Profile1
Contents
- 1 AKT5: Knowledge Based Systems Approach and the Agroecological Knowledge Toolkit
- 1.1 Applications (why, when & where)
- 1.2
- 1.3 Brief description
- 1.4 Where in the project cycle is this useful?
- 1.5 Spatial scale
- 1.6
- 1.7
- 1.8 Extractive/non-extractive
- 1.9 Complexity
- 1.10 Outcomes
- 1.11
- 1.12 Strengths
- 1.13
- 1.14 Drawbacks
- 1.15 Illustrations
- 1.16 Issues
- 1.17 Resources
- 1.18 Origins and history
- 1.19 Conditions for use and dissemination
- 1.20 Contacts
- 1.21 Learn more about this topic
- 1.22 References
AKT5: Knowledge Based Systems Approach and the Agroecological Knowledge Toolkit
Applications (why, when & where)
The AKT5 system is primarily concerned with gathering local ecological knowledge. Local ecological knowledge refers to what people know about their natural environment, based primarily on their own experience and observation. Where management has a large impact on the natural resource base, it is useful to refer to it as agro-ecological knowledge, to emphasize the management component.
Brief description
The Agroecological Knowledge toolkit (AKT5) software was developed by the University of Wales, Bangor , in conjunction with the Department of Artificial Intelligence at Edinburgh University (Sinclair and Walker, 1998; Walker and Sinclair, 1998). It was designed to provide an environment for knowledge acquisition to create knowledge bases from a range of sources. It allows representation of knowledge elicited from farmers and scientists or knowledge abstracted from written material. The use of formal knowledge representation procedures offers researchers the ability to evaluate and use the often complex, qualitative information relevant stakeholders have on agroecological practices. The methodology associated with knowledge elicitation for the AKT5 system allows for formalized flexible knowledge bases to be created.
Where in the project cycle is this useful?
Spatial scale
- Iterative approach: no specific spatial scale
- Local knowledge: field level; on landscape processes; on aquatic systems
- Research ‘in’ development approach
Extractive/non-extractive
Complexity
Very complex.
For those applying the tool:
For participants:
Outcomes
- Research-for-development process
- AKT for diagnostic
Strengths
- Repeatable
- Values contributed knowledge
- Flexibility about intervention options
- Can start small and build up
Drawbacks
- May be difficult to scale
- Difficult to access
- Costly to populate
Illustrations
Issues
Resources
Time:
Human resources:
Costing:
Origins and history
Conditions for use and dissemination
None.
Contacts
Fergus Sinclair ICRAF [f.sinclair@cgiar.org]
Learn more about this topic
See AKT5 Reading Materials at [http:akt.bangor.ac.uk/References.php#sinc1| http:akt.bangor.ac.uk/References.php#sinc1]
Download the AKT5 Manual[[1]]
References
Sinclair, F.L. and Joshi, L. 2001. Taking local knowledge about trees seriously. In: A. Lawrence (ed) Forestry, forest users and research: new ways of learning. ETFRN, Wageningen, pp. 45-61
Sinclair, F.L. and Walker, D.H. 1998. Acquiring qualitative knowledge about complex agroecosystems. Part 1: Representation as natural language. Agricultural Systems, 56(3): 341-363.
