The scaling up of agroecology: spreading the hope for food sovereignty and resiliency

This paper makes the case for agroecology as the way forward for sustainable agriculture. Its first part discusses the numerous, interconnected problems related to industrial agriculture, while the next paragraphs focus on agro-ecology as “the basis for the new XXI century agriculture”. Its authors explain the concept of an agro-ecological system as an agricultural production system where external inputs are replaced by natural processes, presenting the main principles for the design and management of such systems. They also present numerous examples of studies that very positively assess the performance of agro-ecological projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Such projects result in increased food security, farm diversity, farmer’s health and resiliency to climatic extremes. In response to the question of how can agro-ecology “be multiplied and scaled up” the authors underline the need for reforms in policies, institutions, and research and development agendas. However, they emphasize that scaling up local agro-ecological innovations cannot be left only to the political will of governments: everybody has a role to play.

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