Envisioning prairie agroecology: Farmer visual constructions of place-based ecological agriculture in Canada

Abstract

Climate change is driving new challenges for farmers around the world, provoking a sense of urgency in the search for on-farm solutions and pathways to sustainable agricultural systems. While agroecology has gained recognition as a promising option for climate resilience, it remains nascent in the Canadian Prairies—a significant agricultural region dominated by large-scale conventional agriculture. Amid the sprawling fields of grains and oilseeds primarily destined for export markets, growing farm consolidation, and increased land concentration, farmers committed to ecological principles are building a prefigurative foundation for prairie agroecology. Far from cohering into a unified definition, this article captures what agroecology on the Prairies looks like. Through a community-engaged research design and in consultation with the National Farmers Union of Canada, we explore farmers’ reflections on agroecology and provide a participatory platform for farmer-led constructions of agroecology. Through dialogue with 19 farmers of different farm sizes and production types that began in the 2021 farming season—one marked by drought and extreme heat—we use photovoice, visual elicitation interviews, and participatory video to document and mobilize visual constructions of an emerging prairie agroecology. Despite a shared vision among the farmer participants about the need for a sustainability transition through diversified farming practices, three key questions emerged about the future of prairie agroecology: (1) Can prairie agroecology scale up and out, and if so, under what conditions? (2) To what extent is prairie agroecology possible without dense, place-based social networks? and (3) What are the possibilities for prairie agroecology when the future of farming in the region is uncertain, especially given the changing farmer demographics and Canada’s settler colonial context? We explore these questions and provide reflections on key issues confronting the future of prairie agroecology.