Stories from GFAR: Foresighted Farmers to Face Future Challenge

Ironically, farmers, who are most in need of information about the future of food, agriculture, and rural development, have the least access to it. This fact is the most striking, and perhaps the most challenging, conclusion of an inventory of recent foresight studies conducted through the Global Forum for Agricultural Research (GFAR).

Foresighting capacity—the ability to engage in a systematic, participatory, and multi-disciplinary exploration of alternative mid- to long-term futures and drivers of change—is unevenly distributed worldwide. Rural civil society and farmers organizations do not lead, nor do they manage futures studies. Typically, these studies are led by international organizations or research institutions in industrialized countries and they often don’t involve the participation of farmers. As a result, the question is how can farmers make their voices heard both at local and global level when the great challenges of the future, such as climate change, are discussed and used to shape policies and investment priorities in research and innovation? And who can better contribute to answering the question about who will be farming in the future than farmers themselves?

GFAR is supporting farmers organizations across the world in developing a grassroots foresight initiative to include farmers in the research and decision-making process. This initiative has two goals. First, it aims at the local empowerment of farmers’ organizations to lead local foresight and engage local stakeholders in the definition of desirable actions, driven by a better understanding of local challenges and implications of different policy options.

Secondly, through a bottom up process, the initiative will enable farmers organizations to call the attention of, and inform, the international community on how farmers see the future of smallholder and family farming. This will bring a new, exciting dynamic into current conversations about the future of agriculture and rural development.

The fundamental principle is that farmers organizations and associations locally lead and manage this initiative which consists of local foresight capacity building, local implementation of a grassroots foresight, and consolidation at a global level.

Twenty local grassroots foresight initiatives are planned this year and key farmers organizations including the Asian Farmers Association (AFA), the Pan-African Farmers Organization (PAFO), and the Coordination of Family Producers Organizations of the Mercosur (COPROFAM) are willing and ready to engage in this initiative. These organizations are the most important regional bodies representing family farmers. COPROFAM represents 35 million rural workers, family farmers, peasants, and indigenous people. AFA has 13 member farmers organizations from 10 countries in Asia representing more than one million farmers. PAFO and its sub-regional platforms represent several hundred million of farmers in more than 40 African countries

At the local level, farmer organizations will develop new knowledge to engage with local stakeholders in actions towards more better futures for smallholder and family farmers. The results will also provide ground for engaging farmer organizations in local dialogues and actions about climate change, information and communication technologies, urbanization, transformation of diets, and food insecurity.

Through GFAR, US$200,000 is being invested to support this initiative for 2014-2015. However this amount is not sufficient to meet the US$650,000 investment required for implementing and consolidating all the grassroots foresight cases which would enable farmers to create their own future.

For investments in agricultural research and innovation system to benefit small and family farmers, delivery of research results and innovation is also key. But delivery is not a science, nor a technical question, it is about human processes and interactions, about being problem driven and about iterative adaptation.

Foresighted farmers are needed because they are true and competent partners and actors in the ways research is shaped and delivered. Investing in foresighted farmers is key for the future agriculture, food and rural development.

Sarah Small

Sarah Small is the former Chief of Staff at Food Tank. Sarah previously served as the Global Events Director & Special Assistant, Research Associate, Membership Manager, and Research and Communications Intern for Food Tank: The Food Think Tank. She helped launch an urban agriculture walking tour in Chicago, Food Tank Tours, and has been published in Christian Science Monitor, The Telegraph, Thomson Reuters, The Daily Meal, The Huffington Post, TakePart, and The Chicago Council on Global Affairs Global Food for Thought blog. Sarah served as Founder and Event Director of Yoga Rocks the Park Chicago, a yoga and music movement sweeping 20+ U.S. cities. She served as an Associate Board Member of Growing Home, Inc., a nonprofit organization providing workforce development and organic produce on Chicago’s south side. Sarah is also a certified Health Coach with the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and the Institute for Nutritional Leadership. She is the founder of a health and lifestyle brand for women with autoimmune disease, called Autoimmune Tribe. Sarah is also a Yoga Alliance Registered Yoga Teacher (E-RYT) and a graduate of the Dale Carnegie Leadership Institute where she received Breakthrough and Outstanding Performance Awards. She graduated from DePaul University with her Master’s in International Public Service with distinction. Sarah also has a Bachelor’s in Biology and Art from Kalamazoo College.