Applying resilience in practice for more sustainable agriculture

– Lessons learned from organic farming and other agroecological approaches in Brazil, Ethiopia, Kenya, the Philippines, Sweden and Uganda

P O L I C Y B R I E F

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Authors: André Gonçalves, Karin Höök, Fredrik MobergGraphics and layout: Jerker Lokrantz/Azote

ISBN: 978-91-558-0190-8

Produced with financial support from the Swedish Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation. Sida has not participated in the production of the publication and is not responsible for the content.

This policy brief is intended to highlight the importance of resilience thinking for policymakers and other stakeholders working in the fields of sustainable agriculture and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

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” A policy brief commissioned by the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (SSNC) with contributions from Brazil/Centro Ecologico, Ethiopia/Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD), the Philippines/Farmer-Scientist Partnership for Development (MASIPAG), Kenya/Biovision Africa Trust (BvAT), Kenya/Participatory Ecological Land Use Management Kenya (PELUM Kenya), Uganda/National Organic Agriculture Movement of Uganda (NOGAMU), and Uganda/Participatory Ecological Land Use Management Uganda (PELUM Uganda).

André Goncalves is a Brazilian agronomist and member of Centro Ecologico. He has over 25 years of experience working directly on rural development issues with small-scale farmers and grassroots organisations in Brazil. One of his main accomplishments was the organisation of several Ecological Farmers´ Associations in southern Brazil, consolidating and increasing the number of organic farmers. André has a PhD in Natural Resources from Cornell University and has a Master´s degree in Sustainable Agriculture from the University of London.

Karin Höök works as senior consultant and expert in agriculture and environment at NIRAS Sweden. Her background is as director for the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences where she also worked as researcher and lecturer. She has worked as Academy Agronomist at the Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture and she has been Head of the International Department at the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation as well as senior expert for global agriculture and food security, working with NGOs in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Among other things she has also been a board member of the Swedish Food Administration, SwedWatch and SIANI, member of the Swedish FAO committee and member of the African Union´s Continental Steering Committee for development of ecological, organic agriculture (EOA-I) in Africa and worked as consultant in Brussels.

Fredrik Moberg is the Director of Albaeco, an independent organisation communicating the latest in sustainability science with a focus on nature’s importance to society and the economy. He also works for Stockholm Resilience Centre as a researcher and communications advisor. He holds a PhD in natural resources management from the Department of Systems Ecology at Stockholm University. His research deals with biological diversity, ecosystem services and resilience of social-ecological systems.

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1. Introduction

2. Resilience in practice

3. How resilience relates to other concepts and the Global Goals

4. Methods in agriculture leading to increased resilience

5. Good examples • Brazil• Ethiopia• Kenya• the Philippines• Sweden• Uganda

6. Scaling up

7. Conclusions

8. The way forward - recommendations

9. References

Content

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This policy brief looks at how resilience thinking can be combined with agroecological approaches to secure the long term availability of healthy and nutritious food for all, while simultaneously decreasing the harm that agriculture causes to the planet’s climate and ecosystems. All this is of course linked to how agriculture can best contribute to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. In particular, this policy brief highlights a number of cases from around the world where innovative agroecological farmers and organizations have applied resilience thinking in practice to cope with challenges like climate change, water scarcity and market volatility.

Today’s agriculture may produce enough food globally, but it has not given everyone access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food. Moreover, global agriculture has contributed to the crossing of crucial planetary boundaries and to misuse of natural resources (e.g. Foley and others, 2011). Consequently, a growing number of international studies and assessments (Altieri et al. 2015; IAASTD and McIntyre, 2009; De Schutter, 2010; UNCTAD, 2013; FAO, 2015) have stressed that it is high time to devote more attention, public funds and policy measures to the agroecological approach and to support more resilient (see box below) production systems.

This policy brief is based on a longer report (Gonçalves and others, 2017), which in its turn is based on a series of workshops and field visits together with the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation’s (SSNC) partner organisations. Both the longer report and this policy brief focus on how innovative farmers and organizations have been using agroecological approaches, like organic farming and ecological agriculture, to cope with the challenges of climate change, but also other disturbances, such as degradation of soils, pests outbreaks, chemical pollution and escalating prices of external inputs, are included in the analysis. In addition, the report and policy brief also explore some critical issues related to rural development and the whole food system, such as women empowerment, crop diversity, income generation, marketing, and farmers organisations and youth engagement.

Resilience thinking more important than everMillions of people, particularly small-scale farmers in low and middle-income countries, depend directly on agricultural activities to make their living. In Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and South and East Asia, more than 70% of food calories for human consumption are produced by such smallholder systems, particularly by holdings of less than 5 hectares of land (Samberg et al., 2016). Most of these smallholders, if not all, are vulnerable to the accelerating uncertainties of climate change and other disturbances. Climate change impacts are expected in the short- and medium-term (through 2030), and will directly affect food security and rural incomes, particularly in susceptible areas such as the semi-arid regions (Pachauri et al., 2015). It is believed that these challenges will disproportionately affect vulnerable populations, such as the rural poor, households headed by women and those with limited access to land, education, health or infrastructure (Pachauri et al., 2015).

In this new context, the design and implementation of resilient agricultural production systems – ones that are particularly adaptable and persistent despite the negative effects of global warming and other perturbations – will be increasingly important. Adopting an agroecological production approach (see box) has proven to be a good

Resilience

Resilience is the long-term capacity of a given system to deal with change or disturbance and still retain its basic function and structure - while continuing to develop. For an ecosystem such as a forest, this can involve dealing with storms, fires and pollution, while for a society it involves the ability to deal with political uncertainty or natural disasters in a way that is sustainable in the long-term. For an agricultural system, resilience involves an

ability to deal with everything from climate change and pest outbreaks to changes in agricultural policy. Resilience therefore comprises the ability of systems to withstand stress and to restore essential functions afterwards. In the long term this requires an ability for adaptation and self-renewal. Increased knowledge of how to strengthen resilience in society and nature is becoming increasingly important in coping with the stresses caused by climate change and other environmental impacts.

Source: Stockholm Resilience Centre; Lundberg and Moberg 2008.

1. Introduction

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strategy in this respect, as it involves a number of methods (see further in section 4) that can strengthen resilience and the capacity to cope with the challenges of climate change (e.g. IAASTD 2009; UNCTAD, 2013; FAO, 2015; Altieri et al. 2015). Restructuring marketing systems, emphasizing local and regional markets and strengthening social organisations (associations, cooperatives and networks) have also proven to be fundamental components of promoting resilient social-ecological landscapes and reducing the vulnerability of the rural poor (Altieri et al., 2015).

It is important to note that agroecology is a scientific approach to sustainable agriculture, not a certification scheme such as EU-organic or IFOAM organics. The approach differs from the labeling systems as it does not necessarily completely exclude the use of mineral fertilizers and chemical pesticides, although the goal is to minimise or preclude the use of all fossil fuels and chemical inputs.

Concerned with the importance of agroecology in promoting resilient systems, FAO has recently launched an Agroecology Knowledge Hub with the objective “to support policy-makers, farmers, researchers and other relevant stakeholders through knowledge exchange and knowledge transfer” (FAO, 2017b). FAO is also planning to increase its workforce within the area of agroecology.

The agroecological cases presented in this brief are all examples of how certified organic farming and ecological agriculture can improve both farm revenues and household income while strengthening resilience.

Smallholder farmers

Agroecology

Smallholder farmers can be defined in many ways, but the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) criterion of farmers who cultivate plots from less than one hectare to 10 hectares is one of the most widely used definitions (FAO, 2012). While this definition covers mainly crop

Agroecology has been defined as the “ecology of the food system”. It has the explicit goal of transforming food systems towards sustainability, such that there is a balance between ecological soundness, economic viability and social justice. To achieve this, change is needed in all parts of the food system, from the seed and the soil, to the table. Those who grow, eat, sell and transport food must all be connected in a social movement that honours the deep relationship between culture and the environment that created agriculture in the first place. Our current globalized and industrialized food system does not provide convincing evidence that it is sustainable in any of the three aspects of sustainability (economic, social or environmental). With a deep understanding of what a holistic, ecological view of the food system can be, the change needed to restore sustainability in food systems can happen. Hence, both conventional and organic farms can benefit from an agroecological approach. (Adapted from Gliessman, 2007, IAASTD 2009, and FAO 2015).

growers, for purposes of this policy brief the term will also be taken to include small-scale, family-run livestock farms as well as pastoralists. Small-scale family farming is another common term, which means different things depending on the size of the area required to support a family. In the Brazilian Amazon region, for example, family farms can be as large as 400 hectares.

The four Principles of Organic Agriculture established by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) in 2005 are important for the agroecological approach (IFOAM, 2017). The principles are aspirations for organic farming and include: The Principle of Health – to sustain and enhance the health of soil, plant, animal and human as one and indivisible; The Principle of Ecology – to base agriculture on living ecological systems and cycles, work with them, emulate them and help sustain them; The Principle of Fairness – to ensure fairness with regard to the common environment and life opportunities; and The Principle of Care – to manage agriculture in a precautionary and responsible manner to protect the health and well being of current and future generations and the environment.

One important aspect of resilience for agriculture is connectivity, e.g. access to markets, like this one in Torres, Brazil. Photo: Karin Höök.

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One increasingly popular approach to analysing resilience and putting it into practice is the seven key principles for building resilience, presented in the book Principles for Building Resilience: Sustaining Ecosystem Services in Social-Ecological Systems (Biggs et al., 2015). The seven principles are: 1) maintain diversity and redundancy; (2) manage connectivity; (3) manage slow variables and feedbacks; (4) foster complex adaptive systems thinking; (5) encourage learning; (6) broaden participation and; (7) promote polycentric governance (see below for details). This policy brief presents results from Gonçalves and others (2017) comparing different agroecological initiatives in (and practical experience from) Ethiopia, Brazil, Kenya and Uganda. Examples from the Philippines and Sweden are also included for comparison.

The cases presented in this brief are based on field visits to farms and farming systems in the different countries, including observing the production methods, talking to farmers to understand the difficulties and advantages of adopting agroecological production methods, and afterwards matching the results with the seven resilience principles. The strategy to assess resilience was, therefore, descriptive, based on observations and comparisons that assess whether or not the production systems that were studied exhibit characteristics that promote and encourage the seven resilience principles.

In addition, by referencing previous studies, as well as collecting information directly from smallholders adopting agroecological methods, this policy brief intends to inspire different stakeholders, in these countries and beyond, to discover the resilience perspective.

The seven principles for resilience

4. Foster complex adaptive systems thinkingResearch has shown that a management approach that is based on ‘complex adaptive systems (CAS) thinking’ can enhance the resilience of social-ecological systems. Important aspects of this thinking in agriculture are strategies to deal with uncertainties, experimentation with different crop varieties and looking for early warning signals to avoid abrupt and negative threshold effects.

2. Manage connectivityHigh levels of connectivity can facilitate the recovery of landscapes and other ecosystems after a disturbance (like a storm or a drought) but highly connected systems can also spread disturbances faster. For agriculture connectivity can be about access to markets or, for example, vicinity to the habitats of pollinators and the natural enemies of pests. Managing the agricultural landscape to recycle nutrients and organic matter from one field or pasture to another is also an important aspect of connectivity.

3. Manage slow variables and feedbacksSlow variables include land use patterns or forest cover, both of which influence the access to water and firewood. Access to or depletion of such resources can strengthen or reduce the capacity of an individual or community to deal with other shocks. For an agricultural system slow variables are things like organic content of soils and the presence of old trees. Important feedbacks include the relationship between investmenst in crop diversity, resilience to disturbances and secured farmer incomes.

1. Maintain diversity and redundancy Species, landscape types, knowledge systems, actors, cultural groups or institutions all have different strategies for responding to change and dealing with uncertainty and surprise. A farmer who cultivates several crops, for example, can benefit from a more diverse diet, and/or has different marketing strategies, and is promoting diversity, when compared with one who cultivates a monoculture and has a single commercialization channel.

2. Resilience in practice

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5. Encourage learning and experimentationEfforts to enhance the resilience of social-ecological systems must be supported by continuous learning and experimentation. For agriculture, learning and experimentation through adaptive and collaborative management is an important mechanism for building resilience. It ensures that different types and sources of knowledge are valued and considered when developing solutions, and leads to greater willingness to experiment and take risks.

6. Broaden participationParticipation through active engagement of all relevant stakeholders is considered fundamental to building social-ecological resilience. It helps build the trust and relationships needed to improve legitimacy of knowledge and authority during decision-making processes. If a variety of people participate, from a diversity of backgrounds and perspectives, it can uncover perspectives that may not emerge through more traditional scientific processes.

7. Promote polycentric governance systemsPolycentricity, a governance system in which multiple governing bodies interact, to make and enforce rules within a specific policy arena or location, is considered to be one of the best ways to achieve collective action in the face of disturbance and change. Another reason why polycentric governance tends to be well suited for agricultural systems and ecosystem services is that it more often opens up for local and experience-based knowledge to be considered.

Photos: Karin Höök (photos 1, 3, 4) and MASIPAG (photo 2)

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Many different terms and approaches have been suggested for a more sustainable agricultural development around the world. Organic farming, ecological agriculture, biological agriculture, permaculture, natural farming, and regenerative agriculture, are some of the concepts that have been used over the years. Common themes of these various approaches is the focus on a type of agriculture that is based more on biodiversity and ecosystem services than monocultures, fossil fuels and chemical inputs. FAO defines sustainable agriculture as that which conserves land, water, and plant and animal genetic resources, does not degrade the environment and is economically viable and socially acceptable (FAO 2015).

Recently many such efforts have also been reframed to show how they relate to The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). “A profound change of the global food and agriculture system is needed if we are to nourish today’s 795 million hungry and the additional 2 billion people expected by 2050” (UN, 2017). Or as FAO puts it: “The SDGs will

shape national development plans over the next 15 years. From ending poverty and hunger to

responding to climate change and sustaining our natural resources,

food and agriculture lies at the heart of the 2030 Agenda

(FAO, 2017c)”

3. How resilience relates to other concepts and the Global Goals

Figure 1: Biodiversity provides the basis for Earth’s natural life-support systems, delivering a resilient flow of ecosystem services on which we all depend, such as food, water purification, and climate regulation, and relevant for the achievement of all SDGs. Illustration: J. Lokrantz/Azote for SwedBio/SRC, 2016

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Some of the many terms and expressions for more sustainable food production are not that new, and refer to different initiatives with particular methods and approaches. A more broadly encompassing term, agroecology, (and by extension, the agroecological approach), applies ecological principles to agricultural production systems (Gliessman, 1998). The concept concerns social, economic, cultural, and environmental improvements, especially for small-scale farmers. Agroecology focuses on sustainability of the larger food system and its associated values such as food security, women empowerment, biodiversity enhancement, healthy diets, ecosystem services, sustainable rural development, etc., contrary to high-input industrialised monocropping agriculture with its singular focus on increased yields and the negative side-effects it brings.

deClerck and others (2016) suggest different ways to operationalize ecosystem services and resilience-based interventions in agricultural landscapes. They conclude that enhancing ecosystem services and improving the resilience of agricultural systems to climatic variability, extreme weather events, pest outbreaks, market volatility, institutional changes and other stressors is critical to the achievement of a range of the SDGs. This includes several ecosystem services central to food production (SDG 2), like pollination, pest control and soil nutrient cycling. It also includes nutritious food (SDG 3), fuel (SDG 7), regulating of water flows (SDG 6) and carbon sequestration (SDG 13). Not to mention providing security from natural hazards, climate change mitigation, spiritual and recreational values, and habitat for both wild and functional biodiversity (SDG 14 & 15). This kind of thinking is neatly visualised in Figure 2 from the ‘TEEB for Agriculture & Food’ (TEEB, 2015) study, which shows how biodiversity and key ecosystem services deliver benefits to the agricultural sector and beyond, including human health, livelihoods and well-being. Moreover, Schultz and others (2016) argue that the biodiversity, ecosystem services and resilience is relevant to achieving all the SDGs (see figure 1).

Along the same lines, Stockholm Resilience Centre has proposed a new way of viewing the economic, social and ecological aspects of the SDGs. The resulting conceptual figure (see figure 3) divides the 17 SDGs in a way that illustrates that the goals associated with our economies and societies are embedded parts of the planet’s biosphere (represented in the figure by Goals 6 on freshwater, 13 on climate, 14 on oceans, and 15 on biodiversity).

This figure changes our paradigm for development, moving away from the current sectoral approach where social, economic, and ecological development are seen as separate parts. It calls for a transition toward a world logic where the economy should serve society so that it evolves within the safe boundaries of the planet’s climate and ecosystems.

Figure 2: The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEBAgriFood) framework for capturing the visible and invisible costs and benefits of agricultural and food systems on both ecosystems and human systems (TEEB 2015).

Figure 3: The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) divided in a way that clearly illustrates that the goals associated with our economies and societies are embedded parts of the planet’s biosphere. Illustration: J. Lokrantz/Azote for SRC, 2016

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All the cases presented in this policy brief are based on agroecological approaches and methods which hold many of the keys to testing and implementing practical, local and appropriate solutions that are more sustainable and build resilience.

As a systemic approach, agroecology also deals with the multifunctional dimensions of agriculture: food and fiber production, food security, health benefits, job security, social and economic justice, culture, and community resilience. It also includes important ecosystem services such as erosion control, carbon sequestration, pollinator protection, biodiversity conservation, water and nutrient cycling (nothing wasted, everything transformed), air and water quality (IAASTD, 2009; de Schutter, 2010; FAO, 2015).

Agroecology is however not a one-size-fits-all solution, it is about finding methods that take the local socio-economic

and ecological conditions into consideration. Overall, this implies a greater degree of production based on diversity, local inputs and ecosystem services instead of monocultures and non-renewable resources, like fossil fuels for production of chemical pesticides and fertilizers. More specifically the agroecological approach includes a number of methods, like diversification of crops, conservation tillage, integrated crop-livestock systems, using green manures, natural nitrogen fixation, biological pest control, rainwater harvesting, as well as local knowledge, empowerment and socio-economic regulations (see the infographic below, adopted from SIANI, 2015). Women play a vital role in agriculture and they remain one of the most vulnerable groups. As a result agroecological and resilient building approaches must include a gendered perspective. The cases presented in the next sections highlight how the agroecological approach and other methods relate to the seven principles of resilience, and help strengthen long-term sustainability.

4. Agroecological approaches and resilience

Figure 4: Infographic showing different agroecological methods. Illustration: J. Lokrantz/Azote (SIANI, 2015).

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5. Good examples

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Brazil – from agroforestry to unique participatory certification systemIn the last few years Brazil has promoted several initiatives to expand organic agriculture and to support small-scale farmers. These efforts are contributing to resilience in many different ways. One key organisation in this context is the Ecovida Agroecology Network.

Despite the major role played by the agribusiness sector in the Brazilian economy, particularly in exporting agricultural commodities, family agriculture is of critical importance for rural development and national food security.

These families participate in several “sub-networks” in their communities, exponentially increasing the influence and spread of the Ecovida Agroecolgy Network. The network is based on a number of principles that include: (i) the implementation of agroecology as a basis for sustainable development; (ii) the preservation of typical local or regional products; (iii) the strengthening of popular economic solidarity; (iv) a direct relationship with consumers; and (v) the supply of local and regional products within the framework of food security and food sovereignty (Sacchi et al., 2015).

Of the 5 millions farms in the country, 84% are family farms. In total smallholders, produce nearly 70% of the food consumed by the more than 200 million people living in Brazil. In the last few years, a number of public policies have been put in place to support family farming and also organic agriculture. The proposed National Plan for Agroecology and Organic Production is one recent example. It will encompass a number of specific actions associated with e.g. production, technical assistance and commercialization.

Among the many endeavors to promote ecological agriculture The Ecovida Agroecology Network is a very illustrative example of sustainable and resilient farming systems promotion. More than 5.000 families of farmers, in the three southernmost states of the country – Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul – are organized in a collective to promote agroecology and sustainable, resilient use of natural resources.

“Broadened participation and promoting polycentric governance are part of the DNA of Ecovida”

Map: SSNC’s partner organization Centro Ecologico is part of the Ecovida Network. The Ecovida network’s structure and nuclei distribution, which display the resilience principles of participation, connectivity and polycentricity.

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AIT Zelma and Valdeci Steffen

Zelma, Valdeci and their two sons, Elias and Messias, have approximately five hectares of crops – among others carrots (Daucus carota), lettuce (Lactuca sativa), broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica), cauliflower (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis), radicchio (Cichorium intybus), zucchini (Cucurbita pepo var. cylindrica), cassava (Manihot esculenta), bananas (Musa spp.) and açaí (Euterpe edulis). Their production is 100% organic, certified by the Ecovida Participatory Guarantee System. Banana production is managed in a complex agroforestry system, mixed with the açaí palms and many endemic trees from the Atlantic Forest. The crop diversification includes over 100 varieties, e.g. 20

banana varieties and 20 vegetable species. Virtually all food consumed by the family is produced on the farm, providing a diversified and healthy diet. Production is marketed through different channels: a street market in Porto Alegre, capital of Rio Grande do Sul State, a street market in Torres, the main city in the region, and the local organic products consumers’ cooperative ECOTORRES. The family periodically receives visits from university students who have the opportunity to experience the organic production system and have a diversified lunch in their house. This activity is an important source of income for the family.

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Illustrative resilience exampleEcovida is an illustrative example of resilience promotion. Looking at the seven principles proposed by Biggs et al. (2015) it is evident how the Network has been successfully promoting each of them in different ways. Diversity and redundancy, principle one (1), can be observed in each and every level of the network. Specifically in the case of agroforestry (see box below) systems can hold up to 40 different species, including endemic trees, which have an important role for biodiversity and landscape conservation (Gonçalves, 2008). Social diversity and participationAdopting broadened participation (6) and inclusiveness are important operational values within the Ecovida network, there are many different kinds of producers in the network: from impoverished landless smallholders to larger entrepreneurial farmers and food processing facilities. In addition, a considerable diversity of working groups on different subjects such as gender, youth, agroforestry, commercialization, certification, and food processing are organized. The network is also promoting polycentric governance (7) with multiple governing bodies (see map to the left and box to the right) that interact to make and enforce rules within certification and sustainable agriculture. All individual members have voice and all decisions of their respective

One of the central parts of Ecovida’s work is to coordinate a “Participatory Guarantee System” (PGS) in Southern Brazil that was established by local consumers and producers as an alternative to the international third party certification system model with expensive external controls. The work with the PGS and the whole Ecovida Network is built on trust, and displays both the sixth and seventh resilience principle, broaden participation (6) and promote polycentric governance systems (7). They are intertwined and part of the very “DNA” of the Ecovida’s functioning, with participation and multiple governing bodies interacting to rule and decide across different levels. Ecovida bases its work on a high level of confidence between producer and consumer. The network consists of 24 nodes that all work both regionally and locally through consumer and producer groups. In dialogue with the Ministry of Agriculture, PGS has today spread throughout Brazil as well as to many other countries in Latin America, Africa, and Asia.

The Ecovida Network working group in agroforestry is composed of several organizations that are promoting farming systems based on combining annual crops with trees in the same cultivating area. Some of the activities in the network are related to encouraging learning (5), e.g. promotion of scientific studies, stimulating the cultivation of neglected crops (particularly native trees with economic potential), and raising awareness about the importance of agroforestry in promoting sustainability, resilience and increased food production. One important accomplishment is the initiative of promoting the expansion of native trees such as açaí (Euterpe edulis), guabiroba (Campomanesia guaviroba), butiá (Butia capitata), and pitanga (Eugenia uniflora) to e.g.

The Participatory Guarantee System

Agroforestry

organizations are taken collectively. All organizations from a specific region also have periodic assemblies and specific meetings in regional nuclei.

produce ice cream, commercialized through different marketing channels. Helping to protect endemic trees is critical for maintaining and enhancing biodiversity (1) and ecological connectivity (2) in one of the most threatened biomes, the Atlantic rainforest of Brazil. From an environmental standpoint, agroforestry helps to reduce agriculture’s contribution and vulnerability to climate change, while also improving water quality and availability. Agroforestry can also increase and diversify farmers’ incomes and give them access to more nutritious food. Properly designed, an agroforestry system can bind the soil, resist pests and fertilise itself – almost completely without human assistance, following natural processes. By being multifunctional, it contributes to providing benefits in addition to food and can therefore provide a more secure livelihood while also promoting ecosystem services and biodiversity (FAO, 2013).

Agroforestry systems mix crops, trees and animals, and provide resilience by e.g. strengthening ecological connectivity with forest fragments, maintaining biodiversity and managing slow variables like soil fertility and water quality. Photo: Karin Höök.

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Ethiopia - Promising, systematic work to build resilience and develop sustainable farming built on local resourcesIn the midst of the many challenges in Ethiopia, the Tigray Project brings hope. Its long term and systematic work to develop sustainable farming has turned an area, hit hard by erosion and droughts, into an agricultural system that generates bigger harvests and greater incomes while improving groundwater levels, soil fertility and biodiversity.

Agriculture plays a central role in Ethiopia, where some 12 million smallholder farming households account for an estimated 95 percent of agricultural production and 85 percent of all employment1. Coffee (Coffea arabica L.), oil seeds, dried pulses, animal hide, and the flower industry are important sources of foreign revenue. Even though Ethiopia has increased its Human Development Index over the last several years, many challenges remain. Less than 60 percent of the population of about 100 million people have access to potable water, and around 12 million people suffer from chronic, transitory or acute malnutrition.

In order to achieve food and nutrition security the government has launched its second Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP II) for the period 2016-2020. The plan includes strategies to reduce degradation of natural resources and increase resilience to disasters via ensuring food security.

Ethiopia is also one of the focus countries for FAO’s regional initiative on Building Resilience in Africa’s Drylands. It aims to strengthen institutional capacity for resilience; support early warning and information management systems; build community level resilience; and respond to emergencies and crises.1 http://www.fao.org/ethiopia/fao-in-ethiopia/ethiopia-at-a-glance/en/

Tigray Project - resilient farming against all oddsThe Tigray Project in northern Ethiopia has since 1996 resolutely worked in an area with impoverished soils, hit hard by erosion and droughts, to turn the tide. The project is aimed at smallholder farmers, in particular women who cultivate small plots of land. It has resulted in bigger harvests and greater incomes while improving groundwater levels, soil fertility and biodiversity (Araya and Edwards, 2006)(FAO, 2010).

The cooperation between the area’s farmers and national experts is a good example of exchange of knowledge and experience, increasing the knowledge and competence of everyone involved. The Tigray Project has received international attention, and experience gained from the project is being spread in a growing number of districts in the grain belt of Ethiopia.

Farmers in the Tigray project have a diversity of crops and production systems, consistent with the first resilience principle of maintaining diversity and redundancy (1). Multiplicity of crops increases both food security and the possibilities of cash income, especially in drought-prone areas with uncertain rainfall.

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AIT Mrs. Haregu Gobezay and Mr Kalayu Hafte

Mrs. Haregu Gobezay and Mr Kalayu Hafte are a couple with six children in Mereb Leke District of the Tigray Region. Previously, Mrs. Haregu Gobezay was unemployed and dependent on the salary of her husband to cover all family expenses. Today she manages a 12-hectare farm with mango, orange, mandarin, and avocado plantations. She also has dairy cows and raises chickens for egg production. Earlier, when the farm was focused only on growing finger millets, it suffered from weed invasion, thin soil, termites, etc. Now the diverse and integrated system has helped in solving many of these challenges. She started by planting vegetables, followed by cultivating some fruit trees with nitrogen-fixing peanuts as a cover crop. Subsequently, she integrated dairy cows, cultivating pasture plants such as Alfalfa (Medicago

sativa), Rhodes grass (Chloris gayana), Desmodium (Desmodium spp.), and elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum) under the trees. To improve soil fertility and to increase soil organic matter she and her husband also prepare compost in 20 big pits. A biogas plant connected to the dairy farm produces bio-slurry compost and energy for cooking. The introduction of Desmodium has mitigated infestation of striga, a common weed in the region. In fact, their farm has become a source of Desmodium seeds for scaling up push-pull technology in the whole region, which also helps them to get additional income. They also control pests and plant diseases preparing a natural repellent from neem leaves mixed with animal urine. By constructing cemented water canals they have improved the water use efficiency by 400 percent.

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Connectivity (2) among several production subsystems was a noteworthy characteristic in Mrs. Haregu Gobezay’s farm (see box). Such nutrient circulation brings economic and environmental benefits, as farmers no longer need to buy chemical fertilizers to secure their production.

Integrated watershed management, implemented in for example the Abreha we-Atsbeha community, is not only a way of managing connectivity (2) between upstream and downstream areas. It is also a way of managing slow variables and feedbacks (3). The management practices were able to break the vicious cycle characterized by bad land management, soil erosion, drought, water scarcity, bad harvests, low incomes, impoverishment and rural exodus. Other examples of managing slow variables and feedbacks (3) include the use of green manure, cover crops and compost.

The principle of fostering complex adaptive systems thinking (4) was seen, for example, on Mrs. Haregu Gobezay’s farm with its integrated diversified production system to deal with uncertainties such as drought, food price volatility, and pests.

Encouraging learning (5) was also prevalent in the Abreha we-Atsbeha community case. Without learning new technologies and methodologies it would not have been possible to implement all the improvements in the watershed management. Combining the latest findings from science and development work with local and indigenous knowledge and the expertise of farmers is key for building resilience.

Broad participation (6) is a marked characteristic in the Abreha we-Atsbeha community. Without mobilizing villagers it would not have been possible to promote all management improvements in the watershed. Broad participation is central for the work promoted by the Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD) in mobilizing farmers, rural leaders, local agriculture extension offices and experts to adopt agroecological approaches. As demonstrated also in many other studies, the participation and empowerment of women has been particularly important for food security in the area.

The principle of promoting polycentric governance systems (7) was also clearly seen in the Abreha we-Atsbeha community’s efforts to collectively regulate access to pasture areas to protect them from degradation. This is also an illustrative example of how to introduce and scale up community by-laws for community-led ecological governance.

The Kebele administration – the smallest administration unit in the Ethiopian governmental structure – has supported the establishment of a company called Vision of Meles Honey PLC. Members are youth who completed their 10th grade and orphan children of military veterans who died during the civil war and in the war with Eritrea. The local administration provided them with one recreation center, an apiary and more than five hectares of land where they planted fruit trees (avocado, mango, etc.). Now the young entrepreneurs plan to produce and sell organic honey and fruit juice. The Institute for Sustainable Development – ISD provided training and capacity building as well as financial and material supply to assist the youth group in launching their entrepreneurship.

Teaching landless youth to become next generation of farmers

Rainwater harvesting is one important strategy in Ethiopian agroecological farming that builds resilience to drought. Photo: André Gonçalves.

Map: The Institute for Sustainable Development, the organisation behind the Tigray project, are active in large parts of Ethiopia, with their own offices and in rural communities and education clubs.

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Kenya – PELUM Kenya supports elderly women and 1.6 million other farmersLike the majority of African countries, Kenya relies on agriculture as a main source of income and labour. Thanks to PELUM Kenya an increasingly large share of the country’s production comes from ecological organic agricultural practices.

Agriculture in Kenya is contributing 26 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and another 27 per cent of GDP indirectly through linkages with other sectors. The sector employs more than 40 per cent of the total population of 48 million people and more than 70 per cent of Kenya’s rural people1. An increasingly large share of the country’s production comes from ecological organic agricultural practices, and PELUM Kenya as a network organisation has played a big role in this development together with organizations like the Kenyan Organic Agriculture Network (KOAN), Biovision Africa Trust (BvAT) and others. PELUM Kenya is divided into six regional zones and has a membership of 49 Civil Society Organizations. All the organisations work with small-scale farmers and together reach over 1.6 million farmers. PELUM Kenya is in its turn part of the greater PELUM Association (Participatory Ecological Land Use Management) network. It is a member driven organization, established in 1995, that has an outreach to about 10 million farmers in 12 African countries. Education and connectivityPELUM Kenya provides capacity development to staff of member organizations who carry out trainings (Principle 5) to community groups; facilitates organic certification for groups to access markets, especially the PGS organic certification by the East African Organic standards; advocates for policy and legislation that is in favour of small-scale farmers at the national and county level; and facilitates sharing and learning through documentation, exchange visits, training of trainers, etc. PELUM Kenya is well-connected (Principle 2) with organizations and networks at country level, continental level and globally, as well as with government institutions, agricultural research institutions and universities. These include Slow Food International, Africa Biodiversity Network (ABN), Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology ( JKUAT) among others. The Kenyan chapter of PELUM also plays an active role in the Ecological Organic Agriculture (EOA) Initiative (see box).

1 http://www.fao.org/3/a-bp634e.pdf

The EOA Initiative promotes the development of Ecological Organic Agriculture (EOA) in Africa. It is a holistic production management system that considers the agro-ecosystem a complex adaptive system (Principle 4) in all its diversity. EOA focuses on attaining a balanced food system designed to enhance biological diversity (Principle 1), and promotes healthy use of soils, air and water, relying on renewable resources in locally organized agricultural systems. The initiative was started in response to the African Union Heads of State and Government’s call for the promotion of organic farming in Africa. The African Union Commission, in collaboration with PELUM Kenya and partners supporting ecological organic agriculture, organized an inception workshop on organic agriculture in May, 2011 in Thika Kenya, with financial support from the SSNC, to discuss how to implement this decision. The workshop successfully resulted in a roadmap, a concept note and the development of an African Organic Action Plan to mainstream ecological organic agriculture into national agricultural production systems by 2025. At the African continental level the initiative is coordinated by Biovision Africa Trust in Kenya. The Eastern African cluster is lead by PELUM Kenya and the Western African cluster by Organisation Béninoise pour la Promotion de l’Agriculture Biologique based in Benin. http://eoai-africa.org/

Ecological Organic Agriculture - The EOA Initiative

Map: Countries where the EOA Initiative is active.

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The use of “soft technologies” such as green manure, composting and natural insect repellents to promote soil and plant health are some examples of managing slow variables and feedbacks (Principle 3). The use of compost and manure will improve soil fertility. A healthy soil will allow healthy plants with increased resistance to pests and diseases. This is an example of positive feedback promoted by the use of a technology that is available to any farmer. The Tumani Women Group also encourages learning (Principle 5) by helping children who live in poverty to go to school by acquiring books, uniforms and paying the school fees. Educated children will help to create a better community, a better village, and a better country. Even though the Tumaini Women Group only operates in their local community, the consequences of their actions reach much further.

Green manure, composting and education

Social and ecological connectivityThe Tumaini Women Group is an inspiring example of resilience promotion at the local level (see photo). It is a group of elderly women in the outskirts of Nairobi that cultivate organic products and provides and manages social connectivity (Principle 2) in many ways. They also promote and manage ecological connectivity among production areas, enhancing the overall resilience of their agricultural system. After they are harvested, maize stalks and beans husks are used as mulch for vegetables, protecting the soil against erosion and providing nutrients for the plants. Leftover of vegetables, and other organic waste, are used for composting (see box). In fact all production areas compose a mosaic of connected agricultural subsystems, allowing fluxes of raw material and nutrients. These practices are examples of ways to actively manage connectivity among subsystems to create a number of positive results and conserve biodiversity (Principle 1) enhance ecosystem services such as pollination, nutrient cycling and control of pests and diseases at the micro-level.

The Tumaini Women Group benefits from trainings (Principle 5) by the Grow Biointensive Centre of Kenya (GBIACK) a non-governmental organization, specialising in alternative methods of optimizing production within shrinking land size, while still maintaining

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AIT Kate Kibarah

Kate Kibarah is a clinical nutritionist at Kate’s Organics, Nairobi. She works for a healthier lifestyle and high quality, sustainable food in Kenya. Her interest in healthy and sustainable food began in school and today she has her own company with about thirty employees. Kate organizes courses, participates in TV and radio programs as a cook, writes articles, and an online health club with 3000 members. She sells her organic products in leading supermarkets in Kenya like the NAKUMAT, Tuskys, Naivas as well as in health stores, chain stores and food stores around Kenya and East Africa. She has written a cookbook together with PELUM Kenya and cooperates with several organizations in the organic sector to promote a varied diet and the use of a variety of indigenous species and varieties.

Twitter: @Kates_Organics

soil fertility. GBIACK is one of the 49 member organizations of the PELUM network in Kenya, and this offers the women group a platform to connect with farmer groups practicing sustainable food production methods from other parts of the country. With their ages varying from 60 to 100 (!) years the ladies and their husbands work in the field producing healthy food for their families and a surplus to sell to their neighbours and in local markets. Besides helping many children in the community, orphaned by HIV/AIDS, the group has many other initiatives to support each other. A collective money saving scheme, in which they deposit a monthly stipend, can provide funds for unexpected events or emergencies.

Map: Countries in Africa where PELUM is active and a detailed view of Kenya showing counties where PELUM Kenya is working.

The Tumaini Women Group in the Gatuanyaga Village, Kikuyu community, is an example of broadened participation, cooperation and social-environmental responsibility to improve living conditions. Photo: André Gonçalves

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The Philippines - Revitalizing and developing rice diversity to strengthen resilienceThe organisation MASIPAG in the Philippines has established a unique partnership where farmers and researchers collect, improve and grow different varieties of rice. This has enhanced resilience to climate change, improved profitability, secured livelihoods, and increased stakeholder participation.

Agriculture is the main source of livelihood for 31 percent of the labour force in the Philippines. It contributes about 10 percent to the gross national product1 for the country and its 100 million inhabitants. Farming households face high levels of risk due to natural disasters such as typhoons, earthquakes and floods. The Philippines is, however, also one of the most advanced countries in implementing the shift from a reactive emergency response to a proactive resilience building approach. The country also has the Philippine Organic Agriculture Act from 2010, a national policy that requires the Department of Agriculture to appropriate 5% of the annual budget for organic agriculture.

The organisation MASIPAG, and its network of about 30 000 local farmers in more than 60 provinces, is interesting in this context2. The organisation focuses on diversity-based farming (Principle 1) that promotes local rice varieties with traits such as resilience to flooding and salinisation. Farmers are spreading risk and improving adaptive capacity (Principle 1 http://www.fao.org/philippines/fao-in-philippines/philippines-at-a-glance/en/2 http://masipag.org/about-masipag/

4) by protecting the rights to general use of genetic resources and the freedom of the smallholders to breed, save and exchange seed.

During the green revolution, rice growing in the Philippines underwent fundamental changes. From growing hundreds or thousands of different rice varieties most rice farmers switched to growing a few commercial varieties. However, the decline in the old rice varieties and the more chemical-intensive agriculture led to a range of problems. Now MASIPAG are searching high and low for the old varieties in order to re-introduce and develop them to render rice cropping less dependent on chemical pesticides and more tolerant of climate change.

Experimenting with and conservation of different rice varieties are important resilience building strategies within the national MASIPAG network in the Philippines. Photo André Gonçalves.

Map: MASIPAG membership organisations are spread all over the Philippine’s three island groups of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

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MASIPAG is an abbreviation of ‘Farmer-Scientist Partnership for Development’. It is a national network of farmers’ organisations, NGOs and scientists promoting farmer-led sustainable agriculture in the country. Over the years, this project has become very successful and has collected over 1100 local rice varieties and developed almost 1300 varieties of “MASIPAG rice ” through breeding in collaboration between researchers and farmers. Moreover, the 70 farmer-breeders of Masipag have developed over 500 farmer-bred rice varieties. These rice varieties are distributed and maintained by farmers organizations in over 180 Trial Farms.The network carries out research in collaboration with various scientists and researchers from different agricultural universities and colleges, trains small-scale farmers (Principle 5 and 6) in sustainable cultivation methods and is working to develop local organic markets.

The farmers within MASIPAG are organised into different groups, often comprising 12-60 farmers. Each group is encouraged to have an experimental farm, called a trial farm, where at least 50 different local varieties are grown. The experimental activities can be managed by the group and can rotate between different farms owned by individual members. The farmer members of the organization will select the top 10 out of the 50 rice varieties and distribute them free of charge to the members. The top ten varieties shall be planted on each member’s farm. Each farmer will again select 3-5 rice varieties per hectare to be planted in their own farms for production. The only condition is that the recipient in turn must give the rice varieties for free to any other interested members of the organization. This gives rise to an enormous spread and a huge

Uncertain rainfall → Planting specialized rice varieties that are drought-tolerant, plant breeding aimed at producing varieties that can cope with long periods of rain, crop rotation, establishment of agroforestry and types of integrated cropping systems (several different varieties of crops in the same field).

Temperature change → Diversification of crops and sources of income.

Increased risk of landslides → Planting more indigenous trees, support or creating social structures that allow cooperation so that affected farmers can get help from others.

Strong winds → Planting vegetation that gives protection from the wind (e.g. bamboo, nitrogen-fixing trees like Gliricidia sepium, and other indigenous tree species). Planting of root crops, bananas and raising of native small animals like rabbits

Experimenting with new rice varieties

MASIPAG’s strategies for enhancing resilience to climate change

range of different varieties, enhancing the resilience of the system. Since there is also farmer-bred rice, it is also a source of pride for the farmer-breeder if their own variety rice becomes widely distributed in the network. Masipag is continuously practicing seed exchanges during provincial,regional as well as national activities of the network. In 2016, the MASIPAG Back-up Farm consisted of more than 2,000 rice varieties, collected and maintained (600 traditional rice varieties; 1299 MASIPAG rice; and 506 farmer-bred). The collection included 12 flood tolerant varieties; 18 drought tolerant; 20 saline (saltwater) tolerant; and 24 pests or diseases resistant.

http://masipag.org/about-masipag/

and chicken as strategies for survival during the aftermaths of typhoons.

Saltwater intrusion, sea level rise → Use of MASIPAG varieties that are specially bred to cope with salinized soil, restoration of coastal mangrove forests, which protect the coast against erosion and flooding.

General resilience → Strengthening mutual support in provinces where MASIPAG have a strong presence, e.g. members helped other farmer-members that have lost seeds due to extreme weather events by providing them with seeds and other planting materials for free. Moreover, MASIPAG’s provincial consultative bodies provide social connectivity by acting as centers for coordinating sustainable agriculture activities in the respective provinces.

General resilience → MASIPAG Farmers’ Guarantee System, an alternative marketing and processing program, has set up emergency funds that are deposited in banks for security and to aid members that are affected by natural disasters.

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AIT Pepito Babasa, rice breeder and

Chairman MASIPAG board

Pepito is a farmer from the Southern Luzon region that often experience typhoons and floods. Pepito’s rice breeds are known to withstand floods, and drought, and have been adapted in other parts of the country. In farmer-led rice breeding, having access to many varieties as parent material is crucial, hence the relevance of the trials farms which serve as living seed banks. Some of the selection criteria are taste, ear length, cooking properties, and yield. MASIPAG encourage its members to grow many different varieties to enhance resilience. For example, long ears are considered to be good in dry seasons and short better in wet conditions. MASIPAG has three experimental arms: the national arm at Luzon, one at Visayas and one at Mindanao.

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Sweden – From conventional and organic farmers to planetary stewards

The number of farms in Sweden is decreasing and the remaining farms are growing in size. After years of increasing specialisation and a focus on productivity more and more farmers are focusing on quality, diversity and organic farming. An example of this shift in mindset is the young farmer Adam Arnesson of Jannelunds Gård, a farm 250 km west of Stockholm. He calls himself a planetary steward.

Due to famine in Sweden and opportunity for land in America more than 1.2 million Swedes emigrated between 1851 and 1930, almost 25 percent of the population during this period. In the 1950-1970s, large-scale mechanisation and a shift to “green revolution technologies” took place, reducing the agricultural workforce by 60 percent by the early 1970s. Today, Sweden has 10 million inhabitants and imports half of the food that is consumed in the country. Some 2,7 million hectares, or some 6,5 per cent of the total land area in Sweden, are cultivated. Since the 1960s the number of farms has been in sharp decline, but the farms have grown larger and more specialised in areas like cereals, dairy or the rearing of pigs and bovine animals. Agriculture employs about 170 000 people, both full-time and part-time, corresponding to 1,5 per cent of total employment in Sweden.

Most farms are family businesses that combine income from farming with income from related activities. Organic food sales have increased from 4.3 percent to 8.7 percent of the total food market between 2013 and 2016. The organic market in Sweden has been growing for 20 consecutive years and is expected to double within the next 10 years.

Early in 2017 the Swedish government launched an action plan which lists around 40 activities to achieve the national food strategy objectives. The plan encompasses the entire food production chain, from primary production to food industry, exports, trade, consumer, public sector consumption, restaurants and culinary experiences. As such it aims to contribute to a “competitive and innovative food chain, and to the achievement of relevant environmental objectives”, including goals for organic production and consumption as well as reduced food wastage. The directional target is that 30 percent of Sweden’s agricultural land will be certified organic farmland by 2030 and that 60 percent of public food consumption will come from certified organic products the same year1.

1 http://www.government.se/press-releases/2017/02/sek-1-billion-to-swedens-food-chain/

Young farmers go organicThe trend in Sweden to experiment with more sustainable agroecological methods is clearly manifested by the young farmer Adam Arnesson (see box). At their farm, Adam and his parents are experimenting with a diversity of proteins (Principle 1). Diversity tastes good, and looks fantastic, he says and showcases some of his new favourites: Broad bean ’Vroma’, Grey pea ’Retrija’, Borlotto lingua di fuoco, black beans, red and white kidney beans (see photo page 7).

Adam is also well connected (Principle 2) and has an ongoing collaboration with a researcher from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences who studies how an ordinary Swedish farm can become more sustainable.

Each year in October, since 2013, the SSNC, in collaboration with Consumers International and partner organisations around the globe, organise the Green Action Week. It is a global campaign to encourage more consumers to buy organic products and thereby promote a shift towards an ecologically sustainable food system for all. 44 civil society organisations in 31 countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America participated in the campaign in 2016. In Kenya, Ukraine and Brazil, school children have made composts, written essays and discussed how their food is produced. In Pakistan and Uganda, decision makers, farmers and consumer organizations have discussed what is needed to boost organic production and consumption. And in India, Ethiopia and the Philippines, farmers have learnt more about the benefits of growing organically.

More at: http://greenactionweek.org/

Global Swedish-lead campaign “Organic Food and Farming for All”

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To make a comprehensive sustainability analysis of the entire farm, they use the framework SAFA (Sustainability Assessments of Food and Agriculture Systems)1, developed by FAO and adapted to Swedish conditions. The goal is to use SAFA on more Swedish farms and make comparisons. Initial results from the analysis indicate that Adam’s farm can support three times as many people with food after shifting to growing more beans as a source of protein instead of meat. At the same time the climate impact per produced calorie dropped by almost half. On the farm Adam is also managing soil fertility and other slow variables (Principle 3), experimenting with new varieties and technologies (Principle 4), writing blog posts, giving lectures (Principle 5), and participating in a number of networks and organisations (Principle 6) which are based on polycentric governance principles (Principle 7).

Another interesting initiative attracting a lot of young people to Sweden is the network WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms or Willing Workers on Organic Farms) which provides volunteers with first-hand experience in organic farming and let them experience life in a rural setting2. The host provides food, accommodation, and opportunities to learn, in exchange for assistance with farming or gardening activities. In 2014, about 150 organic farms in Sweden received volunteers from around the world.

1 http://www.fao.org/3/a-i4113e.pdf2 http://wwoof.net/

“Sesam” is a non-profit organization for devoted farmers who seek to conserve biological diversity by preserving old and valuable cultural plants that have disappeared from the market. One of the activities among the member farmers within the organisation is to arrange seed-exchanges by sending parcels of seeds to each other. In this way the Jannelund’s farm has been inspired to experiment with a number of varieties of beans with surprisingly good results. Sesam was founded in 1984 in Stockholm and has nearly 500 members spread all over the country. Sesam has no owned premises, gardens or employed personnel. All work is done in an idealistic way without any compensation.

http://www.foreningensesam.se/

Experimenting with and conserving a diversity of seeds

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AIT

Adam Arnesson – experimenting with new methods and social media

Adam is something so rare as a Swedish organic sheep-farmer born in the 90’s, as well as a frequent user of social media. He is in the process of taking over his parents’ farm and now runs it as an organic farm, with the animals’ health and natural behaviour in focus. Born and raised on a farm just outside Örebro, in the middle of Sweden his passions in life are raising sheep, music (he’s a resident DJ at SLU in Alnarp) and

The WWOOF network has destinations all over the world, including in Brazil, Kenya, the Philippines and Uganda, but not yet in Ethiopia3.

3 http://wwoof.net/#destination

the interaction made possible by social media. His personal Twitter account is @Ekobonden (“the eco farmer”) and he has studied at the Swedish university of agricultural sciences (SLU). Adam is active in a number of networks in Sweden, including KRAV (the organization that develops the rules for the KRAV certification system), Ekologiska Lantbrukarna (The Swedish Association of Ecological Farmers), Organic Sweden, Eldrimner (Sweden’s National Centre for Artisan Food), and Sesam (see box above). Photo: Bianca Brandon-Cox.

The Jannelund’s farm 250 km west of Stockholm raises a number of different breeds of sheep, it is one of their strategies to become planetary stewards and enhance resilience of the agricultural system. Photo: Karin Höök.

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Uganda – Shaded pineapples, family learning and climate resilience

The government of Uganda prioritises resilience to climate change and other threats for the 80 % of the population that rely on agriculture for their livelihoods. The more than a million small- and medium holders associated with the organisation NOGAMU are an important part of this.

Smallholder farming plays a critical role in Uganda’s economy. Some 80 % of the 39 million people living in the country rely upon agriculture for their livelihood (FAO, 2017a). The Country Program Framework (CPF), a cooperation between FAO and the government of Uganda, sets as one of its priority for the 2015 – 2019 period “Resilience to livelihood threats with emphasis on climate change” (FAO, 2015), by applying a set of resilience principles to strengthen the system’s capacity to absorb shocks or adapt and transform so as to reduce exposure to shocks (FAO, 2015).

NOGAMU and its one million farmersOne important organisation in the endeavour to build resilience is NOGAMU, the National Organic Agricultural Movement of Uganda. NOGAMU is an umbrella organization that was established in 2001 with the main goal of uniting and leading the organic sector in Uganda towards development. Currently NOGAMU has a membership of 360 organizations, representing over 1,221,000 farmers in Uganda that are promoting broad participation (6) in domestic, regional and international organic agriculture trade, some directly, but the majority through the membership of their organizations.

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AIT Mr. Vicent SSonko and Mr. Yakubu

Nyende

Mr. Vicent SSonko (photo) and Mr. Yakubu Nyende produce organic pineapples (Ananas comosus) for the external market, mainly for exporting to Germany and other European countries. Their production systems are intercropped with bananas and a variety of other plants such as beans, maize, and groundnuts. This diversification provides multiple benefits. Banana is a very important food crop in Uganda, and for the farmer it is also a cash crop to sell at local markets. This is a neat example of how redundancy works in practice – if the external market for organic pineapples collapses the farmer will have income from selling bananas at the local market. Beans and groundnuts are very important components in a balanced diet supporting strategies to promote food security and nutrition. These crops (beans and groundnuts) are also nitrogen-fixing plants, helping to improve overall soil fertility, without the need of chemical nitrogen fertilizers.

One important benefit, observed among ecological organic farmers in Uganda and elsewhere, is related to food security and health. In general, these farmers have a richer diet because they cultivate and consume a greater variety of plants and eat more protein of different kinds. Better health implies improved capacity to work in the fields and less expenditure on medicines and hospital.

Organic farmers are not exposed to the perils of spraying toxic chemicals that would affect their health, reducing their capacity to work in addition to increasing their expenditure on medical problems. (EU, 2016).

Richer diets and improved health

Map: Organic production in Uganda – where and what is produced. Go to the link for more information: http://nogamu.org.ug/organic-agriculture/organic-uganda/

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NOGAMU adopts a truly polycentric approach (7) and embraces individuals and organizations from different sectors: farmers’ organizations, export companies, NGOs, universities and other institutions which are involved in or support organic production, processing, marketing and export. The management structure of NOGAMU is built around a Central Executive Committee (Board) which is assisted by several sub committees.

NOGAMU also has an important role in teaching and promoting better farming practices among its members as well as contributing to build quality standards for organic growers. Learning (5) and connectivity (2) are, therefore, critical elements to improve resilience and living conditions of farmers. One remarkable initiative is the Farmer Family Learning Group – FFLG in which NOGAMU connects farmers who learn collectively (and reciprocally) new methods and agroecological farming technologies.

Virtual cycles and shadeMost farmers visited in the NOGAMU network have as a production strategy diversification of their crops, in line with resilience principle (1) – Maintain diversity and redundancy.

Slow variables and feedbacks (3) are managed through the use of green manure and different sources of organic matter – manure, compost, and plants residue. Recirculation of nutrients and organic matter are critical factors to guarantee good harvests also in the long run, which in turn is an imperative to guarantee good marketing and cash inflow. These practices, therefore, help to create a virtuous cycle of better management, improved soils, healthy crops, food security, and higher incomes. In this way they help build resilience.

Complex adaptive systems thinking (4) is widely spread among the NOGAMU farmers and an ordinary way of interpreting and managing their production systems. An illustrative example is how Mr. Vicent SSonko (see portrait

PELUM Uganda is an organisation that has for the last eight years had several interventions geared towards building resilience of smallholder agricultural systems to climate change. The learning experiences generated so far have been consolidated in a holistic community led model for building resilience to climate change “Climate Resilient Agro-ecosystems Model (CRAEM)”. The model has been successfully piloted in three districts of Uganda by three PELUM member organisations. The experiences from the three pilots have been used to develop a facilitator’s guide for the CRAEM Model. PELUM Uganda believes that communities need to be empowered to analyze their own vulnerabilities and to systematically plan and execute resilience building strategies at the farm, household and community levels. The CRAEM model is still under development, but after being pilot tested and proven to be effective, PELUM Uganda is now ready to try scaling it up for greater impacts on climate resilience in the agriculture sector.

Source: http://pelumuganda.org/download/2016-climate-resilient-agro-ecosystems-model-craem-facilitators-guide/

CRAEM: The Climate Resilient Agro-ecosystems Model

page 22) has developed a sophisticated and complex way of managing the pineapple fields, adjusting subtly the shade provided by banana plants, to produce appropriately sized pineapples for the external market.

Similarly complex agroforestry systems composed by coffee and many tree species such as calliandra (Calliandra sp.), jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) and ficus (Ficus sp.) are also applied as a production method in several farms. These production systems are very diversified and have a critical environmental role in the promotion of several ecosystems services. Carbon sequestration, biodiversity conservation, soil and water protection are some of the benefits promoted by these agroforestry systems.

Intercropping of bananas, pineapples and a diversity of other crops provides multiple ecosystem services while also strengthening the resilience of this farm in Uganda. Photo: André Gonçalves.

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Summary table of case studies and examples of how they apply the seven resilience principles in practice (Source: Gonçalves 2017 and participating organisations):

1. Maintain diversity and redundancy

2. Manage connectivity

3. Manage slow variables and

feedbacks

4. Foster complex

adaptive systems thinking

5. Encourage learning

6. Broaden participation

7. Promote polycentric governance

systems

Brazil – Ecovida Network

Agroforestry and other polycropping systems; diversity of markets and organisations.

Agroecology stregthening connectivity of rainforest; diversity of marketing channels (street markets, national school feeding program, supermarkets).

Managing soil fertility through green manure etc. Initiatives to keep the youth in farming.

Complex agroecosystem have lead to various mechanisms of managing pests without using chemical pesticides;.

They learn from peer farmers during street markets and fellow farmers within the network.

Different levels and organizations where farmers and household members are involved in decision-making.

Decision-making process involving all nuclei members of the network.

Ethiopia – ISD’s Tigray project and community development

Different farming systems, diversity of crops, multiple organizations.

Watershed management and social connectivity. Bee farming increases population of pollinators and connects hillside ecosystems with farms.

Compost for building organic content and waterholding capacity of soils; watershed management.

Display intrinsically complex and adaptive thinking, e.g. through local innovations to avoid water related threshold effects (rainwater harvesting etc).

Numerous learning activities; permanent learning process.

Community members actively participating. Youngsters and women.

A diversity of bylaws at different levels regulating access to common grazing land.

PELUM Kenya – Women’s group

Different species, varieties and farming systems in a single property.

Sale of agricultural produce to group savings and education of orphans for ecological and social connectivity.

Compost and green manure used to manage slow variables like fertility and water holding capacity of soils.

Agroecological approaches imply complex and adaptive thinking, e.g. when controlling pests.

Numerous learning activities; permanent learning process done through learning, exchange and exposure visits.

Women and youth’s participation supported in various ways.

PELUM Kenya embraces 49 Civil Society Organizations spread in 22 out of the 47 counties in the country. Also embrace though the six networking zones.

The Philippines – MASIPAG and the diversity of rice

A large variety of rice including drought and pest tolerant ones..

Connectivity managed to decrease storm damage and pest outbreaks, sharing of rice varieties.

Maintaining large number of varieties in a seed bank.

Conscious management of threshold effects in the rice farming systems.

Learning among farmers from trials with various rice varieties.

Broad participation of many different groups of farmers who also contribute to research when trying new varieties of rice.

MASIPAG is a network based on polycentric governance principles.

Sweden – Jannelund’s farm

Experimenting with bean varieties; polycultures; native breeds of animals.

Ongoing collaboration with a researcher from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.

Managing soil fertility and other slow variables.

Experimenting with new varieties and technologies.

Peer to peer learning among farmers experimenting with varieties and agroceological methods, writes blog posts, gives lectures.

Farmers have opportunity to participate in a number of networks and organisations working for more sustainable agriculture in Sweden.

Takes part in organisations based on polycentric governance principles.

Uganda – NOGAMU and their organic farmers

Diversity of crops, a variety of farming systems, different markets and organizations.

Ecological and social connectivity.

Soft technologies for managing farming systems.

Complex adaptive systems thinking widely spread, e.g. in managing shade for the pineapples.

A range of learning activities; permanent learning process.

Farmer Family Learning Groups.

NOGAMU is a polycentric coalition of several organizations and stakeholders.

CASES RESILIENCE PRINCIPLES

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The agroecological approach featured in the case studies presented here redirects farming production systems towards diversity, local inputs and ecosystem services, instead of monocultures and fossil fuel-based inputs such as chemical fertilizers and pesticides. It enhances sustainability and resilience in many different ways, including promotion of biodiversity, connectivity and systems understanding, as well as social aspects like local knowledge and expertise, empowerment of women, engagement of youth and diversified livelihood opportunities. One key question in this context is how to promote and scale-up resilient and agroecological farming practices that already work locally around the world (see figure below).

One thing is sure: every effort to scale up should ask a number of key questions: Why is there a need to scale up? And what is it that should be scaled up? Is it yield per hectare? The cultivated area? Farmers’ income? Nutritional value? Or is it, as put forward here and in SIANI (2015 and 2016), rather a question of increased multi-functionality? That is, agricultural systems that are more resilient and produce a larger diversity of benefits (e.g. ecosystem services) and not only higher yields for single crops.

In the past, efforts to scale up agricultural practices were too often based on a linear model, in which extension services would disseminate research findings from universities and research stations to farmers, with the aim that they would translate them into good farming practice and increased

6. Scaling upproductivity. However, reality is much more complex, as studies on failed agricultural development projects have shown. A linear approach often overlooks the underlying socioeconomic reasons why the productivity of smallholders around the world remains low, e.g. that smallholders often cannot afford to invest in appropriate technologies (Wigboldus and Leeuwis, 2013). An agroecological approach to scaling up on the other hand aims to both increase production and resilience of rural communities to deal with the socioeconomic challenges they face (IAASTD, 2009).

It is also important to consider whether it is better to pursue one big scaling up initiative or apply a polycentric approach with multiple, connected initiatives. The latter allows for diverse trajectories with similar goals. In a complex reality in constant change and with unpredictable events, it may also be more resilient to facilitate many bottom-up initiatives than trying to control all dynamics in one grand effort (Bennet and others, 2014).

In some regions and situations it might be urgent to increase agricultural production (in tons per hectare) to assure food security, and in such cases measures for scaling up that deliver rapid returns might be preferable. But elsewhere, where needs are not so immediate, multi-functional systems would be desirable, since over time they can achieve the same aim while also providing other benefits such as more nutritious crops, resilience, biodiversity, bioenergy, and other ecosystem services.

Figure 5: Infographic showing different aspects of scaling up sustainable agricultural production. Illustration: J. Lokrantz/Azote (SIANI, 2016)

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1. The cases from around the world presented in this policy brief clearly show that there are alternatives to chemical-intensive mono-cropping farming, and that such agroecological and resilience building approaches can be crucial for agriculture’s contribution to Agenda 2030.

2. The cases featured also demonstrate that it is possible to increase both yields and resilience to climate change and other perturbations through modern agroecological approaches.

3. Actively applying resilience thinking is an important basis for the agroecological farming in the case studies, making smallholder farmers less dependent on loans, fossil fuels and chemical inputs.

4. Increased diversity in food crops, and within crops, can mean more alternative crops and increased livelihood diversity, enhancing the resilience to climate change and other environmental and socio-economic perturbations. A diversity of crops and varieties is key for a varied diet.

1. Evaluate environmental, social and economic agricultural policy frameworks against the principles of resilience building, and mainstream agroecological approaches into regional and national agricultural policies and programs.

2. Invest in policies that promote diversified and multifunctional production systems based on local resources, e.g. organic farming and other agroecological approaches, to strengthen resilience to climate change and other challenges.

3. Develop specific policies that empower women involved in organic and agroecological initiatives. This has proven to be key for the resilience of food systems while also increasing productivity, reducing malnutrition, and improving rural livelihoods.

4. Stimulate, develop and increase support to multi-stakeholder platforms to collect and exchange experiences from resilience building strategies in ecological organic agriculture and other agroecological approaches, at national, regional and continental levels.

5. Prioritize investments in smallholders and reorient markets to make them work for small-scale food producers in organic farming and ecological agriculture, they can play a fundamental role in designing resilient social-ecological landscapes.

7. Conclusions

8. The way forward

5. There is a need for a comprehensive change of course in agriculture so that it can really deliver on the targets on decreasing hunger, poverty and the other SDGs. Farming must in the future be based more on local resources, biological diversity, renewable energy and ecosystem services than on monocultures and fossil fuels.

6. Stakeholder dialogues, farmer-led research and other ways of promoting participation, are important measures in improving the resilience of farming and delivering on the many food-related SDGs. Future research should address the challenges facing the farmers.

7. Resilience building requires economic incentives to adopt agroecological practices on farm and landscape level, e.g. subsidies for actions that support biodiversity and ecosystem services. Other helpful measures include supporting agroecological extension services and local business development, and markets for agroecological products.

6. Combine the farmers’ long farming experience and innovative ideas with appropriate science and technology to deepen resilience and sustainability. Document successful cases to build and strengthen the evidence base for resilience strategies and agroecology, and communicate and disseminate information.

7. Promote more participatory research, where scientists and farmers collaborate to test and develop methods and varieties (e.g. action research, participatory research) to strengthen resilience with an agroecological approach.

8. Take value chains and market development into account in innovations in order to make agriculture more attractive, especially to youth. Incentivize the private sector actors to embrace organic farming as an already existing example of certified agroecological and resilient production to make markets work.

9. Invest in resilience through participation and education of youth, for example by integrating organic farming and other agroecological approaches in the curricula of schools, training centers, farmer field schools, school gardens, and also at university level.

10. Develop and operationalize a protocol with a set of indicators for assessing different production systems from a resilience perspective. Indicators should be identified and developed for ecological, social, cultural and economic dimensions at different spatial scales (farm, landscape, society, national levels).

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A policy brief commissioned by the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (SSNC) with contributions from Brazil/Centro Ecologico, Ethiopia/Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD), the Philippines/Farmer-Scientist Partnership for Development (MASIPAG), Kenya/Biovision Africa Trust (BvAT), Kenya/Participatory Ecological Land Use Management Kenya (PELUM Kenya), Uganda/National Organic Agriculture Movement of Uganda (NOGAMU), and Uganda/Participatory Ecological Land Use Management Uganda (PELUM Uganda).