Sinéad Fortune joined us to talk about seed sovereignty, the importance of diversity in our food crops, and the urgency of rebuilding and restoring a thriving seed and food culture at a time of climate crisis. Since 2017, The Gaia Foundation’s Seed Sovereignty Programme has worked to build a movement among growers and gardeners in the UK and Ireland, dedicated to the restoration of a thriving and diverse seed and food culture that helps protect and care for seed diversity. Seed diversity is threatened globally, and it's critical for ensuring a secure and sustainable food system that serves both people and planet.
Sinéad is based near Fyvie and manages the Seed Sovereignty Programme, working with coordinators around the UK and Ireland to support community groups, market gardeners and farmers to train in seed production. She has an academic background in Political Ecology, and has worked across community food movements, alternative sustainable food production, science education and behaviour change. When Sinéad isn’t drafting funding applications or willing her crops to grow, she can be found wandering the woods looking for interesting fungi, crafting herbal lotions, potions and remedies, or playing a few tunes on the fiddle.