The use of agroecology as an ‘umbrella term’ for sustainable farming is leaving it vulnerable to cooption. As the term appears more and more in government policy, public discourse and even the PR of agrifood giants, there is a growing urgency to understand and defend agroecology as a social movement with strong political and social roots. This panel discussion will hear from farmers, activists and academics who are building a social movement for agroecology, to discuss the risks of cooption and to explore what must be done to re-affirm agroecology as a truly grassroots and liberatory project for transforming our food and land-use systems.