Which community network structures can support sustainability programs? The case of the Sustainable Cocoa Production Program in Indonesia

Abstract

Smallholder farming is a source of livelihoods and food for many but also a major contributor to global environmental challenges. Prominent studies have found connections between the productivity and sustainability of individual smallholders’ practices and their positions in local social networks. However, the role of entire community network structures for the adoption of diverse types of practices is relatively less understood. This matters because findings from individual-level network studies of adoption of single practices do not necessarily scale up to provide relevant implications for wide-ranging landscape-level problems. This study seeks to answer the following: (1) Which community network structures are associated with adoption of a broad range of practices recommended by a sustainability program? (2) Which community network structures are associated with farmers’ adoption of similar practices as their peers within the same community? We examine a program in Sulawesi, Indonesia that aimed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cocoa while sustaining productivity, using data that includes over 5000 peer-to-peer social ties of 4573 individuals in 70 villages and their adoption of 22 practices. Multiple linear regressions showed that communities with more cohesive network structures tend to display more homogeneous practices. However, the adoption of recommended practices in such communities was generally lower than in less cohesive community networks where internal social influence might be weaker and openness to experiment with diverse externally introduced practices higher. This case illustrates a situation where community bonding social capital may not support an intervention aiming at greenhouse gas reduction and it provides some suggestions why the same program may be more effective in some communities than others.

Keywords

• community cohesion
• environmental programs
• small-holder farming
• social networks
• theobroma cacao