Microworld gaming of a local agricultural production chain in Poland

Abstract

Natural resource management of complex, adaptive socioecosystems requires a mix of good practice, policy, science, and intuition. We report here on a rapid and low-cost experiment in Lower Silesia, Poland, using modeling techniques to explore the potential to develop local ecological products. We focus our analysis on one particular group of products related to an "ancient" breed of chicken, the green-legged hen (GLH), with low resource requirements that could support a sustainable agriculture based on lower use of fertilizers and pesticides. The issues affecting farmers' commitment to adopt GLHs include availability of EU subsidies, the supportive role of NGOs, cooperation between producers..