Our first in-person Seed Gathering brought together seed guardians from every corner of the UK and Ireland, bringing with them stories, knowledge, and heaps of inspiration and energy for the future of the seed sovereignty movement.
It’s really important to celebrate hopeful movements and this movement is where I get my hope.
Leonie, GM Freeze
Below, we share some reflections from our wonderful participants, including our collaborative poem, Diversity, woven together by Hot Poet Diz Undone.
In order to create change, we need to build movements around that change process…there is nothing that beats that personal interaction you get with an in-person event like this…[conversations at these events] really really accelerate change
Josiah, Hodmedods
As quite often happens when you get into a group of really incredible, inspiring people, I’ve completely started to rethink all of my own practices and my research…I’m really excited and renewed by being around all of the people who are doing this important work.
Cherry, artist and researcher
This is a space that is very welcoming to people with entry-level knowledge, like myself, and it’s really wonderful and humbling to be in a space with lots of people with years and years of knowledge who have spent a lifetime learning about growing food and saving seed.
Henry, photographer and horticulturist
To step away from here not having just been energised and enthused by all the amazing work that people are doing but with some practical steps for [my work] that I’ll be taking forward after this event [is] brilliant.
Leonie, GM Freeze
It’s a fantastic networking opportunity with people all across the UK with people who share an interest and a passion for seeds and see the importance of that genetic diversity in the emerging agroecological food system that we are all hoping to achieve and create.
Josiah, Hodmedods
Seed sovereignty is about keeping power in local communities and I’ve definitely learnt about all the examples of that happening in different places around the UK at the Seed Gathering.
Ross, gardener
Seed can build tomorrow’s resilience [through] events like this; helping share seeds and the knowledge that they contain.
Jayden, Black Rootz
Seeing people who are part of an online community and then actually getting to see them in person is quite wonderful.
Johnny, Soil Ecology Laboratory
Explore further reflections from the weekend in our recent news post:
