Agroecology Fund

The Agroecology Fund holds an ambitious and transformative vision for the future of food systems. They envision a world, ideally, where:

• Robust rural and urban communities thrive with economies that offer dignity and sustainable livelihoods for all food producers.
• Biodiversity and ecosystems are conserved not only in wild areas but are also flourishing within cultivated landscapes.
• Local cuisines are celebrated, stemming from knowledge passed down through generations of farmers and enriched by scientific insights.
• Governments and financial institutions actively support regenerative economies and ecosystems, prioritizing human rights and the rights of nature.
• Everyone has access to healthy, affordable, and diverse foods from fair food systems governed locally by both producers and consumers.
• Cultural diversity and the role of farmers as stewards of natural resources are encouraged and respected.
• Fair food economies contribute to halting climate change.
• Agroecology becomes the dominant model for food systems, relegating industrial agriculture to the history books.

This comprehensive vision underscores their belief that agroecology is not just a set of farming practices but a holistic approach that can address overlapping crises of hunger, climate change, human rights, biodiversity loss, and poverty.

Mission and Approach: Catalyzing a Worldwide Movement

The AEF's mission is to mobilize resources and build power to transform food systems and foster the well-being of people and the planet. They achieve this through a distinctive participatory philanthropic model, which sets them apart from many traditional funders.

Key aspects of their approach include:

• Multi-Donor Fund: The AEF pools resources from a diverse community of philanthropic donors (currently over 40 active funders from the US, Europe, and Asia). This collective approach allows for greater impact, shared learning, and larger flows of investment into agroecology.
• Grantmaking to Grassroots Movements: Rather than funding top-down initiatives, the AEF directly supports grassroots organizations, farmer alliances, Indigenous groups, and peasant movements. These are seen as the primary "protagonists" of the agroecology movement, organizing constituencies, conducting real-time field research, building new economy food systems, and applying political pressure for policy change.
• Participatory Philanthropy: The AEF works with a network of international advisors and long-term partners who are deeply embedded in the agroecology movement. Their guidance informs funding decisions, ensuring that resources go to the most effective and impactful initiatives, and that the funding strategy remains responsive to the needs of the movement.
• Focus on Systemic Change: The AEF understands that simply presenting evidence for agroecology is not enough. They support a growing agroecological movement that can use this evidence creatively through communications campaigns, advocacy initiatives, agroecology schools, and pilot farms to challenge entrenched economic and political interests.
• Emphasis on Diverse Knowledge Systems: They explicitly acknowledge and value diverse forms of agroecology practice, learning, communication, advocacy, and networking. This includes blending traditional and Indigenous knowledge with scientific advances.
• Strategic Directions: The AEF's work is guided by five strategic directions:
  1. Money: Shifting and leveraging significant financial resources towards agroecology.
  2. Policy: Strengthening political and economic systems to enable agroecology to thrive.
  3. Learning: Co-creating and sharing agroecology knowledge and practices.
  4. Communications: Amplifying messages and stories from grantee partners to shift the dominant narrative about food and hunger.
  5. Strengthening Collaboration: Building strong networks among diverse actors in the agroecology movement.

Social Impact and Reach: Stories from the Frontlines

Since its establishment in 2012, the Agroecology Fund has awarded over $33 million to collaborating organizations in 96 countries across the globe. Their grants support a vast array of initiatives, some examples of which include:

• Advancing Indigenous Solutions for Climate Change and Food Security in Melanesia: Supporting women-led projects to improve access to nutritional food plants and seeds and aiming to plant millions of climate-resilient food trees.
• Achieving Food Sovereignty for Mayan Farmers through Agroecology: Promoting continuous learning processes to achieve food sovereignty and resist the corporatization of agriculture.
• Promoting Farmer-to-Farmer Training in South Asia: Supporting initiatives like the Amrita Bhoomi School in India to spread regenerative growing practices among women farmers.
• Reconnecting Indigenous Peoples of Central Asia to Preserve Natural Landscapes: Helping revive rural economies by restoring populations of neglected Indigenous livestock.
• "We Are the Solution" Campaign in West Africa: A women-led coalition organizing workshops, forums, and radio broadcasts to share the benefits of traditional agroecological practices.
• Strengthening Agroecology-based Local Food Systems in Latin America: Preserving traditional knowledge and species, promoting ecosystem rehabilitation, water conservation, and Indigenous seeds.
• Building Food Security by Training a New Generation of Agroecological Farmers in Colombia: Engaging young people from peasant organizations to become successful agroecological farmers and community organizers.
• Empowering the Peasant Movement of the Philippines: Supporting diversified agroecological collective gardens for displaced farmers and securing land tenure rights.

The AEF has also been a significant partner to organizations like the African Biodiversity Network (ABN) and the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA), supporting their work in amplifying agroecology, mobilizing civil societies, and influencing policy across the African continent. They also support efforts in India, such as the Bharat Agroecology Fund, which addresses the devastating impacts of the "Green Revolution" and promotes natural farming.

Key Achievements:

• Significant Financial Mobilization: The AEF has grown substantially since its inception, continually increasing its grantmaking capacity by attracting more donors.
• Amplifying Grassroots Voices: By funding organizations directly working with farmers and Indigenous communities, the AEF ensures that the lived experiences and traditional knowledge of these groups are central to the global conversation on food systems.
• Building Evidence for Agroecology: They support participatory research and documentation of agroecological successes, providing concrete evidence of its effectiveness in addressing hunger, climate change, and poverty. They even offer a free online course on "Grassroots Evidence for Agroecology."
• Shifting Narratives: Through strategic communications and advocacy, the AEF contributes to shifting the dominant narrative from industrial agriculture as the sole solution to food security towards agroecology as a viable, sustainable, and equitable alternative.
• Fostering Global Collaboration: By linking organizations and movements across continents, the AEF facilitates knowledge exchange, shared learning, and collective action, strengthening the global agroecology movement as a whole.

The Broader Context: Why Agroecology is Crucial

The Agroecology Fund operates within a global context where industrial food systems are recognized as major contributors to climate change, biodiversity loss, environmental degradation, and social inequalities. They highlight that while industrial agriculture produces much food, it also generates enormous hidden costs related to health, environment, and society, often propped up by harmful subsidies.

In contrast, agroecology offers a pathway to:

• Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation: By sequestering carbon in soils, reducing chemical inputs, and fostering biodiversity, agroecology helps mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and builds resilience to extreme weather events.
• Biodiversity Conservation: It promotes diverse cropping systems, preserves traditional seed varieties, and supports healthy ecosystems, countering the biodiversity loss caused by monocultures.
• Food and Nutrition Security: By empowering smallholder farmers and diversifying diets, agroecology enhances access to healthy, culturally appropriate, and nutritious food.
• Social Justice and Human Rights: It prioritizes the rights of small farmers, Indigenous Peoples, and local communities, promoting fair livelihoods, land tenure, and democratic governance of food systems.
• Sustainable Livelihoods: It reduces farmers' dependence on external and often costly inputs, leading to more economically viable and dignified livelihoods.

The Agroecology Fund is a vital player in the philanthropic landscape, demonstrating how strategic and participatory funding can empower worldwide movements to create a more just, sustainable, and healthy food future for all.