User:HannahLH/Appropriate technology

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Agriculture
Appropriate technology has been applied extensively to improve agricultural production in developing countries. A large piece of technology adoption within the agricultural sector focuses on improving the negative environmental impact of farming. This is a significant goal within the adoption of technology for sustainable agriculture systems and practices. In the United States, the National Center for Appropriate Technology operates ATTRA (attra.ncat.org), a national sustainable agriculture assistance program.

The focus of discussion and research regarding technology adoption is the small scale farm, because it accounts for the majority of the planet’s agricultural output. The ethical question that emerges in the research is how much to focus on increasing the productivity of a nation's agricultural output and how much to address food insecurity in the population, including among farmers themselves. This issue of framing is significant because if countries are producing enough food for their populations, yet people are still not getting adequate amounts of food or proper nutrition, it is a problem of availability and distribution rather than production. It is possible for countries to have the agricultural capabilities to be completely self-supportive, but still have many food-insecure citizens. India is an example of this situation. The opposite can also be true; as of 2012, neither Hong Kong nor Singapore had the internal capability to sustainably feed their respective populations, yet they had much better rates of food-security than India. A problem can arise when research focuses solely on advancements in production, ignoring the problem of food-insecurity in these communities.

Food insecurity is more than just a matter of increasing farm production: it is also about farm household income, location, amount of debt, and level of education. Rural and impoverished communities are disproportionately and adversely affected by inequitable distribution of food and resources. Increasing food production and output will not make distributing food easier or more equitable. Confronting these more difficult issues is the future of the sector’s discussions and actions.

Finance
''Through financial systems envisioned especially for the very poor/developed world, many companies have been able to get started with only limited capital. Often banks lend the money to people wishing to start a business (such as with microfinance). In other systems, people for a Rotating Savings and Credit Association or ROSCA to purchase costly material together (such as Tontines and Susu accounts). Organisations, communities, cities or individuals can provide loans to other communities/cities (such as with the approach followed by Kiva, World Vision Microloans, MicroPlace and LETS). Finally, in certain communities (usually isolated communities such as small islands or oases) everything of value is shared: this is referred to as gift economy.''

The adopters and implementers of a technology often have less bargaining and social power than those who design and provide the technology. In stakeholder negotiations and relationships, the uneven distribution of power often stems from the lack of access to capital. In the case of small-holder farming communities, for example, farmers struggle to access initial capital, and so outside investors have significantly more bargaining power. This dynamic gives power to outside investors over farmers, technology adopters, and local community members. A local community's best interest might not always be considered by outside investing forces.