FAO Agroecology Newsletter

September 2020 / Issue #39

 

Join the Family Farming and Agroecology Community of Practice (CoP) of Latin America and the Caribbean

We are glad to announce the launch of the Family Farming and Agroecology Community of Practice (CoP) in Latin America and the Caribbean. Farmers’ organization, cooperatives, civil society organizations, research centers, NGOs, policymakers, decision-makers, and the private sector, working in family farming and agroecology, are encouraged to join the CoP to co-create and share knowledge, information and advice in order to achieve sustainable agriculture and food systems.

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MONTH'S FOCUS

AGROECOLOGY FOR FOOD SECURITY AND NUTRITION

Agroecology promotes local, stable, and diverse diets with year-round integrated production of healthy and nutritious foods since it is anchored on diversified, resilient, and sustainable territorial production systems. Farms and ecosystems managed through agroecological practices can enhance the four dimensions of food security – availability, access, stability, and utilization – which contributes to reducing rural poverty, enhancing resilience, promoting local development, and improving communities’ livelihoods.

New video:
Agroecology for a better future

Agroecology is about building a better future for all. This video shows how agroecology can foster a tangible approach to food and agriculture to promote sustainable interactions between humans, plants, animals, and the environment. It combines proven local practices with modern scientific knowledge, by supporting local culture and food traditions while promoting market efficiency and the circular economy. 

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New paper: 10 Elements of Agroecology - enabling transitions through visual narratives 

FAO has approved the 10 Elements of Agroecology as an analytical framework to support agriculture and food systems transformation, hence facilitating improved decision-making by policymakers, practitioners, and other stakeholders. Biodiversity, consumers, education, and governance are identified as promising entry points to graphically dissect prospective social-ecological transition trajectories using visual narratives that rely on the 10 Elements of Agroecology.

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Latest from AFRICA

The added value(s) of agroecology: unlocking the potential for transition in West Africa

The International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food) has released a new report "The Added Value(s) of Agroecology: Unlocking the potential for transition in West Africa". According to the report, West Africa has all the ingredients to become a “global frontrunner in agroecology”, with the dual crises of climate change and COVID-19 creating a unique opportunity to transform the region's food systems.

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Latest from ASIA

Family Farmers - the Future of Asia and the Pacific

This video shows how the United Nations Decade of Family Farmers is promoting policies and investment to put family farming at the center of rural transformation toward a sustainable food system. This is part of an initiative of good practices and technologies for climate-adapted sustainable agriculture, in order to strengthen agroecological system practices, inclusion, and resilience of the production and integration systems in some countries in Asia and the Pacific.

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Latest from EUROPE

Agroecology and food system resilience – A Survey by the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development 

This survey is carried out by the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD for its acronym in French) and aims to: understand the opportunities and challenges of expanding agroecological approaches; analyze how food systems are affected by short-term (i.e. COVID-19) and long-term (i.e. climate change) crises.

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Latest from LATIN AMERCA

Agroecological certifications: without poison and with social justice

The agroecological production aims at having certifications that are free of charge and therefore do not increase the production cost. This article outlines the difference between agroecological and organic certification and the historical process of the agroecological movement for certification in Argentina.

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Latest from NORTH AMERICA

Rethinking Our Food Systems - "Earth to Tables Legacies"

The Earth to Tables Legacies project has brought together a small group of food activists for exchange around food justice and food sovereignty, in order to provide a useful resource for teachers ​and community organizers interested in ​fostering dialogue on themes such as Indigenous-settler relations, agroecology, food sovereignty, and prejudice challenges in the food movement.

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PUBLICATIONS

Living Landscapes - Embracing Agro-Biodiversity in Northern Laos

Laos's Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation entered into a bilateral agreement for the implementation of "The Agrobiodiversity Initiative (TABI)" in upland Laos. The initiative sought to conserve, enhance, manage, and sustainably utilize the biological diversity found in upland farming landscapes in order to improve the livelihoods of farming families in the region.

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Enhancing NDCs for food systems - recommendations for decision-makers

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) together with World Wildlife Fund (WWF), EAT, and Climate Focus, released a new report "Enhancing National Determined Contributions (NDCs) for food systems: Recommendations for decision-makers". The report provides guidance and recommendations for policymakers to enhance the role and opportunities of the food system to contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation.

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INNOVATION

Open Food network - an open-source resources, knowledge, and software to support a better food system

The Open Food Network is a global network of people and organizations working together to develop open and shared resources, knowledge, and software to support a better food system. It provides an accessible source software platform that make it easy to create an innovative, and independent community food enterprises with social and ecological aims. The software is designed to help farmers collaborate and sell together, to create successful and viable enterprises.

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VIDEO

What agroecology do we need?

This video argues that one cannot talk about agroecology without considering the history of agriculture. A comprehensive agricultural reform includes aspects like access to land for all, recovering and protecting native and local seeds, elimination of patriarchal practices from organizations and customs, ensuring equal rights for women, and promotion of local markets.

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See online version

CONTACT 
For more information visit: www.fao.org/agroecology/en/

or contact us at: agroecology@fao.org


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