INCORPORATION OF INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE AND PERSPECTIVES IN AGROFORESTRY DEVELOPMENT .2. CASE-STUDY ON THE IMPACT OF EXPLICIT REPRESENTATION OF FARMERS KNOWLEDGE

An explicit representation of farmers' knowledge about on-farm tree fo dder resources was developed using knowledge-based systems software an d methodology at a front-line agricultural research centre in the east ern mid-hills of Nepal. Sophisticated knowledge of tree-crop interacti ons and the feeding value of various tree fodders was revealed. Farmer s' ecological knowledge was more developed in some areas than others a nd was largely complementary to that of agricultural researchers in Ne pal and the scientific literature more generally. Evaluation of the co mbined knowledge of farmers and researchers related to interdisciplina ry land use problems by the creation of explicit, encyclopaedic knowle dge bases, offers the possibility of targeting research more precisely to gaps in knowledge constraining the productivity and sustainability of the farming system. While similar insight into the depth of farmer s knowledge may have been gained by researchers adopting a less formal approach to knowledge acquisition, without an explicit, durable and m anipulable record, subsequent analyses and continued use of the knowle dge in the research and development process might not be achieved.