Rachel P Lorenzen, MAgScience (ETH Zurich)

PhD Candidate at RMAP

Biographical Statement

I have a Master degree in Agricultural Sciences from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (www.agrl.ethz.ch), specialising in Agro-ecology. After working in Switzerland at the Research Institute for Organic Agriculture on GMO issues and organic seeds I moved with my family to Australia. In 2002 I began working at the Regulatory Institutions Network on an international project on social accountability in sustainable agriculture (SASA) for two years. In March 2004 I started my Phd at RMAP on "The resilience of livelihood systems of Balinese rice farming communities in the context of socio-economic and ecological change". I have been in the field in Bali for 1.5 years. In December 2005 I returned to Canberra for the writing-up phase.

Research Interest

I have always been interested in a systemic approach to sustainability issues. In my Master thesis I have looked at the improvement of livelihood systems of farmers in the Peruvian Andes. I have modeled a dynamic system based on sustainability indicators and have simulated part of the model.

In my current research I am focusing on the irrigation and cultivation management of the famous Balinese subak, a traditional irrigation society, which has been under scrutiny from various sides and research fields. I explored resource pressures on wet-rice cultivation systems and the adaptive strategies developed in response to these pressures by the farming community in a semi-rural area. Results of my research show that with the decreasing importance of agriculture to the rural economy, farming households diversify their labour allocation to include more attractive off-farm non-agricultural activities. This diversification ensures their livelihood while still continuing to grow rice. So far, both the subak as well as the farming community seem to cope well with the changes.

Here are my notes from my mid-field seminar from March 2006 on my preliminary findings from my field research.

Research papers

Informal institutions and government intervention - Peer-reviewed journal article, March 2008 - Development, 2008, 51 (77-82)

Changing Realities - Conference paper, Aug 2007

Borrowing water - Conference paper, Nov 2005

Perspectives on Balinese rice farming - Conference paper, Sept 2005

Case study on irrigation management - Conference paper, Aug 2005

Livelihood systems of North Peruvian farmers - summary of Master thesis, Feb 2000, unpublished

Pure vegetable oil engine (in German) - research paper, 1996, unpublished