As the world awaits the usual lofty promises from the annual UN climate change conference, set to take place later this year in Baku, Azerbaijan (COP29), the urgent task is to cut through the rhetoric and separate the true sustainability champions from those just paying lip service. Conventional agriculture no longer cuts it. Research consistently exposes that it contributes to at least a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions, consumes 70% of freshwater and drives 80% of tropical deforestation. Meanwhile, around 80% of the poorest populations live in rural areas and depend on farming to make a living. Now, imagine a food system that flips the script ' one that regenerates rather than depletes, centres rural communities and enhances economic resilience amidst unpredictable weather. Regenerative agriculture, including cover cropping, agroforestry and integrated pest management, has become a go-to term in many COP discussions ' an approach I have ardently championed for years. As we...
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