Wayanad Community Seed Festival is a humble attempt to provide a common platform to facilitate the exchange of traditional knowledge and scientific knowledge between the farming and scientific community to usher in Agrobiodiversity conservation activities
Seed Fest, an ongoing process started in Wayanad in 2015, aims to network with farmers, LSGs and scientists to create democratic spaces and structures to conserve agro-biodiversity. Traditional seed varieties are exhibited, exchanged, and propagated through seed fest, and policymakers are oriented on the current status and information on seed conservation in the country. The annual seed festival is also the venue to distribute the regional Genome Savior Awards instituted by Wayanad District TRibal Development Action Council to honour the custodian farmers.
Major Programmes
Community Agrobiodiversity Conservation Award
Wayanad District TRibal Development Action Council, a Grass Root Institution (GRI) in Wayanad nurtured by M S Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) which won the Genome Saviour Award in the year 2012 on behalf of Kurichya and Kuruma farmers, has instituted cash awards from 2015 to recognize Adivasi families belonging to ‘Malabar region’ which conserve the agro-biodiversity. The awards will be distributed during Seed Fest.
The 8th Community Seed Festival in Wayanad on March 1-2, 2024, concluded with a commitment to conserve biodiversity for a sustainable future.
Seed Fest: Past Editions
Sustainable Utilization of Agrobiodiversity is the key to achieve Health & Nutrition Security: 7th Wayanad Community Seed Fest 2023 concludes
