DIVERSEEDPATHS - Seeds and migrants
Aegilops, Réseau Semences Paysannes and Let’s Liberate Diversity! implement DIVERSEEDPATHS,to foster resilience and inclusivity by facilitating knowledge exchange and cooperation between migrant communities and agricultural biodiversity organizations.
Our journey towards cultivating resilient and inclusive communities through the lens of agricultural biodiversity and seed co-evolution is about to begin…JOIN US!
Credit: Ken Lambert / The Seattle Times
Project objective
The project aims to foster resilient and inclusive communities by facilitating knowledge exchange between migrant communities and agricultural stakeholders. It seeks to preserve migrant communities’ expertise on seed selection, conservation, and utilization, while promoting collaboration with European organizations to enhance food system diversity and resilience.
Specific objectives include promoting equitable exchanges of knowledge (SO1) and fostering actions to combat climate change (SO2).
This involves connecting migrant communities with European institutions and engaging small-scale operators at local levels, with a focus on inclusivity and collaboration. Additionally, the project aims to increase awareness of climate change strategies and stimulate action among citizens, farmers, and seed savers.
Plants have always developed strategies for moving around, occupying other areas and exploring places.
Cultivated biodiversity is the result of co-evolution between humans and plants from the wild over several millennia.
The idea was to bring together members of local farmers’ organisations who work with migrant communities.
Project activities
We will conduct various activities, such as workshops involving migrant organizations and agrobiodiversity stakeholders, gathering and sharing seed stories, hosting ecological gardening festivals, providing training on Community Seed Banks, climate change, and resilience, organizing significant international meetings on seeds and migration, and enhancing understanding of European Seed Policy and Legislation through capacity building
Volos, 18-19 May 2024
Festival for traditional seed and ecological gardening.
With an expected participation of over 150 individuals, the “Seed and Ecological Gardening” festival in Volos will bring together diverse voices, stories, and cultures. It will serve as a vibrant celebration of seeds, migration, and the enduring connections between people, their traditions, and the agricultural practices that sustain them.
Thessaloniki, 7th July 2024
Workshop with international seed savers, migrants, farmers and gardeners
Aegilops will host a dynamic workshop in Thessaloniki, a city renowned for its historical significance as a cultural crossroads in the Balkans. This workshop will serve as a platform for multifaceted discussions, with a particular focus on the rich multicultural tapestry of biodiversity. Additionally, it will explore the social dimensions of migration in relation to food sovereignty, all while curating a collection of migration seed stories.
Antibes, France 30th Sept- 6th Oct 2024
Bring together practitioners, farmers, gardeners and seed artisans from all over the world to regain the knowledge and know-how associated with seeds and build links, alliances and projects between practitioners of cultivated biodiversity in the diverse regions of the world.
Capacity building on European Seed Policy and Legislation
17 – 18 October 2024
The aim of the workshop is to provide cultivated plant diversity actors and peasant organisations with information on the current state of the political process, and to foster effective action and collaboration by these actors to advocate for a regulation that protects and promote diversity and the implementation of the right to food and the right to seeds recognised in the United Nations
Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas (UNDROP).
Training on community seeds bank and seeds & resilience (Date TBD)
The content is structured into a module on Community Seed Bank Management where participants will receive training on the establishment and management of CSBs, including practical guidance on collecting, conserving, and cataloging seeds. The second module will focus on Seed Diversity and Climate Change exploring the critical link between seed diversity and climate change resilience.
Subscribe to our newlsetter for updates on the training dates
Press releases
Here you can find our press releases
– Festival for traditional seed and ecological gardening , Volos, Greece
– Workshop with international seed savers, migrants, farmers and gardeners, Thessaloniki, Greece
– International Farmers’ Seeds Gathering “Sow your Resistance” – Seeds and Migration
– Invitation to the Capacity Building on EU seed policy and Legislation
Resources developed & Links
STAY TUNED! The project has just started and ends in March 2025. To stay in touch subscribe to our ECLLD News! at this link at www.liberatediversity.org/newsletter
Here are the information on the E+ portal
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.
