Agroecology
Africa and South Africa’s food systems are facing numerous threats. From increasing corporate interests, biodiversity loss and of course the adverse weather impacts of drought and floods increasing as the climate changes. There are overlaps between the areas we work in and the projects we do; the following projects form part of our strategic interventions focussing on Agroecology.
UNCCD: United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification
Working towards land restoration, combating drought and desertification but also towards promoting agroecology as a sustainable land management practice. Within this EMG forms part of regional nodes that support Africa regional focus areas around sustainable land management practices and reaching land degradation neutrality.
Agroecology SA Platform:
It is a knowledge sharing space that brings together CSO, CBOs, farmers and academics sharing knowledge and information around agroecology policies and practices that are relevant to our work.
Agroecology Advocacy Coalition:
Work towards a national and regional agroecology movement, includes ongoing continuing advocacy on gov. agroecology policy to focus on agroecology not only on ecological zones and agricultural development.
Food Systems CSO Coordination Group:
Work focussed broadly on food systems transformation within South Africa, EMG is a part of specific food system policy processes, CCAMP, food systems pathways and the National Food and Nutrition Security Plan (NFNSP), part of that is using a Just Transition lens to look at food system transformation.
Urban Farmers – Cape Town:
EMG’s work with farmers in the Cape Town area, specifically the Kuils River Catchment Area, focuses on urban farming as a strategy for ensuring access to nutritious food and livelihood opportunities, despite the constraints of apartheid-era infrastructure and spatial planning. EMG’s efforts link the health and quality of the Kuils River’s water to food-growing activities and community well-being, advocating for land and agrarian reform, water management and socio- economic justice.
Farmers – Mpumalanga:
Work in MP with small scale farmers involves traditional practitioners, small-scale farmers and water justice activists working on land restoration. MP has been severely affected by mining which has impaired people’s abilities to make an agricultural subsistence, so the work promotes agroecology but also the link between health and water for food production.
Farmers in Amathole District – Eastern Cape:
EMG works with small-scale farmers in the Qonce area around promoting agroecology as a livelihood strategy and ensuring rural livelihoods. The agroecology work in the EC incorporates elements of Indigenous Knowledge Systems into their farming practices and also promoting locally led adaptation strategies. Small scale farming in the eastern cape is both a livelihood strategy and a part of the cultural heritage.