2010 - 2024

Today, peasants and farmers face threats to their food sovereignty and food security from laws privatising seeds, which are often designed to align with the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) convention. This session introduces UPOV and explores the latest international national mechanisms that intensify the challenges faced by farmers in protecting their seeds. We will present cases of community seed systems from Sri Lanka, highlighting local farmers’ struggles and…

Veterinary professionals operate at the human-animal-environment interface and are trusted advisors to farming clients. Despite their primary professional mandate to protect the animals ‘under their care’ and concern for sustainability issues, a focus of farm veterinary work has traditionally been directed towards the anthropocentric goals of food animal productivity and efficiency. In this session we will unpick the definitions of sustainability to arrive at an ecological paradigm that decentralises the position of humans within the…

Join us as we take you on the journey of clothes, shoes, accessories and all the pieces that make up the fashion industry puzzle. It all begins and ends in the soil, and like most things in
our lives, fashion is grown in soil. In this session we will be exploring the movement for a better fashion industry. One where farmers are paid fairly, a future where farmers no longer have
to expose…

If we adopt a different mindset which values the production of wool equally to the production of meat from sheep, how would we farm differently? How do we progress to the widespread replacement of unsustainable synthetic materials with ethically and regeneratively produced wool? This session will explore how, for sheep farming to be truly sustainable, we need to be more ambitious in the way we think about this important and undervalued crop. Led by expert…

UK food-production is undergoing a swift transition to agroecological/ regenerative systems. Often termed "emergent" it’s not yet fixed in terms of practice and theory. As farmers transition they need to learn new ways of thinking, farming and doing business underpinned by new principles/practices that often are different to those they know and use. This panel pulls together specialist individuals/organisations who are striving together to develop inclusive/ diverse training that challenges the established concepts of agriculture…

Independent food traders and new routes to market can help us build a more regionalised and resource- efficient food system - one where farmers and local economies get a greater share of profits, and where nature and climate-friendly food is prioritised. This session unpicks why we need alternative ways of distributing and selling food, and how we can support their growth through policy and other measures. We will explore the new business models that are…

As a collective, the Barbets Duet is a small, global group of like-minded individuals and families, striving to restore ecological function on their respective parcels of land, around
the world, whilst creating economic opportunity. Throughout this interactive session the story of the group and their lived experience will be shared as well as a discussion on key challenges they have faced such as legacy.

To transform food systems we need to look beyond the problem’s symptoms, and even the system’s patterns and structures, at what fundamentally drives the systems. Consciousness and mental models are increasingly recognized as the key to unlock systems change. Regenerative agriculture calls for regenerative mindsets and cultures in addition to regenerative practices to enable transformation. This session presents an innovative curriculum built on a series of dynamically interlinked modules offered both online and facilitated at…

How can existing landowners adopt more responsible and progressive approaches to ownership that enable greater benefits and wider access? This session will explore the opportunities and challenges of different approaches to owning, holding, stewarding and sharing land in ways that strengthen the connection between people and land in times of transition. The panel will share their experience of different approaches to community involvement, such as B Corps, joint ventures, and the path to community ownership.…