Agroecology at COP30: smallholder farmers demand climate action

Approx. 6 min read 

By Winnie Mailu, Head of Programmes Support at Ripple Effect 

COP30 brought several positive developments: 

• The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) highlighted the need to focus on food production, processing, and distribution alongside climate action.
• Conference meals were sourced from local family farms and small producers in Brazil, symbolically supporting shorter value chains and local food economies.
• The Gates Foundation announced a $1.4 billion commitment to support smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. 

While these actions are encouraging, they remain largely symbolic and preliminary. There is no guarantee yet that agroecology or farmer-led food systems will receive the sustained policy support and funding they need. Agriculture continues to receive a small share of climate finance, and industrial models still dominate global discussions. 

In November 2025, Kenyan smallholder farmers achieved a major win for seed sovereignty. The High Court ruled against parts of the Seed and Plant Varieties Act that criminalised the saving, sharing, or exchanging of unregistered and indigenous seeds. 

This ruling restores smallholder farmers’ rights to use locally adapted seeds, often more resilient to drought, variable soils, and local climate conditions than commercial varieties. It also strengthens biodiversity, traditional ecological knowledge, and farmer-led innovation (key pillars of agroecology), and reduces the dependency for smallholder farmers to buy certain seeds from large companies, which often present financial challenges. 

Agroecology is more than sustainable farming. It’s a pathway to food sovereignty, climate resilience, and rural development. Smallholder farmers play a pivotal role in: 

• Maintaining soil fertility through crop diversity and organic practices
• Conserving local seeds and biodiversity
• Restoring degraded landscapes
• Feeding local communities with nutritious, culturally appropriate food 

Shorter, locally focused value chains reduce dependency on industrial agribusiness, ensure fresher, traceable foods, and strengthen resilience against climate shocks. 

At Ripple Effect, we promote agroecology through peer-to-peer learning, where farmers demonstrate and share practical techniques with their peers. This model ensures knowledge is: 

• Contextually relevant and hands-on
• Rooted in local ecological and cultural knowledge
• Scalable within communities 

Farmers learn regenerative practices, water management, crop diversity, and agroforestry – all of which improve yields, protect ecosystems, and build long-term resilience. 

COP30 shows that agriculture is finally part of the conversation; but talk alone is not enough. For agroecology to thrive, governments, donors, and global institutions must: 

• Enact policies that protect seed sovereignty and biodiversity globally
• Invest in locally led, farmer-driven solutions
• Ensure transparent allocation of climate finance to agroecology
• Strengthen farmer extension services and access to appropriate technologies 

Smallholder farmers produce a third of the world’s food and are among the most affected by climate change. Policies that place them in the centre lead to more resilient, fairer, and sustainable food systems. 

Donate – support our farmer-led agroecology work across rural Africa. Every little bit helps, whether you make a one-off donation, or set up a monthly donation. 

Invite us to speak – if you have a platform, whether it’s an event, podcast or newsletter, we would be delighted to share more about our work and its impact in building fairer food systems. Please contact us at info@rippleeffect.org.  

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