Science Field Shops in Indonesia A start of Improved Agricultural Extension that Fits a Rural Response to Climate Change

It is argued that beyond the slow progress made in the last decades, another step in making agrometeorology more operational for solving farmers’ livelihood problems is actually needed. Climate field services, as agrometeorological advisories established with farmers in their fields, can only really blossom in rural areas where also a “services culture” exists in other fields. Policies and capacity building in these fields do matter very much. The virtual absence in Indonesia of extension officers trained in what is needed under conditions of a changing climate was already clearly noted in previous papers. Given this situation, we have developed in Indonesia a new educational commitment that we have called “Science Field Shops (SFSs)”, as learning meetings between scholars, farmers and extension intermediaries. First weather/climate information, advisories and services are distinguished and defined in agrometeorology. Subsequently recent views on agricultural extension are reviewed and our “SFSs” are placed in several recognized categories. Basically, we define such “SFSs” as meetings in which scholars answer questions on vulnerabilities expressed by farmers. The idea was based on the Dutch so called “Law Shops”. “SFSs” are also suitable to get material for improved curricula of Climate Field Schools (CFSs) for the future training of Extension Intermediaries. We see “SFSs” as a start for improved agricultural extension that fits a rural response to climate change. There are two more classes of participants needed in such “SFSs”. First, we jointly should create in the course of time “Farmer Facilitators” among farmers, in the sense that they can “facilitate” the introduction of results of the discussions as well as climate services in farmer fields. A second other category of participants in “SFSs” that we need are a class of extension intermediaries that work closest to the farmers. However, this definitely asks for well-trained extension intermediaries who should over time take over most of the tasks of the scholars in the “SFSs”. The latter should only initially be used to train them and for backing up. After all, two types of extension intermediaries may be distinguished, one close to the farmers and one close to the producers of agrometeorological information/advisories/services. The latter are therefore called “product intermediaries”. They should themselves be trained “in service” by their Institutes. We give a list illustrating some presently important negative issues in the livelihood of farmers. They are part of the existing problems in mainstreaming a rural response to climate change into development. For the many countries to which this list applies, it is sufficiently specific to encourage activities that do include the creation of new institutional educational commitments such as “SFSs” and CFSs towards farmers/extension. We show the structures in which this thinking can be applied to the agricultural reality.