Promoting Dialog and Exchange on Sustainable Farming

FOCUS ON THE GLOBAL SOUTH | For small-scale farmers in India, it has become increasingly difficult to earn a living. They rely on agricultural businesses for their seeds and fertilisers and have to compete with big industrial farms. While the agricultural sector is still the largest concerning workforce, its share in India’s economy keeps shrinking. Moreover, the distribution of the revenue becomes increasingly unequal and individual farmers impoverish while the agro-industry grows. In combination with the decline of government subsidies and the effects of climate change, this development leaves many farmers with few alternatives but to give up agriculture.

Our partner, Focus on the Global South (FoGS) is involved in research and advocacy on food sovereignty, agroecology, agricultural reforms and further topics related to forms of sustainable small-scale farming in India. Such alternative forms of agriculture can preserve the farmers’ independence from international companies and contributes to environmental protection. FoGS also works together with policy makers, farmers’ unions and civil society institutions and encourages them to increase the public awareness about alternative methods and policies of sustainable agriculture.

After the completion of our last joint project, which provided workshops and training to stakeholders of small-scale farming in regards to sustainable farming, the new project focuses on promoting dialog and exchange of ideas on sustainable forms of small-scale farming, FoGS is organising in collaboration with RLS symposia and roundtables. The symposia offer experts the chance to develop, exchange and discuss new ideas on sustainable small-scale farming in small rounds. Whereas the roundtables provide a platform to all stakeholders to share and discuss own ideas, experiences and knowledge in order to strengthen possible challenges to small scale agriculture. FoGS publishes the results of all symposia and roundtables to ensure the dissemination of the generated ideas and experiences to the public. The project has been successfully completed.