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The feature below is brought to you by Global Seed Savers, an organization that is in the running to receive a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about all of our giving initiatives, please click here. To learn more about Global Seed Savers, please visit their website page: here.  BASS Farmers Elizabeth and Connie sorting seeds at our founding seed library The Seeds of Change are Growing in the PhilippinesGlobal Seed Savers works on a grassroots level to help return farmers to the collective indigenous knowledge and practice of seed saving. Through encouraging smallholder farmers in the Philippines to return to the practice of growing and saving their own seeds, we are providing farmers with the tools and support needed to be independent, self-sustainable, and to restore sovereignty over their food system and their lives. We do this through our comprehensive programs - technical and educational training on seed saving and permaculture design, and by establishing seed libraries. What started with a core group of seven farmers in 2015 has grown into an official farmers association, the Benguet Association of Seed Savers (BASS) now with 20 active members and growing. Our model is also spreading to Cebu (in the southern Philippines) as we launch the Cebu Seed Savers and build this nationwide and world-connected movement to restore food sovereignty and ensure farmers access to locally produced seeds. Since 2015, Global Seed Savers in collaboration with our partner farmers have:
We know our model works and are ready to see it expand!  But let’s take a step back, you might be thinking, “Why do seeds matter?” Believe us they do... and here is why. Seeds are the foundation of our food system and up until 30-40 years ago, we had a great abundance of diversity and varieties. Farmers in all pockets of the world planted and observed and saved the best of their crop in seeds from season to season. This practice ensured that seeds can do what they are meant to do... adapt and become more vigorous over time. Seeds are the most beautiful self-replicating system we have and when farmers can select and save seeds after each planting amazing adaptation occurs like resistance to pests, diseases, better taste, etc. In essence, they are carrying the best from one growing season to the next! As the industrialization and corporate ownership of our food system has expanded and three major companies now own our food in the form of seed and fertilizers, it is essential that we return to the collective practice of saving seeds! This is the movement we are honored to help build in the Philippines. This is how we “See Beautiful!” You also might be thinking, “Why the Philippines?” For us the Philippines is personal. 13 years ago I boarded an airplane and left for the adventure of a lifetime as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Philippines. During my two-plus years there, I lived and worked side by side with Filipino farming communities listening and learning from them. These relationships and community are what inspired the creation of Global Seed Savers. What started with one family farm and my Peace Corps experience has now grown into a nationwide movement of Filipino Farmers actively restoring sovereignty over their food system. The Philippines also matters on a world scale and here’s why... The Philippines was recently listed as one of the most climate-vulnerable nations in the world and Southeast Asia’s largest producer of GMO crops with 70% of the country dedicated to agricultural land. Because of this, we believe the work and models being developed in the Philippines are of the utmost importance. The ability to impact the agricultural system and relinquish smallholder farmers’ dependence on large bio-chemical agricultural companies and helping farmers to prevent further catastrophic damage from our changing climate is paramount. At Global Seed Savers, we are honored to work with countless dedicated Filipino Farmers, who against all the odds and challenges facing them are actively building community and returning to their roots by saving and sharing seeds. This is an audacious act in the face of our current industrial food system and it is these dedicated farmers who “See Beautiful” each day with each seed they plant, sow, and share! One of our most profound “See Beautiful” moments happened last fall after Typhoon Mangkhut hammered the Northern Philippines and left many of our partner farmers lands destroyed.  Farmer Elizabeth near the landslide that washed through her land and home One Farmer, Elizabeth Martin lost everything in the typhoon. Elizabeth and her extended family lived in three small houses on the roadside in Ucab, Itogon, Benguet, a place that had been in her family for many generations. Typhoon Mangkhut ravaged the region and her home and land were literally washed away with everything they owned. Elizabeth shared, "I remember clearly how I felt after the typhoon. I remember how my friends from BASS and GSS were the first to ask how I was. I remember feeling like I was important and that I was part of a family—even after I lost everything. It really was a big help that I knew there were people who cared for me."  Thanks to our founding seed library, just days after the storm Elizabeth and our other farmers were all able to access seeds and begin replanting right away. Elizabeth demonstrated the true spirit of resilience and has since rebuilt her life and is a proud member of the Benguet Association of Seed Savers and recently joined the GSS Team as a Field Coordinator. This is the model we are working to spread throughout the Philippines. We are slowly, one farmer, and one community at a time, building our own collective future that is rooted in the land, in the soil, and in the seed. We hope you will join us! To learn more about Global Seed Savers please visit us at: www.globalseedsavers.org Written by: Sherry ManningFounder and Executive Director of Global Seed Savers
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