Robert Lifran

Identifying social, economic and technical determinants of silvopastoral practices in temperate uplands: results of a survey in the Massif Central region of France

Silvopastoral farming practices as an answer to land and forest abandonment in disadvantaged areas have been suggested by forestry and agricultural development and research bodies in France, but such practices only occur on a limited area at present. To assess the feasibility of such silvopastoral techniques in a family farm context, a survey was conducted on silvopastoral systems in spontaneous Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) woods in the Lozere Departement in France. A sampling procedure and questionnaire was designed to characterise determinants of silvopastoral practices. In all 150 farms were visited. A typology of silvopastoral plot management was extracted from the survey. Inputs and outputs were characterised. Typologies of farms and households were also developed, characterised by land, labour, livestock, consumption and inheritance patterns. The management of woodland plots was similar across farms, but their importance to the whole family farm system differed. Woodlands were considered as a reserve of land, forage or liquidity for the long term, but their uses were limited by livestock farmers short-term technical and economic constraints. To induce development of silvicultural practices, both their short- and long-term effects must be carefully considered in relation to farmers differing objectives.

Anthropologie économique du patrimoine

Cet article traite des fondements anthropologiques des modeles neo-classiques de transmission du patrimoine. Constituee dentreprises familiales, lagriculture est particulierement concernee par les objectifs et les contraintes de laccumulation et de la transmission du patrimoine. Apres avoir souligne la difficulte a definir le patrimoine de facon autonome par rapport a lepargne et au capital, larticle examine les diverses formalisations des comportements altruistes produites notamment dans le cadre de lEconomie de la Famille. Lheritage est aussi presente dans certains modeles comme un moyen de paiement pour les services rendus par les heritiers potentiels, ou comme un residu resultant de lincertitude sur le moment de la mort. Dans leur etat actuel, ces modeles refletent le contexte sociologique qui a servi de support a leur elaboration. Les pratiques successorales, selon quelles integrent ou non le capital humain, ont des effets compensateurs ou de renforcement des inegalites entre enfants. La prise en compte du patrimoine recu par le conjoint introduit dans la recherche des pratiques optimales une difficulte tenant aux effets externes. En conclusion, lauteur souligne le caractere partiel des modeles proposes et les limites imposees par le postulat individualiste qui sous-tend la demarche neo-classique.