内容简介

       This volume seeks to answer modern questions and concerns regarding peasants, their production techniques, and their links
　　to wider society. In the past, peasants and their seemingly simple production models have been criticized for being unable to
　　fully meet the needs of modern society, especially when it comes to world hunger, food quality, and sustainability. However,
　　often neglected is the myriad of new initiatives that alter the way food is produced and marketed. New 'peasant markets' are
　　created everywhere and new products and services abound. This volume argues that these initiatives represent "seeds of
　　transition"; they are the "sprouts" out of which new socio-technical modes for organizing production and marketing
　　emerge - "sprouts" that, taken together, can be summarized as "rural development". This book critically discusses these
　　new practices and the actors engaged in them. In doing so, it deals with several countries in three different
　　continents (Asia, South America and Europe). It proposes new concepts and approaches for a better understanding of the
　　re-emergence of peasants as indispensable part of modern societies.