At the FAO Science and Innovation Forum 2025, during the  “When Farmers Lead Innovation! Farmer Field School Innovation Award” session we celebrated the creativity, resilience, and leadership of rural communities who are transforming agrifood systems from the ground up.

The dynamic session invited participants to experience the power of participatory, grassroots innovation firsthand. Through immersive soundscapes, live storytelling, and dialogue, the event brought to life the transformative impact of the Farmer Field School (FFS) approach active in over 90 countries.

The session was moderated by Hlami Ngwenya, who guided the audience through stories of innovation, challenge, and success.

In his opening remarks, Dr. Vincent Martin, Director of the FAO Office of Innovation, traced the evolution of FFS since its first pilot in Indonesia in 1989, where farmers moved from top-down instruction to hands-on, farmer-led experimentation. Over the decades, the approach expanded across Asia, Africa, Latin America, and beyond, covering crops, livestock, forestry, youth, and entrepreneurship.

“Farmer Field Schools are not only a methodology, they are a movement,” said Dr. Martin. “They embody the values of co-creation, collective intelligence, and equity that define FAO’s vision for innovation.”

Today, more than 20 million farmers have participated in FFS worldwide. Through FAO’s Global FFS Platform and the ‘Futuring FFS’ Unit within the Office of Innovation, the initiative continues to scale, embracing digital tools, gender-transformative approaches, and systems thinking to address emerging global challenges.

Figure 1: Dr. Vincent Martin  during his opening remarks

Dr. Alfredo Impiglia, Chief Technical Advisor at FAO Syria, then presented the New Ambition for FFS in Syria, highlighting how the approach is being revitalized in the country. Despite years of conflict, Syrian farmers have rebuilt their networks and adapted FFS principles to local realities. Through more than 1,300 FFS across seven governorates, FAO Syria is integrating climate-smart agriculture, One Health, and gender-transformative approaches into extension systems. Dr. Impiglia emphasized how the program now supports women herders in agro-processing and marketing, achieving up to 25 percent income increases, while also integrating farmers with disabilities and promoting inclusivity across the rural landscape.

Figure 2: Dr. Alfredo Impiglia presenting the New Ambition for FFS in Syria

 Honoring the 2025 Global FFS Innovation Laureates

Three initiatives were recognized with the 2025 Farmer Field School Innovation Award, each demonstrating how communities are driving sustainable transformation through creativity, cooperation, and science-based experimentation.

Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust – Madagascar

Presenter: Brinah Razafiharimiando and Eve Englefield

Innovation: Composting for Lemurs and Livelihoods

In Madagascar, invasive plant species were threatening both endangered lemur habitats and local farms. Through Farmer Field Schools supported by the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, farmers developed a farmer-led composting system that transforms these invasive plants into high-value vermicompost. This innovation restored degraded land, reduced dependency on chemical fertilizers, and created new income opportunities The initiative boosted yields by up to 200 kg on small plots while restoring biodiversity and strengthening rural livelihoods.

Figure 3: Durrell Wildlife Conservation receiving the 2025 FFS Innovation Award

North East Slow Food and Agrobiodiversity Society (NESFAS) – India

Presenters: Gratia E. Dkhar and Pius Ranee

Innovation: Agroecology Learning Circles (ALCs)

In Meghalaya, Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems was facing erosion due to changing diets, market pressures, loss of traditional seeds, and weakened land tenure. Knowledge once shared across generations was disappearing, threatening biodiversity and local food sovereignty. NESFAS developed with the community the  Agroecology Learning Circles a community-based learning spaces inspired by FFS principles where farmers, elders, and youth exchange traditional and scientific knowledge to co-design solutions.  Each circle functions as a “sovereign learning space,” where innovation grows from intergenerational exchange. Now active in 100 villages with over 2,000 members, most of them women, this initiative is advancing local food sovereignty, biodiversity conservation, and youth leadership.

Figure 4: NESFAS receiving the 2025 FFS Innovation Award

Uganda Digital FFS Hub – Uganda

Presenter: Rogers Semuwemba

Innovation: Agroecological Digital Hubs Empowering Smallholder Coffee Farmers with ICT-driven Climate-Smart Practices

Smallholder coffee farmers in central Uganda were struggling with unpredictable rainfall, limited extension services, and poor access to climate information. Youth were leaving farming, and knowledge-sharing across communities was declining. The Digital FFS Hub integrates mobile applications, a website, and offline USSD technology in the FFS approach to deliver localized weather forecasts and agroecological guidance directly to farmers.

Figure 5: Digital FFS Hub receiving the 2025 FFS Innovation award

Panel Reflections: Investing in Farmer-Led Innovation

A forward-looking panel discussion moderated by Hlami Ngwenya featured Daudi Ssentongo (Uganda National Farmers Federation), Orsolya Frizon-Somogyi (European Commission DG-AGRI), and Ernesto Méndez (University of Vermont). Panelists highlighted the importance of scaling participatory approaches, linking grassroots action to policy frameworks, and recognizing Farmer Field Schools as key local institutions for innovation.

Figure 6: Panel discussion

Closing Reflections from Beth Crawford

In her closing remarks, Beth Crawford, FAO Chief Scientist ad interim, reflected on the spirit of creativity and collaboration that defines the Farmer Field School movement:

“What we have experienced together has been a celebration of creative problem-solving, collaboration, and sustainability, the essence of the Farmer Field School spirit,” she said. “Innovation is not only about technology, it is about people, about trust, and about the freedom to explore.”

She highlighted how the laureates’ stories exemplify courage, creativity, and collaboration, and called for greater investment in community-driven innovation:

“Let us invest in and channel funding into community-led innovation, institutionalize FFS as trusted local institutions, and scale by connecting local solutions to research, policy, and fair partnerships. But above all, let us trust, trust in communities, in collaboration, and in their capacity to lead transformation.”

Figure 7: Beth Crawford presenting the closing reflections

As FAO celebrates its 80th anniversary, the 35-year legacy of Farmer Field Schools stands as a testament to the organization’s enduring belief in innovation that begins with farmers and grows from the ground up.

You can watch the session webcast here.

For more information:

FAO Office of Innovation

📧 [email protected] | [email protected]