Cooperation-88 (C88) is a late blight resistant potato variety that was formally released in China in 2001 and has become popular in China's Yunnan Province. The International Potato Center (CIP) and Yunnan Normal University collaborated to produce the variety, which is one of CIP's most successful varieties. C88 is popular due to its high quality and taste, and it is used commonly in China's expanding potato chip processing market. The purpose of this study is to examine adoption of C88 in the Yunnan Province, its value chain, and economic impacts. The analysis indicates that C88 is still popular with 16.8% of the potato area in Yunnan devoted to this variety in late spring 2015. To examine factors affecting household decisions to adopt and the intensity of their adoption, village adoption, household adoption, and household intensity of adoption were assessed. A village's proximity to a metropolitan county was the most important factor explaining adoption and intensity of adoption. Households in villages closer to a metropolitan county disadopted at higher rates than those farther away. To quantify the economic benefits of C88 adoption, an economic surplus analysis was conducted. Total surplus changes ranged from $2 to 3 billion indicating significant economic benefits to consumers and producers in Yunnan. / Master of Science

The Innovation Hub project is a strategic partnership between the Gauteng Provincial Government's Blue IQ initiative, and SERA, the Southern Education and Research Alliance, a partnership between the University of Pretoria and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research. The site for the proposed development forms part of the Agricultural Research Farm of the University of Pretoria and calls for a synergy between urban development, architecture, and the natural surrounding. The Naledi 3D Virtual Reality factory forms part of numerous companies involved in cutting edge technology which is to be associated with the development. In this computer age, which can be compared to the industrial era in terms of the revolutionisation of our daily lives, architecture has to respond. Buildings need to be designed to ensure the productive interaction between man, machine and the natural environment. Copyright 2003, University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. Please cite as follows: Bergh, FS 2003, Hyperlink : the Naledi 3D virtual reality factory, MArch(Prof) dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd < http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-11242003-105302 / > / Dissertation (MArch (Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Architecture / unrestricted

La recherche en agriculture a un rôle important à jouer pour la population mondiale si on la considère comme un domaine stratégique pouvant fournir des connaissances ainsi qu´une base technologique à la production agricole. Ce secteur génère des extrants, des résultats ayant des impacts spécifiques dans les zones rurales, les filières agricoles, l'économie, la société et l'environnement. La recherche et l'innovation agricoles représentent un élément clé pour permettre d´atteindre les objectifs du développement durable imposés par les Nations Unies (ODD), en particulier les ODD 2 et 12 – c´est-à-dire réduire les inégalités sociales, éliminer la faim et accroître durablement la production alimentaire. Ainsi, l'évaluation de l'impact dans le domaine économique, politique, social et environnemental des recherches et des innovations devient fondamentale dans un objectif de recherche croissante de la durabilité des pays et de la planète. Les bailleurs de fonds, les institutions supérieures de contrôle, le parlement, le gouvernement, les producteurs, les filières agricoles, les consommateurs et toute la société civile ont besoin de transparence, d'efficacité et d'efficience de la part des organismes publics : ils doivent démontrer un retour sur investissement public, un impact positif sur l'économie et la société, tout en minimisant les impacts négatifs sur l'environnement. L'objectif principal de cette thèse est donc de répertorier les approches théoriques et pratiques déjà réalisées pour l'évaluation d'impact, en particulier en se penchant sur les expériences de quatre organismes de recherche, et de développer un modèle conceptuel du système de gestion de l'évaluation d'impact de l'innovation, en particulier un modèle qui sera applicable aux organismes de recherche agricole. Nous adoptons une méthodologie basée sur la revue de littérature, quatre cas d'étude comparative d'organismes de recherche agricole (le Cirad et l´Inra en France, l´Embrapa au Brésil, et le CSIRO en Australie). Les contributions innovantes de cette thèse sont : I. La construction d'un modèle conceptuel d'un système de gestion de l'évaluation d'impact basé sur le processus d'innovation ; II. Le modèle du système de l'évaluation d'impact d'innovation considèrant une vision transversale de durabilité, intégrant les dimensions environnementale, sociale, politique et économique ; III. Le système d'analyse d'impact de l'innovation reposera sur un processus unique de gestion, notamment concernant les étapes d'évaluation ex ante et ex post selon leur temporalité respective ; IV. La gestion du processus de l'innovation et de l'évaluation d'impact prévoyant l'insertion d'approches comportementales telles que les concepts d'holisme, de constructivisme et de transdisciplinarité. Cette thèse présente donc une approche originale car fournissant un outil de gouvernanceà la recherche, tout en mettantun accent innovant sur la gestion de l'impact ex-ante et ex-post. Elle aide les organisations de recherche et d'innovation à fournir chaque fois plus de solutions durables dans le cadre de leurs missions institutionnelles, et contribuant ainsi à participer aux objectifs de développement durable de l'ONU pour aller vers une agriculture plus productive et plus durable. / Agricultural research has an important role for the world population by considering it as a strategic area for providing knowledge and technological base for agricultural production. This sector generates outputs, outcomes with respective impacts to rural zones, supply chains, economy, society and environment. The agricultural research & innovation represents a key piece for reaching the United Nations sustainable development goals (SDG), especially to SDG 2 and 12 – to promote sustainable agricultural to eliminate hunger and improving nutrition, as well as to promote sustainable consumption and production, respectively. In order to check whether agricultural research organizations generate sustainable impacts, it is necessary to assess the impacts of their innovations. Funders, supreme auditing institutions, parliament, government, producers, supply chains, consumers and all society require transparency, efficacity, and effectivity of public organizations: they must highlight return of public investment as well as generate positive impact to the economy and society, and minimize negative impacts to the environment. Many public research organizations around the world have developed impact assessment processes. There is no flawed theories and practices approaches to impact assessment context. Therefore, this research seeks to fill gaps or to supplement the existing approaches. The main thesis objective is to summarize theoretical and practical studied approaches on impact assessment, including the experiences of four research organizations, and to develop a conceptual model of innovation impact assessment management system, especially applicable to agricultural research organizations. It adopts a methodology based on literature review, four cases of a comparative study of agricultural research organizations (Cirad and Inra from France, Embrapa from Brazil, and CSIRO from Australia), and benchmarking these experiences studied. The innovative contributions of this thesis are I. construction of a conceptual model of an impact assessment management system based on the open innovation process; II. the model of innovation impact assessment management system considers a cross-cut view of sustainability, integrating the environmental, social, political and economic dimensions; III. the innovation impact assessment system will be based on a unique managerial process that regards ex-ante and ex-post assessment stages according to its respective temporality; IV. the management of the innovation and impact assessment processes foresees the insertion of behavioral approaches such as concepts of holism, constructivism, transdisciplinarity and agile management practices as essential requirements for the effective engagement of the internal and external actors and the effectiveness of the evaluation process. This thesis has an original approach by bringing a research governance tool with an innovative focus on ex-ante and ex-post impact management, helping research and innovation organizations to become increasingly sustainable in their institutional missions, thus contributing to the achievement of the UN's sustainable development goals towards more productive and sustainable agriculture.

Die Zusammenarbeit von Bauern, Beratern, Forschern und ihren Organisationen zur Entwicklung des ländlichen Raumes befindet sich in Brasilien in einer Krise. Es fehlen Entscheidungen und überzeugende Vorschläge seitens der Regierung für die Zukunft der landwirtschaftlichen Beratung. Die vorliegende Arbeit hat daher zum Ziel, zur Verbesserung der landwirtschaftlichen Forschung und Beratung in Brasilien und der Zusammenarbeit der Akteure im ländlichen Raum beizutragen. Als eine spezifische Form der Partizipation wird die Partnerschaft eingeführt, bei der die Akteure Organisationen sind und deren Wirkung über die mikrosoziale Ebene hinaus die meso- und makrosoziale Ebene einbezieht. Zunächst werden die bisher in der brasilianischen Agrarforschung und Beratung vertretenen Konzepte untersucht. Das Verständnis ihrer Grenzen und Möglichkeiten erlaubt, den Spielraum für die Einführung neuer Ansätze besser einzuschätzen. In der Arbeit werden zwei partizipative Erfahrungen im brasilianischen Bundesstaat Pará als Fallbeispiele aufbereitet: eine Entwicklungsorientierte Forschung mit Gruppen von Bauern im Rahmen einer Partnerschaft zwischen einer Forschungsorganisation (LAET) und einer Bauernorganisation (MPST) und der Aufbau eines landwirtschaftlichen Beratungsdienstes (Lumiar). Die Tatsache, daß beide Projekte im gleichen Kontext in der Region der Transamazônica angesiedelt sind, erleichtert das Verständnis der verschiedenen Dimensionen von Partizipation und Partnerschaft. Die Fallstudien werden in einem Dialog zwischen Theorie und Praxis anhand von Schlüsselelementen analysiert: Einstellung, Motivation und Fähigkeit; Bedarf; Macht; Organisationen; Konflikte; Vertrauen und Verhandlungen. Die Arbeit gelangt zu der Schlußfolgerung, daß eines der größten Probleme in der Praxis die Unklarheit über die Art der Partnerschaft ist, die unterschiedlich eng gestaltet werden kann. Im Prinzip wird die Möglichkeit der partizipativen Zusammenarbeit zwischen verschiedenen sozialen Welten (Bauern, Forscher, Berater) bestätigt, wobei deren wesentliche Schwierigkeit die Vermittlung zwischen verschiedenen Interessen ist. Erst durch die Einbeziehung der Ebene der Organisationen mit ihren Interessen können die Handlungen der Akteure verstanden werden, die auf diesem Niveau durch die zunehmende Notwendigkeit gekennzeichnet sind, Ungewißheitszonen zu sichern. Hegemoniestreben und die Gefahr von Mißverständnissen werden größer. Machtbeziehungen und Konflikte sind normale Erscheinungen, mit denen die Forscher und Berater umzugehen lernen müssen. Die Freiheit der Akteure bietet Spielraum zur Verwirklichung neuer Ansätze, beschränkt jedoch auch ihre verordnete Einführung. Einerseits ermöglicht sie die Einbindung offizieller Institutionen in die Agrarentwicklung. Andererseits verwandeln sich Organisationen, die als homogen angesehen werden, in zahlreiche Akteure mit unterschiedlichen Interessen. Verhandlungen sind im allgemeinen keine Auseinandersetzung um Argumente, sondern es geht um Interessen und Macht. Vertrauen kann es wegen der Machtbeziehungen und der zu ihrer Aufrechterhaltung notwendigen Ungewißheitszonen nur in eingeschränktem Maße geben und ist eher auf die mikrosoziale Ebene beschränkt, wo Strategien und Machtspiele eine geringere Rolle spielen. Zahlreiche Phänomene offenbaren sich erst durch die Aktion, darunter die Verhältnisse zwischen den Beteiligten, der soziale Bedarf und die Motive für die Zusammenarbeit. Die Integration zwischen Forschung und Beratung sowie die Zunahme von Interdisziplinarität kann nur durch die Auseinandersetzung vor Ort erreicht werden. Subjektive Faktoren, an erster Stelle Empathie, spielen eine entscheidende Rolle bei der Beratung, der Verhandlung und der Konfliktbehandlung. Die Erfahrungen aus den Fallstudien werden zu einem Vorschlag für einen kombinierten Forschungs- und Beratungsdienst aufgearbeitet. Dieser ordnet sich in die aktuellen Bemühungen um eine Neudefinition der Dienstleistungen für die bäuerliche Landwirtschaft ein, bei der die brasilianische Bundesregierung und die Bauernorganisationen Auseinandersetzungen und Dialoge um Veränderungen in der Agrarpolitik führen. / The cooperation among farmers, extensionists, researchers and their organisations to develop the rural areas in Brazil is in a crisis. Decisions as well as convincing proposals from the government are lacking about the future of the rural extension. The aim of this work is to contribute to the improvement of research and rural extension services in Brazil and also the cooperation among the actors in the rural areas. Partnership is introduced as a specific form of participation, in which organisations are the actors. Its impacts go beyond the micro social level to include the meso and the macro levels. Current approaches in Brazilian research and rural extension are analyzed first. Based on an understanding of their limits and possibilities, the opportunities for the introduction of new approaches are evaluated. Case studies on two participatory experiences in the Brazilian state of Pará are presented in this work: a research project with farmer groups in a partnership between a research organisation (LAET) and a farmer`s organisation (MPST), and the creation of a rural extension service (Lumiar). The fact that these studies are situated within the same context in the Transamazonian region facilitated the assessment of the various dimensions of participation and partnership, allowing the analysis of the research as well as the extension aspects. The case studies are discussed through key elements: attitude, motivation, ability, demand, power, organisations, conflicts, trust and negotiations. The results show that one of the biggest problems was the uncertainty about the type of partnership, which may take different forms: distant or close. The results of the dialogue between theory and practice, which were structured by the key elements, confirm the possibility of participatory work among different social worlds (farmers, researchers and extensionsts), whose main problem is the mediation between different interests. Only through the consideration of the organisational level can the actions of the actors be understood, which are characterized at this level by the growing need to protect uncertainty zones. The search for hegemony becomes relevant and the danger of disagreement grows. Power relations and conflicts are natural phenomena which the researcher and the extensionist have to learn to deal with. The actors´ freedom of action provides opportunities for the introduction of new approaches. However, it also limits its regulated implementation. Organisations, initially considered homogeneous, turn into many actors with diverse interests. In negotiations, arguments are less important than interests and power. Because of the power relations and the uncertainy zones, trust is only possible in a limited way. That is why it is more limited to the micro social level, in which the strategies and the power games play a minor role. Many phenomena only become apparent through action, such as the relationship between the stakeholders, their social needs and reasons for cooperation. The integration of research and extension, as well as an increase in interdisciplinarity can be achieved only through common action on the local level. Subjective factors, especially empathy, play a decisive role in advising, negotiation and conflict management. Based on the case studies, a proposal is presented for an integrated research and extension service. It can be part of the current efforts aimed at redefining services for smallholder agriculture, in which the Brazilian government and farmers` organisations are using confrontation and dialogue to achieve changes in the agrarian politics.

It is important that organisations are aware of factors that might affect the levels of well-being of employees, as employees are instrumental to the achievement of organisational goals. Well-being of employees can be conceptualised in terms of burnout and engagement. Studies have shown that different factors contribute to the employee experience of burnout and engagement. These factors include job demands and resources and psychological conditions (psychological meaningfulness, psychological availability and psychological safety). Although various studies regarding burnout and engagement can be found in literature, three research gaps have been identified from the studies. First, a reliable and valid instrument is needed to measure job demands and resources in a specific organisation. Second, given the cost of some measures of burnout, inadequacies in conceptualisation of the burnout construct and the inadequate psychometric properties of others, an inexpensive measure is needed which can be used to measure burnout in a valid and reliable way. Third, no studies seem to be found which focus on the effects of job demands and resources on burnout and engagement via specific psychological conditions (i.e. psychological meaningfulness, availability and safety). The general objective of this research therefore was to investigate the well-being of employees in a South African agricultural research organisation. It focused on job demands, job resources, burnout, work engagement and psychological conditions. The objective of the first study was to investigate the job demands and resources of employees in a South African agricultural research organisation. The study specifically examined the validity and reliability of a scale adapted to measure job demands and resources of the employees and established the prevalent job demands and resources of the employees. Differences that may exist based on the employees‟ demographic variables were also investigated. The aim of the second study was to provide an overview of current burnout measures that are used in the literature. From the literature, gaps were identified and used to develop a new Burnout Scale for use with employees within a South African agricultural research organisation. The research then examined the construct validity, reliability, construct equivalence and item bias of the newly-developed Burnout Scale. The research also investigated whether any differences in burnout existed in relation to the employees‟ demographic variables. The third study investigated the relationships between specific job demands, job resources, psychological conditions, burnout, and work engagement by testing a structural model of burnout and engagement in a sample of employees within a South African agricultural research organisation. The research method for each of the three articles consisted of a brief literature review and an empirical study. A non-probability availability sample of 443 agricultural employees was used. A cross-sectional design, with a survey as the data collection technique, was used. Measuring instruments that were utilised included an adapted Job Demands-Resources scale (AJDRS), a self-developed Burnout Scale (BS), a self-developed Work Engagement Scale (WES), an adapted Psychological Conditions Questionnaire (PCQ), and a biographical questionnaire. The statistical analyses were carried out with the help of the SPSS programme (IBM SPSS statistics, version 21) and MPLUS version 7.11 (Muthén, & Muthén 1998-2013). The statistical methods utilised in the three articles included descriptive statistics, Cronbach alpha coefficients, principal factor analysis, Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients, MANOVA, ANOVA, differential item functioning (DIF), and structural equation modelling. Evidence was established for the factorial validity and reliability of the AJDRS. The results indicate that the job demands experienced by employees in an agricultural research organisation are: overload and job insecurity; while job resources were: organisational support, growth opportunities, control, rewards, and physical resources (equipment). It was furthermore found that there were differences in the perceived job demands and resources of employees. In addition, the BS was found to consist of three reliable factors, i.e. fatigue, emotional exhaustion/withdrawal, and cognitive weariness. The results also showed construct equivalence for the Burnout construct, and no item bias for the language groups examined. Age was found to affect the level of perceived burnout of the employees. Furthermore, job resources (growth opportunities, control, and organisational support) were found to be positively associated with engagement, while lack of resources and job demands (overload) are positively associated with burnout of employees. Psychological meaningfulness, safety and availability are positively associated with work engagement, and negatively associated with burnout. The psychological conditions of availability, safety, and meaningfulness mediated the relationship between job resources and work engagement, as well as between lack of job resources and burnout. Psychological availability and meaningfulness mediated the relationship between job demands and burnout; however, the mediation effect of psychological safety on the relationship between job demands and burnout could not be established. Recommendations are made for practice, as well as future research. / PhD (Industrial Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

It is important that organisations are aware of factors that might affect the levels of well-being of employees, as employees are instrumental to the achievement of organisational goals. Well-being of employees can be conceptualised in terms of burnout and engagement. Studies have shown that different factors contribute to the employee experience of burnout and engagement. These factors include job demands and resources and psychological conditions (psychological meaningfulness, psychological availability and psychological safety). Although various studies regarding burnout and engagement can be found in literature, three research gaps have been identified from the studies. First, a reliable and valid instrument is needed to measure job demands and resources in a specific organisation. Second, given the cost of some measures of burnout, inadequacies in conceptualisation of the burnout construct and the inadequate psychometric properties of others, an inexpensive measure is needed which can be used to measure burnout in a valid and reliable way. Third, no studies seem to be found which focus on the effects of job demands and resources on burnout and engagement via specific psychological conditions (i.e. psychological meaningfulness, availability and safety). The general objective of this research therefore was to investigate the well-being of employees in a South African agricultural research organisation. It focused on job demands, job resources, burnout, work engagement and psychological conditions. The objective of the first study was to investigate the job demands and resources of employees in a South African agricultural research organisation. The study specifically examined the validity and reliability of a scale adapted to measure job demands and resources of the employees and established the prevalent job demands and resources of the employees. Differences that may exist based on the employees‟ demographic variables were also investigated. The aim of the second study was to provide an overview of current burnout measures that are used in the literature. From the literature, gaps were identified and used to develop a new Burnout Scale for use with employees within a South African agricultural research organisation. The research then examined the construct validity, reliability, construct equivalence and item bias of the newly-developed Burnout Scale. The research also investigated whether any differences in burnout existed in relation to the employees‟ demographic variables. The third study investigated the relationships between specific job demands, job resources, psychological conditions, burnout, and work engagement by testing a structural model of burnout and engagement in a sample of employees within a South African agricultural research organisation. The research method for each of the three articles consisted of a brief literature review and an empirical study. A non-probability availability sample of 443 agricultural employees was used. A cross-sectional design, with a survey as the data collection technique, was used. Measuring instruments that were utilised included an adapted Job Demands-Resources scale (AJDRS), a self-developed Burnout Scale (BS), a self-developed Work Engagement Scale (WES), an adapted Psychological Conditions Questionnaire (PCQ), and a biographical questionnaire. The statistical analyses were carried out with the help of the SPSS programme (IBM SPSS statistics, version 21) and MPLUS version 7.11 (Muthén, & Muthén 1998-2013). The statistical methods utilised in the three articles included descriptive statistics, Cronbach alpha coefficients, principal factor analysis, Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients, MANOVA, ANOVA, differential item functioning (DIF), and structural equation modelling. Evidence was established for the factorial validity and reliability of the AJDRS. The results indicate that the job demands experienced by employees in an agricultural research organisation are: overload and job insecurity; while job resources were: organisational support, growth opportunities, control, rewards, and physical resources (equipment). It was furthermore found that there were differences in the perceived job demands and resources of employees. In addition, the BS was found to consist of three reliable factors, i.e. fatigue, emotional exhaustion/withdrawal, and cognitive weariness. The results also showed construct equivalence for the Burnout construct, and no item bias for the language groups examined. Age was found to affect the level of perceived burnout of the employees. Furthermore, job resources (growth opportunities, control, and organisational support) were found to be positively associated with engagement, while lack of resources and job demands (overload) are positively associated with burnout of employees. Psychological meaningfulness, safety and availability are positively associated with work engagement, and negatively associated with burnout. The psychological conditions of availability, safety, and meaningfulness mediated the relationship between job resources and work engagement, as well as between lack of job resources and burnout. Psychological availability and meaningfulness mediated the relationship between job demands and burnout; however, the mediation effect of psychological safety on the relationship between job demands and burnout could not be established. Recommendations are made for practice, as well as future research. / PhD (Industrial Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014