Building a global network for agroecology at FAO

In the past, when I thought of the work done by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), I thought of how for many years FAO has primarily supported conventional approaches to agriculture. Technologies that support industrial farming systems have been promoted and extended to all of the more than 195 member countries. FAO has long been accused of promoting the productivist goals of the Green Revolution that build on the use of “improved” seeds, synthetic chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and on meeting the demands of highly globalized and consolidated markets. This is even more the case as world agriculture confronts the potential of precision agriculture, genetic modification, and AI technologies.

This all changed in 2014 with the International Symposium on Agroecology for Food Security and Nutrition, held at FAO headquarters in Rome in September of that year. Stakeholders representing governments, civil society, science and academia, the private sector, and the UN system gathered to discuss the contribution of agroecology to sustainable food systems. There was a lot of concern, especially from civil society, that powerful conventional agriculture forces were using the symposium as a way to co-opt agroecology and relegate it to nothing more than one more small tool in the toolbox of modern agriculture. But the voices of farmers, small countries, civil society, and other concerned citizenry, allowed for the symposium to put agroecology on the global stage of food system change. This was most obvious in the concluding presentation made by the then-Secretary General of FAO, Dr. José Graziano Da Silva, when he said that the symposium had opened a small window in the tower of the Green Revolution at FAO. The proceedings of the symposium (FAO 2015) captured these voices, as well as presented evidence-based science and practices of agroecology from around the world. Most importantly, the voices of civil society demonstrated how agroecology had become a very significant social movement, especially for smallholders and indigenous farmers who still feed a large portion of the human population.

Several regional symposia on agroecology followed over the next few years (visit https://www.fao.org/agroecology/home/). The outcomes of the symposia include the launch of the Scaling up Agroecology Initiative, in collaboration with UN partners, as well as the presentation of the conceptual framework “10 Elements of Agroecology.”The 10 Elements are a guide for policymakers, practitioners and stakeholders in planning, managing and evaluating agroecological transitions. Another important tool developed by FAO and a large number of partners is the Tool for Agroecology Performance Evaluation (TAPE). TAPE is a comprehensive tool that aims to measure the multi-dimensional performance of agroecological systems across the different dimensions of sustainability, building a global evidence base on the performance of agroecology. Regional agricultural officers in agroecology and ecosystem services are now located in multiple parts of the world. Thanks to a small group of dedicated agroecologists working within FAO, these initiatives have grown and spread.

It is in this light that I want to call attention to the renewed appearance of the FAO Agroecology Knowledge Hub Digest. Thanks to this monthly publication, a place exists that provides a round up of news, research, publications, stories from the field, multimedia materials, and much more from around the world. Sections include one called “InFocus” where current issues challenging sustainability are addressed. Another called “Germinate” features the perspectives, insights, and innovations of leading agroecology and food systems experts and practitioners. Topical areas of interest are featured, such as pollinators and biodiversity. The “Innovations” section provides examples of the application of agroecological practices and principles in real-world situations. “Voices from the Ground” gives diverse food and farming system activists an opportunity to express their views, experiences, and opinions on important agroecological actions. “From the Research World” presents publications of evidence-based scientific research in agroecology. “Multimedia and Learning Opportunities” offers presentations and forums where agroecological issues and case studies reach a broad audience. The section on “Policy Briefs and Studies” covers efforts to implement policy and societal changes that support transformation. The Digest concludes with “Upcoming Events” to inform about gatherings, meetings, workshops, and symposia that feature actions in agroecology. Finally, a “Behind the Scenes” section features the amazing FAO collaborators who make the Digest happen each month. The Digest will help FAO continue to work with member countries to harness the benefits of agroecology by strengthening the evidence base and identifying and sharing examples of successful policies, strategies and approaches. Agroecology at FAO has become an important element in helping agroecology become a global movement for the transformation to just and sustainable food and farming systems.