adaptive dynamics of rice seed and local technology in Northern Thailand

This study investigates the mechanisms and processes that drive the spread of agricultural technologies and the evolutionary dynamics of cultivated rice (Oryza sativa) in smallholder agricultural systems. It examines the interwoven social and biological components of rice diversity in smallholder agricultural systems in Northern Thailand. Rice diversity evolves within a complex socio-natural system that encompasses multiple social and natural scales. Movement and exchange of seed and technology are embedded in these socio-natural systems and central to the dynamics of innovation and adaptation. Interdisciplinary techniques and multiscale analysis are used to construct a unique theoretical framework to study the spread of technology and dynamics in agrodiverse smallholder systems.;Four key findings of this investigation are: (a) farmers appear to assess new varieties relative to their current portfolio of varieties, (b) there appears to be a strong connection between diversity in named varieties and social complexity, (c) exchange networks are heavily influenced by social variables, and (d) homophily appears to play a 'stabilizing' role in exchange systems. Findings are discussed in terms of policy decisions.