Overview

The Agricultural Biodiversity Community (abc) is a diverse group of members with extensive experience in many areas under the scope of agricultural biodiversity. What brings the 100+ individuals and organizations together in the abc is our shared passion and belief that addressing agricultural biodiversity is essential, if we are to address the world’s most pressing challenges. Keeping diversity in our food, agriculture and livestock systems is vital, if we are to respond to the vagaries of climate change, ensure community resilience, and enhance food and livelihood security. We set out to “Break Out of the Glass House” that has limited the wide-scale adoption of successful practices of farmers, gardeners, fisher folk, herders, and forest peoples that conserve and enrich agricultural biodiversity while providing sustainable livelihoods.

The group started its journey 5 years ago (2011) meeting together for the first time in Thika, Kenya. Three more meetings and many other communications and efforts in between have transformed what was a rather loose network into a functioning global community. The difference between a network and a community lies in the level of relationship. Where a network may have a common theme or thread, it is in the process of working together and repeated face to face communications that a strong level of trust is developed within the community. In addition, members realize the skills and knowledge of their peers, learning how best to work together and complement each other. Thus, with the evolution of abc community collective work and efforts have become easier and more efficient.

From an outside perspective, we currently have a group of experts that can cover most of the wide range and scope that agricultural biodiversity covers. Such areas include traditional varieties, traditional breeds, farmer seed selection + breeding, international and national policy, community resilience, information and knowledge exchange, public awareness, how to link farmers to markets that support such diversity, and much more. While our principal work is to share information and experience, we have been called upon and are engaging further as a team of experts working together to develop tools and paths forward on themes like open source seed, resilient communities, and information and knowledge sharing on agricultural biodiversity policies and practices. Most of us are practitioners with real life experience, working directly with the communities that are taking successful agricultural biodiversity programs and practices forward. Based on the experience some of our members are helping to direct policy and law to broaden the reach and benefit of such practices.

Agricultural biodiversity is a wealth that our planet and species all depend upon even though we often choose to ignore this. Part of our vision is that only when there is a real appreciation amongst the greater public of the value of this vast treasure, will there the will, support, markets, policy, and laws that keep it alive and growing. Towards this end and for the greater public, we are prepared to serve. We have the objective to continue our collective work of brainstorming and collaborating to restore the wealth of agricultural biodiversity to the peoples of this planet. We expect to be called upon to come up with new ideas, tools, and solutions that will facilitate this in spite of the many challenges pushing in the other direction.

We welcome others who share similar beliefs and goals to join our community and share their experience and knowledge, and to learn together with us, or just read more about the great work that is being done in your bioregion and around the world. If you want to enjoy a world rich in such diversity and its many fruits, you may want to join as member or as a supporter in this interesting collective journey.

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Overview