Important notes on this deliverable:

Desk research on the process of developing farming typologies reveals that there are certain key questions to ask when developing a typology. We have responded to each below.

1. What is the use and purpose of the typology?

   The inferred use and purpose of this typology is to help bring dairy farms into the safe and just operating space (SJOS), with regard to sustainability across 4 areas (financial, social, inspirational, and natural).

2. What is the method of data collection and typology development?

   The approach to typologising in this document is qualitative and participatory. Due to time constraints, statistical quantitative methods have not been applied. Yet, we believe that the findings and outcomes of the approach of WP4, would not be attainable from purely quantitative approaches. This deliverable is the product of co-creation with stakeholders in the bioregion since the inception of the ‘Activation Phase’ until now, including many in-person on-to-one interactions and workshops. The following typology has been iterated inline with the feedback of the stakeholders. The method was also complemented with desk research into methods and outcomes of farming typologies in agri-food projects, and academic research.

3. What is the regional and contextual applicability of the typology?

   The applicable region and context for this typology is two-fold. On a specific-level, it is drawn from and applicable to the Waterford bioregion, the boundaries of this workstream. On a general-level, it holds implications for an Irish national context, on the basis that the same bioregional weaving lab approach is adopted across the diverse bioregions within the country.

4. What is the aim of the typology?

   This typology aims to show that dairy farming types are complex and multi-factorial, and that we must acknowledge the out-of-farm context, by accounting for diversity across all levels from farm, landscape, community, economy, and political environment. We argue that a simple typology of 4-5 archetypes might be counterproductive, as it would reduce dairy farmers to shorthand ideas and ignore the context in which they are situated.

5. What policy relevance and implications does it hold?

   It shows the need for an Implementation Phase which includes instruments that are tailored to the unique ‘types’ within dairy farming. It is here that WP4 argues for and demonstrates the need for a Bioregional Weaving Lab, or similar infrastructure.