🌱 Agriculture in Action: SAN Members Driving Change Across the Globe

Agroecology, Rice Innovation, and Soil Health in West Africa

It was a landmark week for CORAF in West Africa. The organization participated in the CIRAWA Agroecology Conference in Accra, Ghana, alongside UNESCO, IUCN, the European Union, and FARA — a gathering that the UNESCO Head of Office in Accra described as "a historic junction where policy, science, and ancestral wisdom meet to answer the most pressing question of our age: how should we feed ourselves while healing the planet?" Over three days, high-level policymakers, researchers, and farming communities examined the barriers and pathways to applying agroecological principles at scale across West Africa.

The CIRAWA Agroecology Conference brought together dedicated partners from Ghana, Cape Verde, Senegal, and The Gambia, as well as Europe for keynote speeches, workshops, and policy discussions. Photo: CORAF

On the innovation front, CORAF announced the availability of JKRH 1206, a high-yielding, climate-resilient hybrid rice variety developed with the Institute of Rural Economy (IER) in Mali, capable of producing up to 8 tons per hectare. This variety is designed to meet the needs of rice producers across West and Central Africa — a concrete step forward for regional food security.

Under the FSRP WA program, CORAF and its partners are also supporting beneficiary countries in implementing Integrated Landscape Management and climate-smart innovations in rural West Africa. And in a promising new partnership, CORAF welcomed a delegation from IFDC & Soil Values to its Executive Secretariat to explore collaboration on soil health, sustainable agriculture, and capacity strengthening for agri-food stakeholders.

Rounding out a busy week, Dr. Boladale Abiola Adebowale, coordinator of the ECOWAS Rice Agenda, shared her vision for the Regional Rice Roadmap 2025–2035 and highlighted the strategic role CORAF can play through research, innovation, and technology dissemination across the region.

Regenerative Agriculture in Practice: From Pakistan to Peru

Some of the most vivid field-level implementation this week came from South Asia. REEDS Pakistan hosted a Tearfund Country Team visit to its regenerative agro-biodiversity demonstration sites, where visitors observed fruit and fodder tree plantations, nurseries, farmyard manure applied through fermenter technology, botanical biopesticides, mulching, mung bean–cotton intercropping, drip irrigation, and furrow pipe irrigation — a comprehensive showcase of what regenerative systems look like on the ground.

The Tearfund Country Team visited REEDS Pakistan Regenerative Agro-Biodiversity Demonstration Sites to observe ongoing regenerative agro-biodiversity and climate-smart agriculture interventions with farming communities.

Also in Pakistan, Rural Aid Pakistan marked World Rural Development Day 2026 with a post on rural empowerment and climate resilience, framing solar-powered drip irrigation and climate-smart agriculture as essential tools to address poverty, water scarcity, unemployment, and limited opportunities for youth and women in rural communities.

In South America, RAAA Perú shared two grounded updates this week. One post emphasized that feeding the soil with organic matter is the foundation of healthy food production. The other documented a visit by Agronomists and Veterinarians Without Borders to the HECOSAN Agroecological Farm, showcasing experience exchange, agroecological production methods, and the ongoing defense of the Chillón Valley.

Amazonian Territories, Women's Knowledge, and Forest Economies

Fundación Pachamama had one of the richest weeks in the network. In Tena, Ecuador, the organisation provided technical support for the Validation Workshop for the SPG Standard of the Amazonian Chakra Seal and the occupational profile of Chakramamas — a participatory process led by the Corporation of Associations of the Amazonian Chakra, with support from Fundación YacuWarmi. Chakramamas, producer organisations, and partner institutions worked together to validate the technical, social, environmental, commercial, and territorial criteria that will shape this new standard, and to formally recognise the knowledge of the women who sustain the Amazonian Chakra system.

Fundación Pachamama also joined El Guanabanazo Caleño for the opening of its retail outlet and the official presentation of its Trademark Registration Certificate, granted by Ecuador's National Intellectual Property Service (SENADI). This Amazonian enterprise blends the flavors of the Ecuadorian Amazon with the culinary richness of Cali — a living example of forest economies generating value from within the territory as a strategy for Amazon protection.

And at the broader network level, Fundación Pachamama participated in the SAN General Assembly in Piracicaba, Brazil, and in the first Regenerative Agriculture Forum 2026 — convened by SAN together with Imaflora, the Global Landscapes Forum, and CABI. Reflecting on that experience, the organisation noted: "The transition to regenerative systems isn't decided from behind a desk: it's built on the ground, alongside those who sustain life in the Amazon."

Biodiversity-Friendly Farming: Learning in the Field in Romania

Fundatia Adept had an active week in Transylvania. The organisation welcomed curious and eager students from the UK back to the field, gathering biodiversity data and building understanding of monitored habitats through observation and questioning. Earlier in the week, Fundatia Adept also hosted colleagues from the Farmbionet project in Sighi, Oara, Viscri, and Angofa — together with farmers and partners from 12 countries — for a hands-on demonstration and discussion of what biodiversity-friendly agriculture looks like in practice.

Bioprotection, Regulation, and Safer Pest Management

CABI continued its thought leadership on sustainable pest management, making the case that strong regulatory systems are key to scaling bioprotection and supporting farmer adoption of safer, more effective pest management solutions. Trusted information and robust governance, CABI argues, are not obstacles to innovation — they are the very infrastructure that makes it possible.

Bio-Cultural Heritage and Agroecology in the High Atlas

Moroccan Biodiversity and Livelihoods Association (MBLA) announced the upcoming second edition of the High Atlas Bio-cultural Crossroads, scheduled for July 10–11, 2026, in Aghbalou, Setti Fadma. Organised in collaboration with the Territorial Commune of Setti Fadma, the two-day event will bring together activities dedicated to biodiversity, agroecology, entrepreneurship, and the promotion of local bio-cultural heritage — building a regional ecosystem where economic development and environmental preservation reinforce each other.

Agricultural Shows, Renewable Energy, and Regenerative Practices in East Africa

In Uganda, PELUM Uganda invited stakeholders, farmers, researchers, policymakers, and development partners to both the 32nd National Agricultural Show in Jinja and a Dissemination Workshop on Documented and Validated Regenerative Agriculture–Productive Use of Renewable Energy (RA–PURE) Best Practices. The workshop, framed around "Enhancing Integration of PURE into Regenerative Agriculture through Sharing on RA–PURE Best Practices," highlights a compelling and underexplored link between renewable energy, productive systems, and regenerative agriculture.

Biodiversity, Cotton, and Sustainable Practices

Fundación Global Nature brought an expert voice to the conversation on agricultural practices that promote biodiversity, inviting followers to reflect on how different farming approaches relate to ecological outcomes — a prompt that is simple in form but significant in its implications for how we classify and incentivise sustainable land use.

Cotton Connect was present at Bharat Tex 2026, where the industry is gathering to discuss strengthening India's cotton competitiveness. The organisation also reflected on environmental stewardship as a collective practice built through individual choices — planting trees, reducing waste, creating space for biodiversity — a reminder that transformation is always both structural and personal.

Reforestation and Community Action in Latin America

Pro Natura Sur invited communities to join its 19th Annual Reforestation Campaign 2026. "Every tree we plant is a promise for future generations," the organisation notes — and nearly two decades of consistent community-led reforestation builds something no single project can: a culture of care for the living world.

Sustainability Partnerships, Certification, and Supply Chains: Rainforest Alliance

The Rainforest Alliance was one of the most active members in the network this week. The organisation convened a Partners Roundtable in Jakarta, Indonesia, bringing together private sector leaders, NGOs, and multilateral development organisations to explore how strategic partnerships can translate sustainability commitments into real impact — with a focus on forest restoration, agroforestry, and community resilience.

At the ISEAL Global Sustainability Symposium in Accra, Ghana, Rainforest Alliance joined producers, businesses, policymakers, and development actors to explore how to build more resilient, equitable, and sustainable supply chains in an increasingly complex world. Beyond its convening work, Rainforest Alliance also clarified the scope of its corporate advisory services — going beyond certification to include sustainability strategy design, supply-chain risk mapping, and field-level investment for partners looking to move from commitment to credible action.

Wild Asia and the Road to SPIRAL Summit 2026

Wild Asia announced the countdown to the SPIRAL Summit 2026, scheduled for 2–7 November in Jakarta, Indonesia, and Southern Malaysia. The summit will focus on regenerative agriculture, traceability, smallholder inclusion, and sustainable palm oil production — placing smallholder farmers at the centre of the conversation on responsible supply chains in one of the world's most complex agricultural commodities.

Conclusion: Radical Collaboration in Action

This week's updates from across the SAN Global Impact Network paint a vivid picture of what system change actually looks like: a validation workshop with Amazonian women in Ecuador; biodiversity students in Transylvania asking questions in the field; a reforestation community campaign in its 19th year in Latin America; a rice variety reaching smallholders in Mali; regenerative agriculture demonstration sites visited in rural Pakistan. Taken together, these are not isolated acts — they are nodes in a global network of action, connected by a shared understanding that agriculture must work for people and planet alike. SAN exists to strengthen those connections, to amplify what is working, and to accelerate the transition toward food and land systems that are truly regenerative, equitable, and resilient.