Title: What connection is there between the learning process and territorial governance?. The 'SAC' example on Reunion Island

Authors: Eduardo Chia, Michel Dulcire, Marc Piraux

Addresses: Centre International de Recherche Agronomique pour le Developpement (CIRAD)/Institut National de Recherche Agronomique (INRA), Avenue Agropolis 34398, Montpellier cedex 5, France. ' Centre International de Recherche Agronomique pour le Developpement (CIRAD)/Institut National de Recherche Agronomique (INRA), Avenue Agropolis 34398, Montpellier cedex 5, France. ' UMR Tetis (Territoires, Environnement, Teledetection et Information Spatiale), CIRAD, CEMAGREF, ENGREF, Centre de Cooperation Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Developpement (CIRAD), France; Visiting Professor, University Federal of Campina Grande, Paraiba, Brazil

Abstract: Territorial governance has become a major issue for public authorities. Studying the information generated by implementing sustainable agricultural contracts (SAC) on Reunion Island (Ile de la Reunion) has contributed to the development of new types of territorial governance projects. The surveys conducted with rural development actors have revealed that learning was significant both at the individual and collective levels. This mainly involves organisational learning processes. The SAC tool has been used for developing a new type of governance, by coordinating actors with different interests and logics. This process has developed the practical and organisational practices of actors. But it has not modified their values (common project) or the development model. Thus, we believe that in order to promote |dual loop| learning, implementing a local project is essential as it gives a meaning to the actions being carried out. As a result, the governance process would be reinforced.

Keywords: actor coordination; rural development; development models; dual loop learning; governance; learning process; organisational learning; Reunion Island; sustainable agricultural contract; territorial development; territorial governance; sustainable development; sustainability.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSD.2008.026500

International Journal of Sustainable Development, 2008 Vol.11 No.2/3/4, pp.171 - 186

Published online: 17 Jun 2009 *

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