LEISA II
Lead Organization:
Association Ecology Technology and Culture in the Andes
Community of Practice:
Countries:
Ecuador Bolivia Peru
Duration:
5/2019—5/2021
Overview:
This project continues the work of LEISA magazine (LEISA stands for Low External Input Sustainable Agriculture), which publishes research on agroecology in Spanish. It is widely read by researchers and practitioners in the Andes. While most of the grants given by the CCRP focus on producing research, this one is focused on sharing that research with a wider audience. In the previous phase, LEISA published a special edition about alternative and local markets edited by and featuring research by CCRP grantees. The issue was well received. LEISA, and the organization that runs it, ETC Andes, is in a precarious financial position with ageing leadership. This grant includes funds for strategic planning for the future sustainability of the enterprise.
Grant Aims:
One of the pathways described in the CCRP’s theory of change is “Inspiration through diverse forms of communication.” This grant helps contribute to that pathway by reaching thousands of well-connected agroecology leaders in the Andes region. LEISA has strong ties to the movement, practice, and science of agroecology, working closely with the Latin America Scientific Society for Agroecology (SOCLA) and the Solidaridad network, which operates across the globe to improve the sustainable crop production. LEISA’s wide range of topics—from markets to production to alternative energy—meets the needs of practitioners and researchers for a systems perspective on agroecology. The active participation of ETC-Andes leaders in the Andes CoP has led to productive mutual influence in how and what to communicate to various stakeholders.
Outputs and Outcomes:
Overall objective:
Technicians and field professionals, teachers, officials, peasant family farmers, students and consumers will have acquired or improved their knowledge and can apply and use that knowledge in their own activities, with greater potential for climate change adaptation.
Outcome 1: Professionals and field technicians, teachers, students, farmers, and local officials will use the contents shared by LEISA.
Outcome 2: Research findings of the CCRP’s Andes CoP will be disseminated, allowing the recipients to expand their options for responding to the challenges they are facing.
Outcome 3: Increase in the number of subscribers to the digital edition of LEISA.
Outcome 4: Promotion of policy change focused on alternative options that can be implemented locally for food sovereignty, commercialization of agricultural products, and healthy consumption, with significant positive effects to strengthen livelihoods, which can increase resilience to the effects of climate change.
Outcome 5: A sustainable plan for management and for an organization transition that will lead improved diverse and sustainable funding.
Specific outputs will include:
- Eight quarterly issues of LEISA magazine will be produced during the two years, with an average of six articles per issue.
- Two special issues will be edited by Andes CoP members. As happened in the last phase for the Local Food Systems issue, the grantees are happy to do this because is overlaps with their own project goals to publish their research. They will basically contribute articles and find someone to write an introduction.
- All issues of LEISA will be permanently maintained and updated on its website, which will include a section on biodiversity, environment and climate change, healthy food consumption, and renewable energies. A Facebook page will be maintained and updated, with an increase in interaction with visitors on Facebook. The magazine will be distributed at students’ conventions and other academic events, collecting contact information of those who show interest in the magazine.
- Reinforcement of LEISA’s linkages with other organizations and networks seeking to share their innovative experiences and lessons learned.
- Strategic planning consultation for ETC-Andes.