AGROECOPOLIS

THIS ORGANISATION IS CURRENTLY NOT OPERATIONAL Agroecopolis is a very young, grassroots non-profit, non-governmental organisation. It is the Hellenic Network for Agroecology, Food Sovereignty and Access To Land. It is the product of many years of collaboration between a variety of formal and informal groups, collectives and individuals working in these broad areas. We are the focal point for the Food Sovereignty and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) European movements in Greece and for the Mediterranean network for Local Based Solidarity Partnerships. Our director, Jenny Gkiougki, is a member of the European CSA Research Group, and the steering committee of URGENCI -the global CSA network. We operate with a core team of three people (one farmer, one consumer, one accountant), various working groups, and a multitude of volunteers. We pay salaries on a ‘per project basis’ as we are a grassroots and do not have steady funding sources (yet). We actively promote different models of connecting consumers and producers -like Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), we provide links with the social solidarity economy movement and alternative currencies, and we work on issues of inclusion for sensitive social groups, migrants and displaced people through the idea of food production, distribution and consumption. We act as a hub for networking, experience sharing, training, facilitation and provision of resources for groups (formal or not) that work on similar fields to ours. We promote participatory action research, we lobby for the change of policies on local, national and international levels, and the creation of food policy councils. We help existing initiatives and start-ups by providing counselling and training on ethical solidarity economy and human relations issues (like conflict resolution and active listening). We support and work for autonomy, self-sustainability and teaching farmers how to be independent in the growing practices based on the principles of agroecology, permaculture, biodynamics, regenerative agriculture and natural farming. We work for safeguarding our commons and Greek agricultural land through practices of communal ownership and usage. We promote ethical consumption and a change of consumer habits especially with regards to our food.