Farmers' strategies and recombining of knowledges : the case of rubber agroforests in Indonesia. ; Stratégies paysannes et évolution des savoirs : l'hévéaculture agro-forestière indonésienne

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Abstract

The main characteristic of the evolution of the Indonesian rubber smallholder sector since the introduction of rubber at the beginning of the XX) century lies in the permanence of agroforestry based strategies for smallholders and the pre-eminence of the "jungle rubber" in rubber national production. The smallholder rubber production quickly exceeded that of the Estates sector (as soon as 1935) thus confirming the very strong adaptation of familial agriculture to the risks of markets and production. The role of the government and rubber market prices partially could a tome explain this evolution but others factors occurred. The rubber agroforestry system seem to indeed join together three main economic and ecological assets: minimization of risks and investments, optimal use of available resources, (labour, capital , biodiversity, environment) and a very strong capacity of adaptation and reproduction. After having defined their bases and having identified the main stages through a "periodisation' (time analysis) in part I, this thesis attempts to show that the continuity of cropping and farming systems as well as the permanence of agropforestry practices rely on a true recombining of knowledges varied by the evolution of farmers ' strategies (part II). The contemporary period places the problem in the long run of the reproduction of collective forms of organisation and the questioning of economical and social systems which have carried them so far. ; La principale caractéristique de l'évolution de l'hévéaculture indonésienne depuis l'introduction de l'hévéa au début du siècle réside dans la permanence de l'agroforesterie à travers les orientations techniques mise en oeuvre par les petits planteurs sous la forme des "jungle rubber", systèmes agroforestiers hévéicoles traditionnels. La production qui en est issue a rapidement dépassé celle les grandes plantations (dès 1935) confirmant ainsi la très forte adaptation de l'agriculture familiale aux aléas des marchés et de la production. Le rôle des pouvoirs publics ...