What is INFO?

1. Enrique Ortega Ecological Engineering Lab. FEA, Unicamp What is INFO? Information role in agriculture. A report of a work in progress INFO Agro-eco-systems Fourth Emergy ConferenceUniversity of FloridaGainesville, January 19-21, 2006

2. As shown in Figure 1, information could be a external force that affects the processes of an economic system. Figure 1. Emergy diagram of Argentina (Ferreyra, 2001) Figure 1. Emergy diagram of Argentina (Ferreyra, 2001)

3. But even that information is recognized as a force and its symbol is drawn in systems diagrams, until now, as far as we know, its role in agricultural systems has not been explained nor measured. Valuable discussion on general aspects has been made (Odum, 1976; Odum, 2000; Brown, 2005) but in the case of agricultural systems, as it can be observed in next figure, obtained from Folio 4 (Brandt-Williams, 2001), the main reference for emergy calculation does not include the symbol and does not discuss the issue.

4. Figure 2. Emergy diagram of inputs evaluated for products of Florida Agriculture (Brandt-Williams, 2001)

5. The concept of information After reading several authors, I think that human information can be defined as the stocks, flows and processing of signals, data, codes, symbols, ideas, concepts, images, emotions, feelings, smells, memories, knowledge structures and life-style. Information is emitted by a system and can be interpreted, used and transformed by other one.

6. The concept of information The sequence of processes through raw data become information, knowledge, science, technology, know-how, local public policy, foreign policy and finally norms and laws within a country or in other regions is shown in the next figures. Please remember that our main focus is information for agriculture or food production.

7. Investments Regional Innovations , Atmosphere biodiversity INFO : ideological frame International Local Debt ( $ ) atmosphere Soil and Processing & Local local consumption $ Sustainable biodiversity $ Forces inputs Infra - structure Integrated $ Money stocks and flows diversified production R Agriculture fields Output for External Consumption Soybean production unit

8. Investments , loans , chemical Regional inputs , machinery Atmosphere International biodiversity INFO : ideological and Monetary other pressures International Fund Sustainable Multinational Forces enterprises International Local Debt ( $ ) atmosphere Soil and Processing & Local local consumption Sustainable biodiversity $ $ Forces Chemical inputs Local non - renewable $ social forces Infra - structure Integrated $ Money stocks and flows diversified production R Agriculture fields Output for External Consumption Soybean production unit

9. The concept of INFO

10. At least two kinds of INFO

11. Local and global environmental degradation Wealth concentration , Loss of Ethical frames , Excessive consumption , Human Values Human Values Waste for Economical for Dominium Domination of Nature Social exclusion , Knowledge for Jobless , Misery , dominance Violence Information Knowledge for processing dominance Raw structures structures information Dominance Social and environmental INFO products of dominance INFO Social and environmental impacts of knowledge in Capitalism

12. Biosphere and culture recovering knowledge Non renewable fossil fuel resources and How ? When ? minerals Whom ? $ To whom ? International enterprises investments $ Human values International and explanations Ecological Monetary Fund for Domination and social ( IMF ) Ecological Debt ( $ ) and social Local banks Ecological External Private Local Debt ( $ ) and investors and social Public Debt ( $ ) governs ( $ ) Debt ( $ ) Internal Debt ( $ ) ( $ ) Local Public Subsoil water External Monetary enterprises Debt ( $ ) Monetary eutrophication , non - renewable resources investments resources air and river resources ( $ ) ( $ ) ( $ ) pollution Public Economic Animal services production products and Local reduction Local wastes non - renewable Human government resources Rural exodus Industrial industrial actions & Immigration processing for activities Forest oil and feed destruction Human Renewable Brazilian Europe & China diet use resources production consumption Pandora box and the hope Hope is the name of a girl … that does not accept the system and makes questions!

13. Human values , Who ? scientific reasons How ? and economic When ? explanations for Whom ? Domination To whom ? What cost ? $ International industrial $ enterprises International investments Monetary Fund ( IMF ) Local Central Ideological , scientific and political , economic governments entrepreneurs and military ( $ ) lobby Local banks pressures and investors Monetary ( $ ) External resources corruption non - renewable ( $ ) Law obeying actions resources Executive Juridical laws infra - government government structure Local actions actions Legislative non - renewable regulations government Forest resources omissions Economic actions destruction production Renewable Brazilian resources production The information system in detail for measuring (next step)

14. The force of information or knowledge is not neutral; it is linked to the ethical values of the scientific and economic frames where it is created. The force of knowledge is not always positive to the system that receives it;usually at present circumstances, it has a negative impactbecause it will transform the system for the benefit of that one that generates the information. Within the Capitalism INFO usually means new technology but behind that image there is an ideological and military force used for its expansion all over the world.

15. But INFO can be, also, a positive force if the knowledge belongs to a correct scientific framework. I can constitute a clear perception of how the world and how its ecosystems work. It can be also an unbiased and beneficial knowledge. So, there are at least two kinds of information; let’s take care with this great force.

16. The concept applied to soybean farming In capitalist agriculture, INFO is the external technological, political, ideological and economical coercion force used to control an agricultural system for the benefit of chemical and biotechnological industries. But, as Capitalism is not completely monolithic, in Brazil besides that INFO another information forces act in the agriculture and they provide support for ecological, organic and old-agricultural tradition farms.

17. The concept applied to soybean farming Table 1 was built to show the links between type of farming with main Scientific Approach and Consumption System for the Brazilian Soybean Production Systems.

18. Type of farm, number of farmers, size and supporting INFO. Biological systems Chemical systems Biotechnological systems

19. Recently in Brazil, when important political and economical decisions concerning the use of transgenic soybean seeds were taken by federal government, at Congress audiences the discussion did not consider the biological farming only the chemical and biotechnological farming. That kind of production was not considered even the small farmers are responsible for almost 20 % of production.

20. Maybe because the main concern was to obtain money (to pay debt) from sales to foreign markets and from this perspective it is more effective to deal with big size farmers that could have rapid answers. The information of biological farming was completely omitted! And the information of the biotechnological option was overwhelming. But, as we are going to show in the next paragraphs the biological systems give the bigger benefits for the producing country.

31. It is still necessary to include as INFO: • Monsanto research and marketing costs; • Political Lobby and Military costs; • Specific subsidies for certain farmers; • Biosphere’s opportunity costs!

32. Final considerations • There is a biosphere need of a new culture and, as part of it, a economy based in expanded emergy analysis; • It is important to understand the information process to promote Auto-Organization; (a) Develop efforts between Open Science, Open Religion, Open Social Movements; (b) Maintain Conscious Courage and Creativity and keep Patience and Hope.

33. Sub-systems The present! NR Oil producing countries Industrialized countries Global System R R World System The future! Raw-materials producing countries Open religion movementSocial movementsEthical Renascence Agenda 21 World Social ForumCollective Intelligence

34. Just a pair of the cited references: Maria Cecilia Ferreyra, 2001.“Emergy perspectives on the Argentine economy and Food production systems of the rolling pampas during the twentieth century”. Master of Science Thesis. University of Florida, Gainesville, USA. Sherry L. Brandt-Williams (2001) Folio #4 (2nd printing): Emergy of Florida Agriculture, August 2001, Revised September 2002. Center for Environmental Policy. Environmental Engineering Sciences, Box 116450 University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611-6450.

35. Thanks for your attention! More of these at: www.unicamp.br/fea/ortega/