An Introduction to abc Newsletter
Welcome to the abc Newsletter!
Agricultural Biodiversity Community (abc) was initiated as part of a joint Hivos and Oxfam Novib Knowledge Programme, Agrobiodiversity@knowledged, initiated in 2011. This Knowledge Programme aims to break through the barriers that limit the scaling up, institutional embedding and horizontal extension of practices that build on agricultural biodiversity for improved livelihoods and resilient food systems. abc was constituted by diverse organisations and individuals working on agricultural biodiversity with millions of farmers worldwide, where evidence and insights are generated, shared and tested. The knowledge programme aims to synthesise knowledge from a local to a global scale, conduct research on approaches and analytical frameworks that provide new perspectives on agricultural biodiversity and its role in resilient socio-ecological food systems, and improve horizontal and vertical knowledge flows towards positive change and transformation.
The priority areas of abc are, i) Seeds, breeds and technology, ii) Markets and trade, iii) Policy and governance, iv) Information networks and v) Resilient communities. One of the five strategies-cum-goals of abc is ‘Knowledge exchange’. The members of abc exchange information, ideas, evidence and insights on changes, successes, failures, challenges, and opportunities for agricultural biodiversity conservation, use and development. Through this exchange, members learn from the experience of people and organisations with diverse disciplinary, geographical and cultural perspectives, build the evidence base for a transformation towards agricultural-biodiversity-based food production systems and advance action agendas.
To aid in this process, an e-Newsletter is being published. It will aid in exchange of information and knowledge within and outside the abc. The e-Newsletter will be shared among the members through D-group and will be uploaded to the abc website. We solicit your support and contribution to publish this e-Newsletter in a timely manner.
Happy reading!
