Seeds, Soil, and Digital Tools: Highlights from SAN’s Network Last Week (7-13 September)
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Across the Sustainable Agriculture Network (SAN), the last week revealed a powerful convergence on regenerative practices, community resilience, and the systems needed to sustain them. From certification breakthroughs to grassroots innovations, members demonstrated how collaborative action is moving agriculture closer to SAN’s vision: a force that heals and nourishes our extraordinary planet.
Regenerative Agriculture Steps into the Spotlight
Regenerative agriculture was at the core of this week’s conversations. The Rainforest Alliance launched its new Regenerative Agriculture Standard and a certification seal—the most significant shift in its nearly 40-year history. The standard foregrounds soil health, biodiversity, and Indigenous knowledge. It is designed to support farmers as they enhance climate resilience and deliver verified outcomes to buyers and consumers.
Meanwhile, Preferred by Nature is developing a complementary Regenerative Agriculture Tool and invited stakeholder input on its draft framework. Their approach focuses on measurable, credible claims and practical use for farms and brands alike.
CottonConnect illustrated how regenerative principles are entering large-scale supply chains. Through its partnership with UNIDO’s Egyptian Cotton Project, it is working to embed soil-health and ecosystem practices into a traditionally high-input crop.
Together, these developments show momentum toward SAN’s second strategic goal: advancing climate-smart, regenerative agriculture to meet social and ecological sustainability.
Seeds as Systems
Two SAN members focused heavily on the seed sector—a foundation of climate-resilient farming.
CORAF hosted the 10th Regional Seed Committee in Accra, reviewing progress on harmonizing seed regulations in West and Central Africa. This work is essential to strengthening regional seed trade and ensuring farmers can access certified, adapted varieties. The organization also spotlighted a Gambian initiative transforming the local seed sector into a driver of resilience.
CABI, in parallel, took a different route—examining how seed quality intersects with pest and disease resilience. Their posts on wheat and coffee revealed how early detection systems and biocontrol strategies reduce losses and promote healthier plants from seed to harvest.
Together, these insights align with SAN’s third strategic objective: enhancing biodiversity and ecosystem services through integrated pest management and participatory seed systems.
Innovation in the Field: Digital Tools for Resilience
Multiple SAN members spotlighted digital innovation this week as a key strategy for climate-smart agriculture. CABI shared how mobile-based e-extension services are bringing real-time agricultural advice to farmers in Bangladesh, backed by the country’s first national Strategic Action Plan for e-Extension. Their team also continues to develop early warning systems based on farmer-submitted data, helping prevent crop loss from threats like the coffee berry borer.
Another example is the expansion of plant clinics in Burundi, where farmers are receiving practical, field-level diagnoses and treatment advice for crop problems. With over 120 clinics already in operation, this model blends local knowledge and expert systems to improve pest and disease management at scale.
In the fiber sector, CottonConnect is piloting GIS tagging for field-level traceability in Egyptian cotton. This geospatial approach strengthens transparency and verification, essential for brands aiming to meet sourcing commitments.
Local Food, Ancestral Knowledge
Food sovereignty and cultural knowledge were also at the forefront. Fundatia Adept shared updates from FarmBioNet, which is connecting European farmers and researchers to scale biodiversity-friendly practices. They also reported on a regional meeting focused on innovative farm waste management, showing how post-harvest challenges are part of the food system's sustainability equation.
On the other side of the world, in Ecuador, Fundación Pachamama presented the latest episode of their show Chefs in the Jungle, the Achuar community of Sharamentsa exchanged food stories and recipes rooted in forest knowledge. These experiences elevate ancestral wisdom and community engagement in sustainable diets.
These complementary efforts echo SAN’s fourth goal: empowering farming communities through inclusive and culturally relevant approaches.
Voices and Visibility
Beyond core topics, several SAN members used the week to amplify underrepresented voices and mobilize action. While happening in very distant places, these activities represent SAN's core values of inclusivity, curiosity, and radical collaboration.
Pelum Uganda began preparations for Agroecology Week Action 2025, calling on allies to champion agroecological transitions.
RAAA Perú raised concerns about avocado-driven land pressures and advocated for organic fertilizers and smallholder resilience—while training Amazonian coffee smallholders to increase their yields and develop organic practices.
Fundación Global Nature wrapped up their summer Espai Natura program, with over 1,300 people joining activities that blend education, biodiversity, and community action.
Why It Matters
In just one week, SAN’s network touched on nearly every priority in its 2025–2030 strategy: regenerative agriculture, seed systems, biodiversity, smallholder empowerment, digital innovation, and local food knowledge. But beyond the topics, these actions reaffirm a deeper principle: transformation requires collaboration.
If you support a vision of agriculture that restores, empowers, and connects, stay engaged with the work of SAN’s members. Collective progress is already unfolding—one post, one pilot, and one partnership at a time.
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