Abstract

Exaggerated and incompetent use of chemical pesticides in crop production can have adverse effects on human health, natural ecosystems and social capital. The potential impacts are interconnected and complicated, so the current scientific knowledge base of its understanding seems to be imperfect, and the degree of impacts could be much more; therefore the rationality of pesticide use in agriculture ought to be redefined. The paper highlights how disciplinary sciences professed and interpreted multifaceted impacts of pesticide use over time and it explores the opportunities arising from the complexities of such impacts. The opportunity is explored for Nepal as an example.

Key words: Pesticides, health and environmental impacts, complexities, interconnectedness, interdisciplinary, Nepal.