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Returning to our Grandmothers’ Kitchens: Eating with an Agroecological Mindset
The smell always got there first. Upstairs, while I played with my cousins, the scent of my French grandmother’s cooking filled the house; roasted potatoes, bubbling butter, something meaty and rich we couldn’t quite place yet. Everything came from nearby: mushrooms from our morning walk in the woods, herbs from the garden, butter churned by a neighbor, and meat from healthy grass-fed cows, locally known as “La Charolaise.” Each meal was a long sensory feast. We ate while listening to my grandfather’s jokes and our parents’ endless debates on recent politics, all washed down with a glass of lo …
What Grows on Concrete? Lessons from the Urkuwayku Regenerative Farm in Ecuador
Perched atop a breezy hillside in the Ecuadorian Andes, a 5-hectare farm shows what the future of food can look like. At first glance, Urkuwayku (‘Windy Mountain’ in Kichwa) looks wild—in the best way. Trees stretch skyward. Flowers bloom in chaotic harmony. Fruits, herbs, grains, and vegetables spring from the ground at every turn. Birds chirp. Insects buzz. Life hums in every corner. This is no accident. Urkuwayku is a living, breathing system—auto-regenerating, as its founder Stephen Sherwood describes it. Here, nature is not controlled, but carefully studied and collaborated with. Steve de …
De parcelas olvidadas a economía colectiva, el modelo de una comunidad de mujeres rurales en Honduras
En la comunidad de Isletas, Concepción de María, Langue, Honduras, Rafaela Godines identificó la necesidad de empoderar a las mujeres rurales y mejorar la soberanía alimentaria de sus familias. “¿Y si trabajamos juntas?” Con esa pregunta inició la formación de un grupo de mujeres que, al unirse, alquilaron una parcela de tierra que antes estaba en desuso. La iniciativa les ha permitido acceder a recursos productivos y fortalecer la cohesión social, además de promoverla reivindicación de la importancia de la igualdad de género en un país en el que las mujeres representan el 50% de la población …
Imagining an Agroecological Future: Pathways & Blockers
Vast fields of uniform crops have long defined our agricultural landscapes—a familiar promise of endless abundance. This is the image many of us have known for decades, so ingrained in our way of life that shifting to a different model seems inconceivable. Today, the cracks in this system are undeniable: drought and extreme heat burning hectares of land. Unforeseen frosts and storms disturbing seasons’ rhythm and wreaking havoc on plants’ growing cycles. Fruits and vegetables that once nourished our bodies, now poisoning our rivers and children. Trees dying, entire species of birds vanis …
From Forgotten Plots to Collective Economy: A Rural Women’s Community Model in Honduras
This article was originally published in Spanish. Read it here. In Isletas, Concepción de María, Honduras, Rafaela Godines recognized the need to empower rural women and improve their families’ food sovereignty. “What if we work together?” This question led to the formation of a women’s group that, through collective action, transformed an abandoned plot of land into a thriving ecosystem. The initiative has enabled them to access productive resources, strengthen social cohesion, and highlight the importance of gender equity in a country where women make up 50% of the rural population but only …
Comunidades de Guatemala y Honduras fortalecen la soberanía alimentaria con reservas estratégicas de granos y bancos de semillas
Durante una semana, representantes de comunidades de Guatemala y Honduras se congregaron en las oficinas de la Asociación de Comités Ecológicos del Sur de Honduras (ACESH) con la intención de compartir saberes sobre almacenamiento de granos, conservación de semillas y estrategias para la soberanía alimentaria. Agricultores, coordinadores comunitarios y técnicos de Qachuu Aloom, Vecinos Honduras, Asociación de Agricultores las Ilusiones del Divisadero (AGRIDIVI) y ACESH intercambiaron estrategias y relataron experiencias que han transformado la producción y el abastecimiento de alimen …