Lessons from India’s smallholder farmers

T he world of “development” often seems short of convincing answers. Conflict, climate stress, food insecurity, entrenched poverty, and fiscal pressure are exposing the limits of old models.

There is wisdom in starting with things as they are, which is where serious development must begin — with honest evidence, practical experience, and results that hold up. By that test, some of the most useful lessons for rural development may be coming, not from donor strategies, but from India’s smallholder farmers.