Learning for Transformation

Overview

In this program, we explore the scholarship of teaching and learning in higher education and within communities and social movements. The IFA is advancing agroecological education through diverse initiatives including undergraduate and graduate programs, community partnerships, and international collaborations. Our team brings deep experience studying learning processes within agroecology movements across Latin America, Europe, and North America, with published expertise in participatory action research, critical pedagogy, and transdisciplinary education.

Unlike industrial agriculture—which relies on capital- and resource-intensive inputs—agroecology is grounded in knowledge-intensive, place-based practices. As such, education is not peripheral but essential to agroecological transformation. It serves as a critical lever for shifting mindsets, practices, and systems. This research program aims to examine and develop agroecological learning in both:

Informal education such as learning processes in farmer-to-farmer networks, grassroots organizations, and agroecology schools
Formal education, particularly at the university level, plays a key role in legitimizing, institutionalizing, and scaling agroecological approaches

We explore the methodologies and processes that underpin transformative education in support of agroecological scaling. We engage with the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) in higher education, while also drawing insights from informal, community-based learning embedded in social movements.

We ask: What teaching practices and learning processes make education truly transformative? What can we learn from radical grassroots educators who have created their own models of critical, emancipatory pedagogy? How can these models be integrated into formal education systems not originally designed with transformation in mind? What should agroecology programs look like? Who should they serve? And how can they help catalyze systemic change?

This work is grounded in a reflective action research approach, driven by our team's commitment to continually refining our own pedagogical practices. By sharing lessons learned, challenges faced, and innovations developed, we aim to support a broader community of educators and learners committed to agroecological transformation.

Key Areas

Agroecology Education at the University of Vermont

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We have been systematizing and reflecting on our pedagogical practice at IFA across our diverse educational programs—engaging undergraduate and graduate students, as well as community members, both within and beyond traditional classroom settings.

In two recent journal articles examining our Advanced Agroecology course (Cultivating Pedagogy for Transformative Learning and An Undergraduate Agroecology Research Fellows Program Engages Co-Learning Through PAR) we document how transformative learning occurs through participatory action research (PAR) and community partnerships. The research demonstrates how integrating undergraduate research fellows as peer leaders, establishing long-term partnerships with local farms, and incorporating diverse knowledge systems creates opportunities for students to develop critical consciousness, systems thinking, and empowerment. These pedagogical innovations move beyond traditional academic hierarchies to foster transdisciplinary co-learning between students, farmers, and faculty—enabling education that contributes to broader agroecological transformation.

Pedagogy in Movements for Agroecology and Food Sovereignty

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This strand of scholarly work explores how learning and education are being mobilized as strategies within agroecology and food sovereignty movements, often outside of formal educational institutions.

This stream of research is grounded in participatory action research (PAR) and built through close collaboration and solidarity with grassroots educators and organizational partners. We understand learning not only as a personal process but as a collective political strategy for transformation.

Within this area of work, Nils McCune has conducted long-standing research with social movements across Latin America and North America. In his co-authored article on teaching the territory he explores peasant-to-peasant learning in Mesoamerica and the Caribbean, calling for a shift in educational theory from an individual-centered model to one that views territory as a space for collective learning.

Colin Anderson has also contributed to this area through action research with European social movements. His work identifies four pillars of transformative agroecological learning, published in a special issue he co-edited on learning in food movements, offering a conceptual framework rooted in grassroots practice and co-production of knowledge.

We are also working closely with the People’s Agroecology School of Vermont to support and learn from grassroots agroecology learning processes in Vermont.

Consciousness Approaches in Agroecology Pedagogy

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Consciousness approaches in agroecology pedagogy explore the personal dimensions of engaging with complex issues.

Building on agroecology’s foundation in diálogo de saberes (dialogue of knowledges) and indigenous wisdom traditions, consciousness approaches in agroecology pedagogy draw from Paulo Freire’s critical consciousness, transformative learning theory, and contemplative pedagogies that bridge individual awareness with collective action.

These approaches offer practical contemplative tools—including meditation, deep listening, contemplative dialogue, embodied practices, and arts-based approaches—that strengthen educators' and learners’ capacity for transformative work.

Current initiatives include developing consciousness-focused courses, exploring consciousness approaches in farmer support circles, and implementing consciousness practices within our IFA team.

By creating contemplative infrastructure within formal education and supporting grassroots learning processes, consciousness approaches enable educators and learners to engage agroecological transformation with resilience, wisdom, and compassion—sustaining the deep, long-term work of food systems change.

The Let’s EAT Community of Practice

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We coordinate a global community of practice called, Let’s EAT (Education for Agroecological Transformation), which has been meeting bi-monthly since 2023 to exchange experiences and develop agroecological learning praxis. This established network of 30+ educators are leading programs around the globe to support agroecology learning in higher education. See website and video seminars.