From the earliest days of the ‘Green Revolution’ in the 1960s, with its promotion of monoculture farming using high inputs of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, many farmers recognized that such farming methods were not sustainable in the long run and also had many adverse effects on farmers, consumers and the environment.
In 1989, at a meeting in Bangkok organised by the Rural Reconstruction and Alumni Friends Association (RRAFA) of Thailand, many of these farmers met together for the first time and decided to form an informal network of individuals and groups primarily concerned with some aspect of alternative, sustainable agriculture. They had a number of objectives:

• to enhance sharing and exchange of views and experiences in sustainable agriculture and rural development;
• to help NGOs and villagers analyze the present rural socio-economic situation and collectively solve problems;
• to strengthen the network of rural development practitioners, NGOs and villagers who share an interest in sustainable agriculture;
• to present information about sustainable agriculture to the public;
• to lobby for the creation of policies promoting alternative methods of agriculture that preserve the environment and natural resources;
• to help organise and to support strong people’s organisations at the field level.

SAAN is the coalition of farmer’s groups, NGOs and individuals in the 14 provinces in Southern Thailand who are working together to offer alternatives to the large-scale monoculture plantations and ‘modern’ farming methods which have proven so destructive to the health of the land and people. The people in the network are involved in many activities related to sustainable, alternative agriculture, including:

• Alternative agriculture: there are many facets to ‘alternative’ agriculture, including organic, integrated, ‘permaculture’, agro-forestry, and ‘natural’ farming methods. Members of SAAN are involved in all of these areas.
• Biodiversity: the loss of natural biodiversity following years of deforestation and land clearing for farming, and agricultural seed diversity following the widespread implementation of monocultural farming with its reliance on HYV seeds, is recognized as a serious threat to our future food supplies.
• CSA: or Community Supported Agriculture, is a new method of farmer/consumer cooperation which is beginning to be recognised in Thailand. It involves the cooperation of consumers and farmers to provide the farmer with a secure income and the consumers with safe food.
• Farmer’s Rights: As farmers have increasingly become marginalized and landless under the ‘advances’ of the Green Revolution, they have now begun to work together to regain their right to a secure livelihood, to choose their crops and seeds and farming methods, and obtain a fair price for their produce.
• Gender: ‘Modern’ agriculture methods have contributed to the marginalisation of women, who traditionally were involved in all aspects of food production. One of the broader aspects of SA is involved with ensuring women have an equal role in decision making.
• Marketing: It is not enough to simply ensure that food is safely grown in an environmentally safe manner; it is also necessary to help farmers develop strategies to link with consumers, and inform them of the advantages in quality and safety of such produce.

Activities...

True to its mandate, SAAN has helped to host or organize dozens of small group workshops and training sessions throughout Southern Thailand, helping farmers, community organizers, and other concerned groups become aware of the issues and the work that is being done in the many types of alternative, sustainable agriculture.

SAAN has also participated in many national and regional conferences, and published many information booklets in the Thai language. In 1996, SAAN helped to organize the 2nd Alternative Agriculture Fair in Bangkok, on Consumers for Life and Farmers for Nature, and is organizing and hosting a regional conference on Monocultures: Social & Environmental Impacts and Sustainable Alternatives, involving Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand.

Future Plans...

During the coming years, SAAN plans to extend its international and local network of contacts, through increased use of modern information technology; we are undertaking a series of workshops with NGOs in Southern Thailand to coordinate this activity.

SAAN is also becoming involved in discussions with several groups concerning the formation of a People's University, which will work to preserve and extend awareness of indigenous knowledge and local wisdom and their potentially important role in sustainable agriculture.

SAAN also plans to begin extending its work by the use of English language publications and further cooperation with internationhal NGOs.