Agroecology Knowledge Hub

Circular and solidarity economy: it reconnects producers and consumers and provides innovative solutions for living within our planetary boundaries while ensuring the social foundation for inclusive and sustainable development

Agroecology seeks to reconnect producers and consumers through a circular and solidarity economy that prioritizes local markets and supports local economic development by creating virtuous cycles. Agroecological approaches promote fair solutions based on local needs, resources and capacities, creating more equitable and sustainable markets. Strengthening short food circuits can increase the incomes of food producers while maintaining a fair price for consumers. These include new innovative markets, alongside more traditional territorial markets, where most smallholders market their products.

Social and institutional innovations play a key role in encouraging agroecological production and consumption. Examples of innovations that help link producers and consumers include participatory guarantee schemes, local producer’s markets, denomination of origin labelling, community supported agriculture and e-commerce schemes. These innovative markets respond to a growing demand from consumers for healthier diets.

Re-designing food systems based on the principles of circular economy can help address the global food waste challenge by making food value chains shorter and more resource-efficient. Currently, one third of all food produced is lost or wasted, failing to contribute to food security and nutrition, while exacerbating pressure on natural resources. The energy used to produce food that is lost or wasted is approximately 10 percent of the world’s total energy consumption, while the food waste footprint is equivalent to 3.5 Gt CO2 of greenhouse gas emissions per year.

Database

There is a wide range of solidarity mechanisms that are implemented by Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farms and groups around the world. The COVID-19 crisis contributed to casting a light on some of them: solidarity funds to offer shares to marginalized people, sliding schemes allowing members to pay a price...
Event
2021
Community-supported agriculture (CSA) has played a critical role in feeding local communities during the COVID-19 crisis. The pandemic has highlighted the weaknesses and gaps in our global food production and distribution systems. In contrast, smaller more local farms and direct sales models are being celebrated as more resilient and veg box...
Event
2021
The results of 12 years of comparative farming systems research in Kenya, Bolivia, and India provide scientific evidence on organic and conventional systems' economic and ecological sustainability. They illustrate how organic systems and other agroecological approaches can contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.  The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development...
Bolivia (Plurinational State of) - India - Kenya
Event
2021
The recovery plan put in place during the COVID-19 health crisis favors the emergence of Territorial Food Projects as a project structuring tool, linking the actors of the different components of the ecosystem of territory: from the producer to the consumer. With this call for projects, the Léa Nature Foundation, in partnership with...
France
Event
2021
It is widely recognized that a radical transformation of food and agriculture systems is urgently needed in order to address converging social, economic, health and ecological crises. The potential of agroecology to transform food systems and render them more resilient, sustainable and inclusive is increasingly recognized and backed by a...
Event
2021