Agriculture as Agri-Culture for the 21st-Century Taiwan

本文主旨在論述農業的文化性質，全文分四節，第一節旨在闡明農業的非經濟性的文化意義，第二節旨在論述農業文化對農村社區發展的貢獻及其整合意義，第三節進一步扣緊農業文化之特質，提出「由下而上」的促進農村發展的策略，第四節是結論，重點在指出二十一世紀的後現代社會的臺灣，應重視並發揚農業文化的涵義。本文提出一種邁向二十一世紀的新農業觀：將農業視為一種文化產業與生命產業。這新農業觀必然創造一種新的農村文化－以「人」為主體，進而從「人」的自我覺醒而與自然環境達成一種和諧與協調，使人浸潤在對自然的孺慕之中。這樣的農村文化必然洋溢著人文精神，是未來臺灣鄉村社區發展最重要的資源。本文並建議以新農業文化作為未來臺灣農村社區發展的基礎。本文提出鄉村社區發展必須注重整體性與整合性。本文之所以強調鄉村社區建設的整體性與整合性，乃是因為只有如此才能與以追求人與生態環境再獲平衡的新農業文化互相契合，兩蒙其利。“Agriculture” ought to mean not just agricultural production, because the task of "agriculture" involves much more than economical and mechanical aspects of agri-produce; it covers the human, cultural dimensions of farming people, optimizing their communal awareness, their mental and physical health, and their various enormous contributions to the environmental appreciation and protection. Agriculture is agri-culture. Section One of this paper proposes and explains this definitional point. Section Two considers how this view of agriculture as “culture” contributes to the development of farming communities and enhancing their integrities. Section Three proposes three concrete populist strategies to implement this vision. Conclusion concerns the homo-cosmic significance of how such postmodern Agri-cultural Revolution improves the entire Taiwan society towards the twenty-first century