Community economy, community strengthening, the Nod Na Le way of life The purpose of this article is to investigate community strengthening through the economic dimension of community for sustainability in Sathing Phra District, Songkhla Province using the qualitative research method. Data were gathered from related literature and through observations and in-depth interviews with 22 core community economic leaders who had organized themselves to establish learning centers and groups of processed products producers. Data obtained from the in-depth interviews were categorized into study issues, interpreted, concluded and presented using analytical description. The study found three aspects of operating activities through the economic dimension in Tha Hin and Khukhut sub-districts as follows.
COMMUNITY STRENGTHENING THROUGH THE COMMUNITY ECONOMIC DIMENSION FOR SUSTAINABILITY IN SATHING PHRA DISTRICT, SONGKHLA PROVINCE1 Jedsarid Sangkapan sapichai@yahoo.com PhD Student in Doctor of Philosophy Program in Liberal Arts, Prince of Songkla University, Hatyai Campus Assoc.Prof.Dr.Chidchanok Chengchao Faculty of Education and Research Center for Educational Innovations and Teaching and Learning Excellence, Prince of Songkla University, Pattani Campus Assoc.Prof.Dr.Kasetchai Laeheem Faculty of Liberal Arts, Prince of Songkla University, Hatyai Campus Abstract The purpose of this article is to investigate community strengthening through the economic dimension of community for sustainability in Sathing Phra District, Songkhla Province using the qualitative research method Data were gathered from related literature and through observations and in-depth interviews with 22 core community economic leaders who had organized themselves to establish learning centers and groups of processed products producers Data obtained from the in-depth interviews were categorized into study issues, interpreted, concluded and presented using analytical description The study found three aspects of operating activities through the economic dimension in Tha Hin and Khukhut sub-districts as follows 1) Production activities: The communities have production systems that depend on natural resources under the Nod Na Le way of life consisting of rice farming, making palm sugar products, and fishing Furthermore, the communities have mixed farming in which plants are grown and animals are raised in the same areas 2) Group activities: The communities have Nod Na Le way of life learning centers, sufficiency economy learning centers, tourism clubs for preservation of the Nod Na Le way of life, and the processed products groups 3) Community economic activities: The communities have activities that promote morals They use compost fertilizers in farming and have fair agriculture water distribution that have resulted in production systems and natural food sources beneficial to the ecological system and wellbeing of the communities People have sufficient chemical-free food, which is in congruence with their eating culture, that would last for a long period of time These operating activities through the economic dimension would lead them to being strong and sustainable self-reliant communities according to the philosophy of sufficiency economy Keywords: Community economy, community strengthening, the Nod Na Le way of life This article is a part of PhD Thesis “Development of a Model for Strengthening Communities in Sathing Phra District, Songkhla Province”” 237 Introduction Recently, economic development had been managed by the government and all mechanisms of the economic development had also been controlled by the government Emphases had been placed on individualism, competition, and increases in efficiency and effectiveness without taking into account possible consequences In addition, management of fair benefits was missing Presently, the situation indicates that as a result of such development, the economy is without stability; the resource base is deteriorated causing social problems Thus, an alternative was sought so as to have more stable economy Consequently, the 11th National Economic and Social Development Plan placed emphases on balancing all dimensions, mobilizing towards integrated practice, developing people and society for social justice and equality, and opening opportunities for participation from all sectors (Office of the Economics and Social Development Board, 2011) At the same time, strengthening the community has become a social demand for people to consider their own roots and to raise awareness of love for their own community, for their friends as well as for the environment; and networking has become ties and cooperation for social development (Rodsin, 2011) Therefore, community strengthening is a way towards sustainable development Development strategies and methods would support and promote holistic activities for the community with a learning process and knowledge management participated by people in the community using the community‘s own resource capital and potential to produce enough for economically self-dependence Community economy is a relationship system of the resource bases (soil, water, forest, etc.), the production system, the consumption system, and capital management (monetary and non-monetary) using group activities to promote the learning process to develop potential or revive the environment, people, family, community and occupation to upgrade wellbeing and trading of the community for development of the quality of life However, community economy has been obscured by the mainstream economy Nevertheless, currently, community economy has been upgraded as an alternative for solving the critical problem faced by the country As economic development is a new alternative, social and environmental development needs to be taken into consideration in order to achieve the development goals (Barbier, 1987) Even though the emphasis is on economic self-reliance for the community, in the case of Sathing Phra District in Songkhla Province, especially in Tha Hin Sub-district and Khukhut Sub-district, in terms of community economy, their production systems still depend on natural resources and the environment in the Nod Na Le way of life Villagers rice farming, harvest palm sugar for production, and fishing Because people in these communities earn enough income to raise their families, not many of them migrate to work elsewhere They have formed groups to process products for sale, performed activities according to the philosophy of self-sufficiency economy, and established a one-baht-a-day savings group called Satcha Wan La Baht Group or a OneBaht-a Day Savings Group Their social relationships are that of kinship systems reflecting a community economy with social relationships, and the environment is the important element of their being self-reliant communities that can lead them to being strong 238 communities This phenomenon has prompted a question how local people of Tha Hin Subdistrict and Khukhut Sub-district in Sathing Phra District, Songkhla Province strengthen their communities through the community economic dimension for sustainability Research objective To investigate community strengthening through the community economic dimension sustainability Related concepts, theories and literature Community capital According to the livelihoods approach, community strengthening in the economic dimension requires a great deal of community capital (Kittithonkun et.al, 2014) consisting of human capital, social capital, physical capital, financial capital and natural capital Human capital refers to skills, knowledge and competency of individuals, who are core community leaders Social capital refers to social resources with three related aspects: 1) Networks and connectedness which is, vertically, the patronage system, horizontally, the connectedness between individuals who share benefits which increase trust and ability in working together; 2) Members of formal groups who adhere to the same regulations and penalties; and 3) Relationships based on trust, returns and exchanges contributing to cooperation Physical capital is infrastructure such as transportation, water sources, clean energy and information accessibility Financial capital plays an important role in promoting activities; without it, activities cannot be carried out Capitals can come from outside, savings operations or community business operations such as community stores, forming groups for agricultural products trading and agricultural production factors Community business is only a means to community economy and better quality of life for the community Last, natural capital is the source of natural resources which are needed for people to make their living There are many types of natural resources from common-pool resources which are invisible such as atmosphere, bio-diversity, resource preservation, natural resources management to properties which can be allocated directly for agricultural use such as trees and land Self-reliant community economy Important characteristics of community economy are that family is the production unit, labor of family members is most important as it is needed for family survival, family sufficiency and family self-reliance According to the concept of community economy, the community is dynamic and able to survive by itself and develop along with the capitalist system (Southern Activist Families, 2010) According to Wiraphatthananiran (1998, 1), self-reliant community economy refers to a desirable community economy that is economic activities in the agricultural sector, the industrial sector and the service sector in which people in the community join in thinking, doing, receiving benefits and owning it These economy activities are based on local potential to promote villagers in forming groups and creating the community organizational network for people in the community to participate in development, to use economic activities in construct learning and diverse occupations for people to choose from 239 Self-reliant community economy according to the sufficiency economy philosophy Office of the Economics and Social Development Board, Crown Property Bureau, Phattana Thai Foundation, and the World Bank (2003: 8-11) view that activities that make the community self-reliant and are in line with the sufficiency economy philosophy can be classified in three groups as follows 1) Production activities such as making bio-fertilizers, growing chemical-free vegetables and rice, growing medicinal herbs, making insect repellents and biochar, fish breeding, crop processing and mixed farming 2) Group forming activities for community members to activities together such as establishing savings groups, welfare fund groups, vegetables growing groups, snack and sweet making groups, community stores, community master map making groups, natural resource and environmental preservation groups, cooperation groups for doing activities in Buddhist temples, learning groups through community learning centers or schools, and anti-drug groups 3) Moral promotion activities such as activities to instill in community members caring for others rather than focusing on money or materials, activities to promote honest and transparent bookkeeping, activities to develop people in the community to have quality and awareness of commitment to the community, and activities to promote self-help before asking for help Research methodology For this qualitative research, the study areas were in Sathing Phra District, Songkhla Province, particularly, Tha Hin Sub-district and Khukhut Sub-district because the way of life among people in these areas is that they have production systems of growing rice, making palm sugar products, and fishing They can depend on natural resources and the environment of their communities Data were collected from related documents and field data were collected from observations and in-depth interviews with 22 informants who were core community economic leaders that had formed groups to establish learning centers and groups for other activities The data from in-depth interviews were analyzed by means of categorization, interpretation, and conclusion Then the results were presented with analytical description Research results 5.1 Production activities operations: Community economic dimension of Tha Hin Sub-district and Khukhut Sub-district Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra District, Songkhla Province has villages, a population of 3,998, and 1,147 households on the area of 9,768 Rai (Office of the Nonformal and Informal Education, Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra District, Songkhla Province, 2018) The production system in all villages in Tha Hin Sub-district depends on community natural capital as people in these areas rice farming, making palm sugar products and fishing This sub-district is adjacent to coast of the inner Songkhla Lake For agricultural activities, there are water sources which are Khlong Huai Lat, Khlong Tha Hin, Khlong Mirai, Khlong Phruan, Khlong Soko.Socho., and Khlong Phon-ek Athit Kamlang-ek These water sources make it possible for people to rice farming all year round Due to support and promotion by government organizations and non-government organizations in production that compliment community resources and environment, villagers in this area have tried to turn to production activities employing the self- 240 dependent community principles by being economical, increasing income and reducing expenses The have turned to mixed farming planting fruit trees like banana, papaya, and coconut which enable them to have enough for year-round consumption They raise native cattle, layer chickens, layer ducks, frogs and pigs (called Mu Lum-a pig raising method) for family consumption and sale in the community Some people form groups to make organic fertilizers and use in rice, fruit and vegetable farming Nevertheless, in their mixed farming, they also use rice breeds from other areas and use chemical fertilizers because they still need to depend on the marketing mechanism (Aunt Maeo, Uncle Mi and Grandma Som, personal communication, December 20, 2017) Consequently, they grow Khao Hom Pathum, Khao Riceberry, and Khao Sangyot, popular rice breeds for health, to add value and nutritional value to their products Regarding Khukhut Sub-district, it is located in Songkhla Lake area with an area of 7,825 Rai where villages are situated with a population of 4,763 and 1,403 households; 95 percent of the populations are Buddhists and percent Muslims Houses are built on the coast of Songkhla Lake (Tambon Khukhut Administration Organization, 2018) The study found that most people in Khukhut rice farming, making sugar palm related products, and fishing Economically, most households have low income and they try to adapt themselves by following the concepts of sufficiency economy They try to be economical, increase income, and reduce expenses They increase their income by doing more farming in the same area and try to other things such as selling snacks, growing vegetables and raising animals for sale (Grandma Mai, Aunt Lamai, and Teacher Prani, personal communication, December 21, 2018) Furthermore, it was found that villagers have adapted their way of production using more machines to replace human labor Most farmers use chemical fertilizers instead of manure or organic fertilizers, and use insecticides or chemicals to control other pests instead of traditional methods used by their ancestors This has incurred more expenses which is not cost effective and increases debts resulting in some farmers eventually losing their agricultural land However, many farmers get together to form cooperatives, farmers groups, and housewives groups to help each other in doing mixed agriculture, oil palm plantations and rubber plantations (Somphong, Bang Thoet and Suphaphon, personal communication, December 22, 2018) 5.2 Group forming activities operations: Community economic dimension of Tha Hin Sub-district and Khukhut Sub-district In Tha Hin Sub-district, people have formed groups of housewives to make artificial funeral flowers and wreaths and share income and benefits among group members and allocate part of it for the groups In 2001, a Nod Na Le eco-tourism club was established followed by palm sugar processed products groups in 2010 with the help from Thaksin University and Prince of Songkla University in conducting research related to properties of sugar palm texture that is used in making soap while Rajamangala University provides help related to packaging innovation During 2013-2015, students came to the Nod Na Le Learning Center to learn the way of Nod Na Le from group members who gave them knowledge about using resources 241 as bases for various products such as bases for rice growing, palm sugar harvesting, dessert making, lump sugar making, and soap making They have a Nod Na Le Eco-tourism Club in Tha Hin Sub-district (Aunt Lom, personal communication, December 5, 2017) In addition, they have native cattle raising group, community enterprise group, organic fertilizer group, native chicken raising group, native snack and sweet making group, salted eggs group, ripe sugar palm group, sun-dried banana group, and anchovy group called Sathing Phra Peninsula Sufficiency Economy Community Enterprise with Mr Somchai Monkhonbut as group chairman, and it has been a sufficiency economy learning center of Village (Somchai, personal communication, December 6, 2017) Assistant village headman of Village 3, Suchat Makchuchit is chairman of the chicken raising group, native cattle raising group, and Songkhla Lake fishing group For Villages 4, and 6, Phunsap Srichu is chairperson Regarding group forming in Tha Hin Sub-district, group committees, rules and regulations, and benefit sharing are established which help villagers to have working capital They have also formed a One-baht-a-day Satcha savings group which provides welfare for members for funerals, sickness, loans for occupations such as for the cattle raising group (Grandma Da, Suchat, Suthiphong and Aunt Chaem, personal communication, December 10, 2017) For Khukhut Sub-district, most of the groups are related to the Nod Na Le way of life, fishing occupation and the local wisdom preservation group The integrated rice farmers in Village has Khru Prani or Teacher Prani as chairperson who formed a soap making group, layer ducks raising groups, and a rice farming group based on local wisdom There are also groups related to social welfare like a one-baht-a day Satcha savings group, a savings group, and cattle raising group from which members can borrow money to invest in occupations or to buy cattle for farming Another group is the sugar palm fruits with Mrs Mala Phanitchakorn as chairperson (Mala and Khru Prani, personal communication, December 20, 2017) Villagers who are members of the groups that produce community products sell their products in fairs and festivals For group members, market promotion is carried out; information and knowledge is provided, and negotiation is initiated Integrated rice farming group and local wise men have adopted the philosophy of sufficiency economy conceived and developed by the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej and applied in their daily life The community learning center of Ban Don Khan Tai in Village and the community enterprise for health-loving group in Khukhut Sub-district have Khru Prani Manidun as chairperson and Mrs Prani Nusong as secretary with an office located at No 33 Village The activities carried out by the groups include raising layer ducks using food from natural sources for good health of the community At the Sub-district headman‘s place, native and other breeds of chickens are raised (Saowarot, Om and Prani, personal communication, December 22, 2017) 5.3 Moral promotion activities operations: Community economic dimension of Tha Hin Sub-district and Khukhut Sub-district For, the community production systems in Tha Hin Sub-district and Khukhut Subdistrict, bio-fertilizers are used in rice farming and mixed farming As a result, the 242 ecological system of these communities could sustainably provide and allocate resources in relation to the production way of the communities They have mangrove conservation, and water conservation for production and sustainability and self-reliance They have fair water allocation for rice farming through canals and dams in their communities which contributes to the production systems and natural food sources that benefit the ecological system and wellbeing among local people Furthermore, this provides sufficient toxic-free food that corresponds with the community way of food consumption culture in the long run and they can exchange knowledge with other communities for development in the future In addition, the chairman has advised villagers to grow rice berry and Sangyot rice, and promised to buy these types of rice after harvested which help the community to grow environmentally-friendly rice that is good for health (Suphawadi, personal communication, January 5, 2018) Furthermore, it was found that the two sub-districts had established centers for sufficiency economy and new theory of principle agricultural land management At these centers, government organizations such as Tambon Administrative Organizations, Nonformal Education Centers, District Agriculture Office, and District Development Office play an important role in providing people knowledge in applying the principles of sufficiency economy and new theory agriculture in the actual situation For example, in deciding what type of plant to grow, suitability of the area and whether it is promoted need to be considered together with the sufficiency principle to obtain suitable crops With regard to earnings, mixed farming has been introduced as economic immunity because growing plants and raising animals in the same area can earn farmers income that compensate each type of crops Farmers can seek knowledge from related government organizations For example, agricultural technology of the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives has made people realize that they need to conduct their occupation with moral, honesty, perseverance, and using their intelligence in living and working together with unity (Bunchok and Suni, personal communication, January 6, 2018) Conclusion The study on community strengthening through the community economy for sustainability in the study areas found that in the production system people help each other as self-reliant community economy depending on natural capital using the Nod Na Le production system Community development employs local wisdom, which is human capital, in rice farming, making sugar palm related products and fishing Local people in the communities form groups to extended activities such as Satcha savings groups, sufficiency economy learning centers, and homestay tourism groups These groups are managed by the communities to earn income for families and to provide knowledge for students and other communities, which are considered transfer and dissemination of community wisdoms, so that these wisdoms continue to exist and to be extensively inherited Community reputation gained by doing this would enable the communities to exist with self-reliance and to strengthen the communities at the same time Community adaptation in the economic system for trade and products distribution with community markets are considered as food distribution for the communities and as application of 243 social capital in strengthening the communities through social interactions Moreover, the kinship and the patronage systems in the communities contribute to making the economic operations in a more caring way References Barbier, E.B (1987).The Concept of Sustainable Economic Development Environmental Conservation, 14, 110-116 Kittithonkun, Y., Phuwacharoenphong, S., Uttama, W & Chungchukaeo, Y (2014) Knowledge management on increasing coastal community capacity for climate change adaptation (INCA) Songkhla: Marine and Coastal Resources Institute, Prince of Songkla University Office of the National Economics and Social Development Board, Crown Property Bureau, Phattana Thai Foundation & World Bank (2003) Application of the philosophy of sufficiency economy Bangkok: Office of the National Economics and Social Development Board Office of the National Economics and Social Development Board (2011) The th 11 National Economic and Social Development Plan Bangkok: Office of the National Economics and Social Development Board Office of the Non-formal and Informal Education, Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra District, Songkhla Province (2018) Basic information on Tha Hin Sub-district Retrieved January 6, 2018 from http://sk.nfe.go.th/ stp03/index.php Rodsin, S (2011) Strong community: A case study of Ban Bang Champi, Huaikaeo Sub-district, Mae-on District, Chiang Mai Province (Master‘s thesis) Silpakorn University, Bangkok Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (2012) Concepts of sufficiency economy Nonthaburi: Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University Retrieved January 20, 2018 from http://www.stou.ac.th/stouonline/ lom/data/sec/Alternative/01-01-01.html Southern family activists (2010) Community economy: The framework Retrieved January 25, 2018 from http://oknation.nationtv.tv/blog/Southern FamilyActivists Tambon Khukhut Administrative Organization (2018) General information on Khukhut Sub-district Retrieved January 20, 2018 from http://www.kukud.go.th/content/ information 10 Wiraphtthananiran, P (1998) Community economy: Meaning, thoughts and practice Bangkok: Phalang Wet and Chumchon Foundation Interviewees Aunt Chaem, Personal interview December 10, 2017 Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province Aunt Lamai, December 21, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province Aunt Lom, December 5, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 244 Aunt Maeo, December 20, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province Bang Thoet, December 22,2017 Personal interview Khukhut Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province Bunchok, January 6, 2018 Personal interview Khukhut Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province Grandma Da, December 10, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province Grandma Mai, December 21, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province Grandma Som, December 20, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 10 Khru Prani, December 20-21, 2017 Personal interview Khukhut Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 11 Mala, December 20, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 12 Om, December 22, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 13 Prani, December 22, 2017 Personal interview Khukhut Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 14 Saowarot, December 22, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 15 Somchai, December 6, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 16 Somphong, December 22, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 17 Suchat, December 10, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 18 Suni, January 6, 2018 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 19 Suphaphon, December 22, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 20 Suphawadi, January 5, 2018 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 21 Suthiphong, December 10, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 22 Uncle Mi, December 20, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub-district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 245 ... strengthen their communities through the community economic dimension for sustainability Research objective To investigate community strengthening through the community economic dimension sustainability. .. 21, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub -district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province Aunt Lom, December 5, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub -district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 244 Aunt Maeo,... 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub -district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province Grandma Som, December 20, 2017 Personal interview Tha Hin Sub -district, Sathing Phra, Songkhla Province 10 Khru Prani,