With the third roundtable in our “Healthier Soils for Future Generations” series, we’ve entered a completely new phase. For the first time, in addition to farmers, producers, and NGOs, we expanded the discussion to include stakeholders from administration, retail, and institutions.

Thanks to our three fantastic keynote speakers. Together, we explored how to create a “Local We” around sustainable agriculture. Willem Ferwerda, founder of the Commonland Foundation, provided an overview of the relevance of regions and landscapes. Sepp Braun, consultant for Regenerate, presented the “Regenerate” project from the Lake Constance region. He offered insights into the financing of additional eco-services by local businesses and other stakeholders and discussed consumer engagement. Ivo Degn, from Re:Source, spoke about the various roles within local agricultural networks and the particular importance of a coordinator.

The subsequent plenary discussion revealed the many aspects that need to be considered. The entire society must be engaged as a partner in shaping the future of agriculture. Bottom-up models are more effectivethan top-down approaches.

Next steps: After a detailed mapping of existing projects and funding sources, we will investigate what opportunities are available in Austria and Central Europe. The journey towards a “Local We” continues!