To address the challenge of growing food in a way that is fair and healthy for people and the planet, we need a radical alternative to our dominant harmful and exploitative system.
The Agroecology Learning Collective (TALC) is a UK-based collective of trainers, mentors, advisors, centres of learning and demonstration farms that work together to share and deliver the skills and knowledge needed for a regenerative future
We believe agroecological farming and forestry can help us protect and enhance our environment and deliver affordable, healthy food for all. As part of a wider food sovereignty movement, it should provide rewarding and financially viable work for farmers and growers, big and small, and help build a thriving rural economy. Knowledge creation and sharing need to be at the movement’s heart.
We are still in the early stages of our development, but our ambitions are big. TALC aims to facilitate collaboration and knowledge-sharing across the sector, building regional, national and international links between teachers and learners, stimulating the development of new courses and promoting agroecology as a career.
- Provide a central knowledge and information hub for learners, trainers and centres of learning, acting as the go-to place for information relating to agroecological learning opportunities.
- Be an authority within the sector, promoting agroecology and building the case to the government and other training providers for the need for investment in agroecological training.
- Stimulate and support the development of new courses which fill gaps in current training provision.
- Coordinate and collaborate on strategies to enable equitable access to training.
- Build regional, national and international networks of trainers in different farming sectors.
- Initial stakeholder engagement with mentors, teachers and lecturers, researchers, facilitators, farmers, convenors and students.
- Establishment of a steering group to shape and direct the development of TALC.
- Refinement of the concept based on sector insights, identification of key objectives and launch of our website.
- Launch and development of a Learning Directory to detail current training opportunities.
- Creation of case studies detailing training opportunities in the sector and promotion of current training opportunities and news through TALC newsletter and social media channels
- National event focused on work-based and practical training, bringing together trainers and providers from across the UK to learn and explore how we can better collaborate.
- Successful funding secured to further develop TALC over the next two years.
- Continue to meet regularly as a steering group to build the infrastructure of TALC and ensure aims and objectives are met.
- Establish a core team to allow for the growth and development of TALC as a network and central hub for learning
- Organise online and in-person events to engage stakeholders and work on developing agroecological training provision
- Carry out strategic work into agroecological academies and identify gaps and opportunities for new training courses and provision
- Further build on our comms platforms to collate and disseminate information about current training offers, sector insights, news and updates.
- Begin the process of establishing TALC as an independent entity with an appropriate legal and governance structure.
- Develop an appropriate finance model so that TALC is not solely dependent on grant funding.