In Search of Sustainable Livelihood Systems: Managing Resources and Change

`What a pleasure to find, at long last, a book on rural livelihoods which does not package sustainability through the straightjacket of assessment, numbers and capital' - Development and Change Livelihood systems are much more than sets of material and economic conditions. They have to cater to a large number of human needs including food and shelter. The contributors to this important volume adopt a holistic approach to understanding rural livelihood systems. They maintain that a livelihood system embraces not just economic conditions for physical subsistence, but all the elements that provide material continuity and cultural meaning to the life of a family in a community. This book tries to understand `rural livelihood systems' from different angles and throws light on the question of what people need in order to feel secure within their systems.

Table of Contents:
Introduction Rural Livelihoods in Transition - Ruedi Baumgartner Origins and Objectives of the Rural Livelihood Research Project PART ONE: MICRO AND MACRO PERSPECTIVES OF RURAL LIVELIHOOD Understanding Livelihood Systems as Complex Wholes - Ruedi H[um]ogger Economic Reforms and the Livelihood of Rural Households - Rolf Kappel Evidence and Future Prospects PART TWO: RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR LIVELIHOOD SECURITY IN THE VILLAGES OF NORTH GUJARAT Core Issues in the Economy and Society of Gujarat - Uma Rani Technology Adoption and Farm Management in Rural Livelihood Systems in Gujarat - B N Hiremath, K V Raju and Anil Patel Rural-Urban Linkages, Occupational Diversification and Sustainable Rural Livelihood Systems - H S Shylendra and Uma Rani Role of Non-Economic Motivation in Natural Resource Management - K V Raju, Uma Rani and Anil Patel The Example of Swadhyaya in a Gujarat Village The Cross-Ploughed Field - Ruedi H[um]ogger PART THREE: GENDER ISSUES IN LIVELIHOOD DEVELOPMENT The ′Real Realities′ of Life - Smita Premchander Exploring Rural Livelihood Systems from a Gender Perspective Gender and Leadership for Sustainable Natural Resource Management - Smita Premchander and M Chidambaranathan Reality and Reflections PART FOUR: SOUTH INDIAN LIVELIHOOD SYSTEMS IN TRANSITION Core Issues in the Agrarian Economy and Society of Karnataka - G S Aurora The Threshing Floor Disappears - G K Karanth, V Ramaswamy and Ruedi H[um]ogger Rural Livelihood Systems in Transition From Marey to Market - G K Karanth and V Ramaswamy Changing Faces of Rural Livelihood Systems Emerging Rural Leadership and Sustainable Management of Natural Resources - V Ramaswamy et al Evidence from Two South Indian Villages Integrating Local Experiences into Watershed Interventions - Melchior Lengsfeld and D V Srinatha A Modern Drainage Line Treatment in Semi-Arid Karnataka PART FIVE: FROM RESEARCH TO PRACTICE Participatory Research on Rural Livelihoods - Ruedi Baumgartner et al Promoting Local Ownership of Research Findings The RLS Approach in the Project Cycle Management - Ruedi H[um]ogger and Ruedi Baumgartner