Fast Tracking Regenerative Agriculture and Bioregional Reorganization
COVID-19 Ready Food Security and Community Resilience Response program seeking to accelerate the transition towards bioregional regenerative food production as a way to efficiently create local mechanisms that provide food security to vulnerable communities.
Powered by: Regenerative Communities Network
The Problem
There is a rapidly emerging crisis in food security arising from the impact on the economic activities generated by COVID-19, especially in communities of tropical and subtropical Latin America. The crisis will come quickly and relentlessly due to the lack of free flowing money in the system and limited resources from governments to face a prolonged emergency. It is imperative to accelerate the capacity of vulnerable communities to reorganize, immediately increase food access, and build long-term food security.
The Response
Regenerative agricultural practices emerging in both the Global South and North have been demonstrated to have strong benefits for food security but additionally for increasing soil health, soil stabilization, biodiversity, carbon sequestration, increased resilience to climate change, and economic inclusion through local development. These practices can very rapidly rebuild soil fertility on degraded land, diversify crops, eliminate the need for expensive or currently unavailable pesticides and fertilizers, and increase overall nutritional yields. They can both help with the immediate humanitarian crisis around food production and access, and lay the foundation for a broader societal transition to regenerative economies.
We propose to rapidly activate local food production utilizing regenerative agriculture methods in several bioregions in Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Peru, and Brazil within the Regenerative Communities Network, a global learning and action network supporting community-led, just transitions towards regenerative economies. For instance, one member in the network, Regenerate Costa Rica, is actively supporting efforts to feed 35,000 individuals in the Tamarindo area, which was devastated by the complete collapse of the tourism industry just as peak season was approaching. In addressing regenerative agriculture we will also address access to clean and sanitary water as it will be critical for community health and resilience.
This rapid activation will involve the production of resources that include best practices and examples from the different actors in the RCN network, along with supporting peer-to-peer learning from affected communities.
Collaboration
Working video calls and supporting collaboration processes immediately connecting several affected communities in Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Peru, and Brazil to share ways to quickly shift into bioregional regenerative food production and collaborative models.
Co-created Tools
Aggregate and co-create a repository of tools, resources and examples of the work being done in each of these communities.
Support System
Create a regional food security and resiliency collaborative support system linking these communities in a way that can scale to support many others.
Business Coalitions
Engage regenerative business coalitions to a) invest in regenerative practice; b) serve as inspiration and learning for transitioning conventional agriculture business to regenerative models; c) advocate for market and public incentives for regenerative agriculture.
Bioregional Solutions
Testing and consolidating a vision for land stewardship of the bio regions. Implementing best practices of nature based solutions, forming local change agents, measuring impact and creating knowledge to be shared.
Regenerative agriculture is a conservation and rehabilitation approach to food and farming systems. It focuses on topsoil regeneration, increasing biodiversity,[1] improving the water cycle,[2] enhancing ecosystem services, supporting biosequestration, increasing resilience to climate change, and strengthening the health and vitality of farm soil. Practices include recycling as much farm waste as possible and adding composted material from sources outside the farm.
When we see the relationship between the COVID crisis in relation to the factors of the climate change crisis, we can see that the solutions for both are connected.
A systemic mapping of regenerative agriculture with a communication strategy and connected to a collaborative bio-regional network shows how a positive impact can be accelerated in meeting sustainable development goals.
We invite you to navigate this 7 Vortex mapping our project.
Partnership and Alliances
Lead Organization: OpEPA, Colombia
Endorsing and Infrastructure Support: Regenerative Communities Network, Global
Action Research Sites: Colombia Regenerativa
Action Research Sites: Regenerate Costa Rica
Action Research Site: Valle Sagrado Regenerativa, Peru
Action Research Site: Regeneración Ecosistemas Peru
Action Research Site: Sinal do Vale, Brazil
Action Research Sites: Mexico Regenerativa, SVX México, Taller13
Supporting: Capital Institute, USA
Ally: Sistema B
Regenerative Communities Network
Regenerative communities are emerging in both urban and rural areas across every continent. The global Regenerative Communities Network honors and connects these efforts with a digital learning platform and through a long-term cycle of on the ground support.