Sustainable Development and Communication in Global Food Networks: Lessons From India

Description

This book offers a novel approach to sustainable development through the theory and practice of communication in global food networks, focusing specifically on organic food and fair trade movements. Adopting an interdisciplinary approach, it brings together the fields of Communication for Development and Social Change, Agri-Food Studies and Economic Geography. This is supported with a participatory method that unveils voices from Indian farming communities, small European businesses and UK-based consumers. The book exemplifies the integral role of communication in sustainable development through direct and mediated communication processes that bring these actors together in the global food market. Such processes include trade relations, self-representation, and information and knowledge exchange through the spaces of the internet. Through these processes the book uncovers the instrumental role of communication in building a more holistic understanding of sustainable development. It also advocates that sustainable solutions require smaller, self-sustained projects and initiatives that pay closer attention to the voices and localized experiences of the people on the ground. Acknowledgements Contents List of Images Chapter 1: Introduction Development Beyond Economic Growth: Deconstructing Sustainable Development The Capability Approach The Empowerment Framework The Choice Framework Food: A Mediator in Development and Social Change Communication in Sustainable Development The Case of Kerala in South India A Note on Gender Research Process, Positionality, and Reflexivity References Chapter 2: Development in Global Food Networks: Uncovering the Sociability of the Global Food Economy Introduction Agriculture, Food, and Development in the Global Economy: A Neoliberal Discourse of Rural Development The Power of Discourse in the Global Food Economy and Sustainable Development Globalised Alternative Food Networks Organic Agriculture and Development Fair Trade and Development Towards a New Language of Development in the Global Food Economy Conclusion References Chapter 3: Sustainable Development Through Communication: Toward New Theoretical Approaches Introduction Communication for Sustainable Development and Social Change: A Brief Review The Modernisation Approach The Participatory Paradigm Communication in Agriculture and Rural Development: Opportunities and Challenges Critiques of the Field and the Way Forward Towards a Weak Theory of Sustainable Development and Communication: The Power of Weak Communication Interpersonal Communication Social Capital Communication Through Community Collaboration Conclusion References Chapter 4: Communication and Business in the Global Market: Empowering Indian Farmers Through Trade Relations Introduction Market-Based Solutions and the Role of Business in Development Business, Poverty, and Development Economics in CSR Bottom Billion Capitalism and the Bottom of the Pyramid Case Development Through Social Entrepreneurship and Microcredit Re-visiting the Poverty-Development Nexus and the Role of Business in Development The Role of Business and Trade Relationships in Global Food Networks Empowerment and Market Development Through Face-to-Face Communication Marketing Product Biographies Market Relations and Intangible Development Outcomes Conclusion References Chapter 5: Communication and Development in Fair Trade Movements: Producers’ Empowerment Through Representation and Voice Introduction Farmers’ Representation in Fair Trade Movements From Fetishism to Discursive Colonialism Representation as Recognition and the Power of Voice Social Acceptability Through Voice: Overcoming Social Oppression Storytelling and Participatory Video as a Form of Empowerment Storytelling The Stories Participatory Video: The Power of Video Creation and the Playback Process Conclusion References Chapter 6: Producer-Consumer Communication Through Digital Media: Empowering the Consumer Introduction Consumer Mobilisation and Political Consumerism in Global Food Networks (Re)Connecting Producers and Consumers Across Space: The Challenges of Unreflexive Localism Consumer Activism Through Fair Trade Communication and Cosmopolitan Sympathy Consumer Mobilisation and the Role of Information in Organic Networks Producer-Consumer (Re)Connection Through Storytelling (Re)Connection Through Online Media Disrupting the Colonial Image of the Distant Other Knowledge Exchange and Consumer Education for a Sustainable Future Conclusion References Chapter 7: Conclusion: Building Bridges for a Sustainable Future Sustainable Development: Small, Beautiful, Local, and Connected The Power of Weak Communication Business, Communication, and Sustainable Development: Towards a New Paradigm Depoliticising Sustainable Development: A Message from Wayanad References Index