ABSTRACT
An agricultural research-for-development project in rural east India is improving livelihoods for indigenous farmers. The project focuses on intensifi cation and diversifi cation of cropping systems through a process of farmer engagement around livelihood improvement based on self-help groups (SHGs). Agricultural/ horticultural interventions are selected after consultation with villagers and they are implemented with farmers as on-farm research activities. The research activity provides learning opportunities for participating farmers as well as generating research results under local farming conditions. In addition to research into new agricultural technology and cropping systems, the project has a strong focus on research into the processes of farmer engagement, co-learning and scaling out project innovations.
