Agroecology initiatives from Brazil point to real solutions for transforming food systems and call for stronger public policies

The Agroecology, Territory and Climate Justice Mapping, carried out between April and June 2025 by the Articulação Nacional de Agroecologia (ANA), from Brazil, analyzed 503 agroecology initiatives that have been promoting adaptation, mitigation, and resilience in the territories in response to climate change.

The initiatives analyzed in the mapping – registered on the Agroecologia em Rede platform – are led by diverse actors in all Brazilian states, located in 307 municipalities, and involve more than 20,000 people directly in their territories. This analysis, led by ANA, is part of a larger participatory action research initiative, supported by the Agroecology Fund, called IPA-Global, that seeks to produce knowledge on agroecology as a strategy for climate change adaptation and mitigation.

From the perspective of the industrial food system, there is a generalized tendency to homogenize processes, practices, and even people, so that everything can be turned into a commodity and circulated through the market. Yet even within this context, the initiatives documented in the mapping demonstrate how agroecology, by insisting on diversity as a guiding principle, brings to the center the multiple forms of life, territories, knowledge, and cultures that share the same ground.

The results of the mapping highlight collective strategies to build food systems based on cooperation, solidarity, and complementarity with nature. One of the key findings relates to the centrality of actions linked to food production, processing, access, and markets. Of all initiatives analyzed, 35% identified these as their main focus, reaffirming agroecology’s central role in promoting food sovereignty and food and nutrition security, as well as the democratization of food systems. These initiatives include, for instance, the creation of new community-based economies through farmers’ markets, institutional purchasing programs, partnerships with solidarity kitchens and food banks, as well as systems of exchange and donation of food.

Another 31.4% of the experiences focused on the conservation of agrobiodiversity and territorial coexistence, combining practices of ecological regeneration, such as soil management, Agroforestry Systems (AFS), and the conservation of native and agricultural plant and animal species. The mapping draws special attention to the presence of AFS, which play multiple roles: producing food, reforesting and restoring landscapes, reducing temperature, providing thermal comfort, and offsetting greenhouse gas(GHG) emissions.

The study also identified a set of knowledge-building initiatives (14.7%), through which communities have been developing their own analyses of the relationship between agroecology and the climate crisis. Health promotion was the main focus of 4.6% of the experiences, emphasizing both human and environmental health. In addition, 2.2% of the initiatives work primarily on solid waste management, and 1% focus on the production of bio-inputs.

It is worth noting that while each initiative identified a primary focus area, their actions are rarely limited to that domain. For instance, food production projects may also develop their own bio-inputs to reduce dependence on external inputs. Similarly, biodiversity conservation practices are often intertwined with health promotion activities, based on the understanding that caring for the land is caring for life.

Perceptions of Climate Change Impacts

The people leading these initiatives perceive the impacts of climate change differently. For 66% of the initiatives, changes in climate patterns have occurred within the past 10 years, a short period but one marked by profound transformations. 

Rising temperatures were cited by more than 73% of the initiatives, followed by changes in rainfall patterns (70.8%), reduced rainfall (57.3%), decreased water availability (50.3%), extreme rain events (37%), flooding (26%), and increased rainfall (25%).

Changes in native flora composition were reported by 36.2% of the initiatives. Regarding health, 34.4% observed an increase in diseases in their territories associated with climate change. Air quality deterioration was observed in 42.9% of areas, especially in large urban centers and mining areas. 

The impacts on production are also alarming. 56.3% of the experiences reported a decrease in production, and 48.1% reported crop losses, revealing a scenario of food and nutritional insecurity, not only due to lower food availability but also to declining food quality.

Real Solutions from the Territories 

Across Brazil, the mapping shows that communities recognize how their practices contribute to addressing the climate crisis, whether through adaptation, mitigation, or the promotion of climate justice. The most frequent strategies include soil management and conservation (70.7%), water management (42%), diversification of production systems (63%), tree planting and reforestation (56.9%), composting (52.7%), and ecological wastewater treatment (26.2%). Although these practices share common references, each is adapted to the specific characteristics of its territory – including local species selection, agroforestry arrangements, gardens, and methods of organic matter cycling. 

The findings clearly indicate that the territories themselves hold the pathways for confronting climate change and ensuring food sovereignty and security. It is along these territorial lines that the State should act, supporting strategies that are inseparably capable of transforming food systems and tackling the climate emergency. Yet only 37.2% reported having access to public policies. 

In addition to the lack of institutional support, the initiatives face constant threats nationwide. Large corporations were identified as major sources of conflict, promoting the use of pesticides (55.5%), monocultures (42.3%), and GMO contamination (24.5%). Moreover, 221 initiatives reported that agribusiness hás intensified the effects of climate change in their territories.

*The blog reflects insights shared by the National Articulation of Agroecology (ANA), a collaborative of the IPA-Global Initiative of Agroecology Fund. This article was originally published in the newspaper In the Climate of Agroecology. The electronic version of the journal is available at www.agroecologia.org.br/justica-climatica-e-agrecologia , where you can also find complementary materials from the mapping “Agroecology, Territory and Climate Justice”.