Activities

GDF pursues its mission by working with local people
and institutions in various regions to support:

• Agricultural diversity, with a focus on the in situ conservation of crop varieties and traditional agroecosystems

• Biological diversity, emphasizing the animal and plant resources that are traditionally used or newly adopted by local people

• Cultural and linguistic diversity, especially the rich environmental knowledge that has been encoded in local languages over time.

At present, GDF priority regions include Mesoamerica, North Africa, Southeast Asia and Southern Africa. We work with established organizations – non government, government and community-based – that have shown a long-term commitment to identifying and resolving critical cultural and ecological issues.

Current projects include:

• community-based conservation projects that encourage sustainable management of cultural landscapes

• community mapping and applied research to defend local access to land and resources

• multilingual and multidisciplinary education for children that draws onlocal traditions

• public information campaigns that encourage the wise use of
biological resources

• school and home gardens that improve health, nutrition and
horticultural knowledge

• restoration of traditional farming systems that secures food production and protects the environment.