The Agroecology Fund (AEF) is thrilled to announce the first IPA-Global initiative round of grants (IPA means “Investigación Participativa en Agroecología” or Participatory Research on Agroecology), aimed at strengthening advocacy and participatory research for resilient food systems. This grant call, “Strengthening Climate Resilience by Scaling Up Agroecology: Collaborative Research and Advocacy to Advance Food Systems Transformation,” focuses on empowering civil society organizations and social movements to champion agroecology as a key climate solution. Thanks to the Waverley Street Foundation’s funding, 22 grants, with awards of up to USD 190,000, will support collaborative initiatives for up to 24 months on four continents. Additional grants will be made next year and in subsequent years.

Research for Policy Changes and Food Systems Transformation

IPA-Global seeks to catalyze change by supporting multi-stakeholder collaborations, which bring together farmers’ organizations, Indigenous Peoples, youth, women, academics, and climate justice networks. By combining grassroots activism with participatory research, these collaborations will craft and implement advocacy strategies that elevate agroecology to the forefront of climate policies. In many instances, there is close collaboration with governments, from local to national. This initiative continues the highly successful IPA-LAC initiative (focused on participatory action research in Latin America and the Caribbean). It offers a crucial next step in scaling advocacy for agroecology and climate solutions across new regions.

By aligning advocacy and participatory research, collaborative initiatives will shape and influence multi-level policies—national, regional, and international—while also influencing sub-national policies. Key focus areas of the initiatives include policy advocacy to adapt to and mitigate climate change via agroecological practices and Indigenous knowledge, such as seed and biodiversity conservation and reducing agrochemical input dependency. The initiative also underscores the inclusion of youth and gender perspectives in agroecological transitions. 

Selected collaborations will explore critical questions such as: What policy opportunities exist to scale agroecology in each region or country? What changes are needed to create an enabling environment for resilient food systems? 

Advocacy campaigns will be supported to bolster creative communication strategies, including visual media, workshops, and interactive learning exchanges. New tools, such as agroecological curricula and observatories on public policies and socio-environmental conflicts, will also be developed. The data generated will be translated into actionable communications products such as policy briefs, reports, and multimedia content aimed at influencing policymakers and civil society alike. 

 IPA-Global Learning Community 

The Agroecology Fund has invited awarded collaborations to join the IPA-Global Learning Community, which promotes the co-creation of a cross-learning agenda amongst collaborators, with inclusivity and diversity as key principles of the learning process. The wide variety of experiences and shared passion for impactful advocacy set the stage for a rich learning opportunity. On Dec 4th, all IPA-Global collaborative partners gathered online to discuss a common agenda for 2025 and the functioning of this Learning Community. 

Advocacy through Participatory Research 

At the heart of the IPA-Global initiative is Participatory Action Research (PAR). This approach involves grassroots communities in identifying research questions that address gaps in public policy and in documenting effective strategies for advancing agroecology and climate justice. The research generated through this initiative will support advocacy efforts to influence national and regional policies, including their effective financing and implementation. It is rare to have the opportunity to conduct advocacy, reflect on lessons about impacts, and adjust strategies accordingly. This inclusive approach fortifies grassroots power, mitigates power imbalances, and strengthens community ownership over advocacy processes. By integrating lived experiences into research, PAR ensures advocacy efforts are credible, legitimate, and impactful, fostering collaboration and trust among diverse stakeholders. PAR generates robust, actionable insights to inform advocacy campaigns and fortifies networks critical for holding governments accountable for advancing agroecology, an intersectional solution increasingly present in national food, climate, and development strategies.

Global Reach and Impact

IPA-Global grants are tailored to organizations and networks working in 12 countries across Africa, the Americas, Asia, and one broad region (the European Union). Funded activities will include research, advocacy campaigns, policy dialogues, and learning exchanges among collaborative networks. By the end of the grant period, the initiatives will deliver research-informed policy recommendations, actionable advocacy roadmaps, and creative and publishable communication outputs, driving agroecology as a transformative climate and food systems solution.

The IPA-Global initiative reflects the Agroecology Fund’s commitment to fostering agroecological research and turning that research into real-world impact. By building bridges between research and advocacy, this initiative will help shape the future of food systems policy at a time when climate action has never been more critical.

IPA-Global Initiatives and Collaboratives’ Lead Organizations

AFRICA

Ethiopia

• Ethiopian Sustainable Food Systems and Agroecology Consortium (ESFSAC) – “Collaborative Research and Advocacy to Advance Agroecology-Based and Climate-Resilient Food Systems Transformation”

Kenya

• Biodiversity and Biosafety Association of Kenya (BIBA Kenya) – “Strengthening Climate Resilience by Scaling Up Agroecology: Collaborative Research and Advocacy to Advance Food Systems Transformation”
• Ogiek Peoples Development Program (OPDP) – “Research and Advocacy to Advance Food Systems Transformation Among Indigenous Hunter-Gatherer and Pastoralist Communities in Kenya”

Nigeria

• Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) – “Strengthening Climate Resilience Through Agroecology Research and Advocacy”

South Africa

• Biowatch South Africa – “Strengthening Climate Resilience by Scaling Up Agroecology: Collaborative Research and Advocacy to Advance Food Systems Transformation in South Africa”

Regional: Nigeria, Kenya, Togo, and Uganda

• Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA) – “Connecting Young Agroecologists and Climate Advocates for Transformative Food Systems”

AMERICAS

Argentina

• Mesa Agroalimentaria Argentina (MAA) – “Territorial Plan for Participatory Research and Policy Advocacy Action”

Brazil

• Articulação Nacional de Agroecologia (ANA) – “Agroecology Networks Against Climate Change: Action Research From the Ground Up”
• Via Campesina Brazil – “Resilience in Peasant Territories in Response to Climate Change in the Amazon”

Colombia

• Corporación Grupo Semillas (CGS) – “Policy Advocacy to Strengthen Agroecology, Agrobiodiversity, Peasant, Family, and Community Agriculture in Response to the Climate Crisis in Colombia”

Mexico

• Instituto Agroecológico Latinoamericano – México (IALA México) – “Design Territorialized IALA Mexico’s Epistemological and Curricular Approaches as a Tool to Bolster Climate Resilience and Advocacy Efforts and Strengthen Agri-Food Systems”
• Xilotl Asociación para el Desarrollo Social A.C. (Xilotl) – “Resilient Tlaxcala: Agroecology and Participatory Action Research in Defense of Native Maize for the Transformation of the Food System”

USA

• National Family Farm Coalition (NFFC) – “The Bedrock of Resilient Food Systems”
• National Black and Food Justice Alliance (NBFJA) – “Agroecology and Black Agrarians: Unsung Climate and Culture Catalysts”
• MinneAg Network – “Policy Design to Strengthen Agroecology Among Small and Medium-Scale Producers as a Pathway to Climate Resilience”
• Pesticide Action Network – PAN North America – “Policy Learning From a Multi-Stakeholder Process to Enact a Sustainable Pest Management (SPM) Roadmap in California, With Lessons for Other States”

ASIA

India

• Centre for Sustainable Agriculture (CSA) – “Kisan Mitra: Building Policy Ecosystem for Scaling Up Agroecology-Based Food Systems”
• National Coalition for Natural Farming (NCNF) – “Participatory Action Research for Strengthening and Scaling Agroecological Transitions”

Indonesia

• Serikat Petani Indonesia (SPI) – “Developing Food Sovereignty Areas to Strengthen Climate Resilience Through Collaborative Research on Agroecology Practices and Advocacy on Agroecology-Based Public Policy to Advance Food Systems Transformation”
• Koalisi Kampus Untuk Demokrasi Papua (KKDP) – “Understanding the Food System Transformation and Resilience Strategy of Indigenous Papua”

Regional: India, Indonesia, Cambodia, Philippines, and Thailand

• Focus on the Global South – “Agroecology and Climate Justice: Strengthening Social Movement Collaborations in Asia”

EUROPE

France

• Confédération Paysanne – “Survey of Water Management on Small-Scale Farms to Reinforce Advocacy on Sharing of the Commons”

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