Are Friendly Farmers Environmentally Friendly? Environmental Awareness as a Social Capital Outcome

Abstract

This paper examines the hypothesis that social capital at the individual level affects environmentally friendly practices. Social capital represents the social connectedness of the individual. An individual with higher social capital is likely to be more socially responsible. They are also more likely to have better exposure and access to information about the importance of environmentally friendly practices. Using associational activities as the measure of social capital we study agricultural practices among Georgia farmers. Our findings showed that, first, social capital had a positive effect on the decision to adopt environmentally friendly agricultural practices, and secondly, that social capital also had a positive effect on the extent to which farmers adopt these practices. These findings establish an additional dimension to the benefits that would accrue to policies that promote social interaction and civic engagement in rural areas associated with farming.

Keywords: Social capital, membership, environmentally friendly agriculture, endogenous regressors

JEL Classification: Z13, Q2, N5