ABSTRACT
Agriculture can be intensified by putting on more purchased inputs to produce more a product per acre. Or it can be intensified by growing more different crops using a variety of local inputs and practices to produce more diverse and healthy food. Taking the second approach to Sustainable Intensification (SI), gender becomes a key to increasing sustainability while intensifying land use to meet the needs of farm families, communities, and regions. Gender consideration allows for more intensive use of current resources that are currently in the community and family—natural, cultural, human, social, political, financial and build—to achieve a healthy ecosystem, economic security for all, and social inclusion, meaning that all in the community have a voice and are valued. Recognizing and enhancing women’s contributions to and benefit from farming systems alters development strategies from technology transfer to technology adaptation and creation that fit best in the context and enhance social, economic, and cultural well-being. Cultural capital of development agencies must change to recognize and incorporate local assets for continual improvement.
