|
|
|
 |
 National Science
Foundation Award #0550550 |
 |
|
|
RUI: Coalition Dynamics and Strategic Innovation in the Organic Movement |
| |
| Investigator(s): |
Brian Obach (PI)
|
| Sponsor: |
SUNY College at New Paltz, NY 12561 8452573282
|
| Start Date/Expiration Date |
2006-03-15 to 2008-02-29 (amended 2006-03-06) |
| Awarded Amount to Date: |
$85,000 |
| Abstract: Brian Obach
The Organic Movement: Social Movement Coalitions and Strategic Innovation
This study focuses on the organic farm movement, one of the most successful social movements of the late twentieth century. It was composed of a relatively small number of counter culture farmers in the early 1970s. In 2002 the federal government offered formal recognition to what had grown into a multi-billion dollar industry by creating national standards for organic certification. Through an examination of social movement strategy, this study will reveal how this movement was able to achieve this level of success, while at the same time analyzing how current conditions fail to live up to the original ideals of the movement. Two issues of significance to social movement study will be examined: coalition dynamics and strategic innovation. First, this research focuses on the relationship between the organic farm movement and the organic consumers' movement and one of the most challenging problems of coalition work, goal displacement by coalition partners. While there is evidence that support from consumer organizations greatly advanced the cause of organic agriculture, this study will test the hypothesis that the divergent interests of organic consumers and small scale organic producers ultimately yielded an outcome that undermined the original goals of the organic farm movement. The availability of organic food has increased markedly and organic consumption continues to rise. However, this increase has come primarily through the entry of large scale organic agribusiness and big retailers, a development contrary to the original goals of the organic farmers movement: small scale, community based, sustainable agriculture. The second central research question considers how the organic movement can cope with its "success" and develop innovative new ways to reclaim political momentum. Interviews with current and past leaders of the organic farm and consumers' movements will be used to reconstruct the history of this political effort. Organizational archives will be used to supplement these accounts along with public records on political action around the issue of organic standards and certification.
Broader Impacts
In addition to advancing understanding of social movement processes, the findings generated by this research will be of use to movement actors seeking to improve their political effectiveness and policy makers who seek to better understand the relationships between groups of mobilized constituents. The research will include undergraduate students as full research partners, particularly those from under-represented groups and students in the C-STEP (Collegiate Science and Technology Entry) Program. Findings from the research will also be made available to the actors and policy makers involved with the organic farming movement. |
|
| NSF Org: |
SES - Division of Social and Economic Sciences |
| Award Number: |
0550550 |
| Award Instrument: |
Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Beth Rubin
SES Division of Social and Economic Sciences
SBE Directorate for Social, Behavioral & Economic Sciences
|
| NSF Program(s): |
SOCIOLOGY |
| Field Application(s): |
|
| Program Reference Code(s): |
UNASSIGNED, 0000 |
| Program Element Code(s): |
1331 |
|
|
| |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
