Peasant to peasant agroecology exchange Erasmus Project

Project Title

Peasant to peasant agroecology exchange

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Reaching the policy level/dialogue with decision makers; Agriculture, forestry and fisheries

Project Summary

P2P Agroecology: Developing peasant agroecology through training and exchange of practices

This project was initiated in a context that is still relevant today, the context of a European agricultural model in need of profound transformation: employment in agriculture is constantly decreasing, the use of pesticides has led to an explosion in the number of chronic diseases, and European agriculture emits more than 400 million tons of CO2eq each year. The urgency to change course has even deepened since the beginning of the project. This context reinforces the relevance of such a partnership, which has worked to develop a training tool for peasant agroecology.

The objectives of this project were:
– to develop peasant agroecology in Europe through training and the exchange of practices between peasants;
– to train in a global approach to peasant agroecology and to understand the political issues that condition its development;
– to propose training in specific aspects of agroecology: farm transferability, dynamic management of farmed and cultivated biodiversity, technological autonomy and food autonomy in livestock farming.
– to develop and disseminate a training referential document that can be adapted in the different European countries to facilitate and encourage the implementation of training in peasant-based agroecology;

The initial architecture of the project was to be based on five thematic training seminars: “Introduction to the diagnosis of peasant agroecology at the farm level”, “Farm transferability”, “Dynamic management of livestock and cultivated biodiversity”, “Technological autonomy” and “Local development”. However, the health crisis that has shaken Europe since the beginning of 2020 forced the postponement and then the cancellation of 3 seminars out of the 5 initially planned. Only the first two activities could therefore be carried out. The participants were peasants who were members of the partner organisations and involved in the exchange of agro-ecological practices. In all, about 50 participants were able to take part in this project, about 30 per training activity, some of whom participated in both activities. However, the benefits of the project will benefit to a much wider audience.

The first seminar “Introduction to the diagnosis of peasant agroecology at farm level” brought together 31 learners from the 6 member organisations for 3 days in February 2019 in Durango, Spain. These three days of training combined theoretical and practical training on peasant agro-ecology: presentation of the history and main principles, training on how to carry out a diagnosis on a farm scale, how to conduct an interview, practical application on five farms in the region, restitution of the results and analysis, collective reflection on ways to improve the farms diagnosed.

The second seminar “Farm transferability” brought together 29 learners from the 6 member organisations for 3 days in October 2019 in Tilff, Belgium. These three days of training allowed for an in-depth study of the issues, obstacles and levers of farm transfer and generational renewal in agriculture: analysis of the different European contexts, analysis of concrete examples on farms in the territory, presentation of existing diagnostic and transfer support tools and practical application.

The main deliverable is a training framework for peasant agroecology entitled “Promoting Peasant Agroecology”, which has been distributed to European peasant organisations and which they can now easily use to set up peasant agroecology training and practice exchanges. The learners who participated directly in the project have become more competent in the topics addressed and are now able to develop thematic training on the various aspects of peasant agroecology dealt with in this project.

The hoped-for result in the medium term is the appropriation by farmers’ organisations, agricultural training organisations and popular education organisations of the content of the training reference framework in order to build new training courses or enrich existing ones. The member organisations of the partnership have already started this work.

In the long term, the project should enable a growing number of farmers to master the issues and practices of peasant agro-ecology through training and to participate in the development of a political framework that will allow its generalisation. Farmers’ agroecology will progress in Europe and will benefit all European citizens: beneficial effects on employment, health, the environment and the living environment.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 86716,86 Eur

Project Coordinator

Confederation paysanne & Country: FR

Project Partners

• Associazione Rurale Italiana
• ASOCIATIA ECO RURALIS-IN SPRIJINULFERMIERIL OR ECOLOGICI SI TRADITIONALI
• Mouvement d’Action Paysanne-Ecole Paysanne Indépendante
• Euskal Herriko Nekazarien Elkartasuna – Unión Ganaderos y Agricultores Vascos Bizkaia
• Norwegian Farmers and Smallholders Union