EP8 - Scaling Regenerative Agriculture in Europe
Episode 8 is out now!
In this episode, we talk with Philippe Birker, co-founder of Climate Farmers. Philippe shares his personal journey into regenerative practices, which began when he and friends purchased an abandoned village in Portugal, inadvertently becoming stewards of the land. This sparked a year-long pilgrimage visiting regenerative farms across Western Europe, ultimately leading to the creation of Climate Farmers, a "living organism" working on systemic change in the European agri-food system.
Learning from the land: How Climate Farmers is building a regenerative agricultural movement in Europe
In 2017, Philippe Birker found himself in an unexpected position: as a steward of land in Portugal after he and some friends purchased an abandoned village. This experience sparked a curiosity that would change the course of his life. "That is when I was for the first time in the situation that I was basically a steward in an ecosystem myself," Philippe explains.
What followed was a deep dive into permaculture and regenerative agriculture literature, leading to a surprising discovery. Scientific studies from the 1980s and 1990s had already documented the remarkable benefits of regenerative agricultural practices, including carbon sequestration. Yet this information had remained largely outside of public discourse, despite offering potential solutions to many environmental challenges we face today.
This realization set Philippe on a year-long pilgrimage across Western Europe, visiting every regenerative farmer he could find. The journey culminated in the founding of Climate Farmers, an organization dedicated to scaling regenerative agriculture across Europe.
A living organism for systemic change
Climate Farmers isn't just an organization—Philippe describes it as "a living organism that's working on systemic change towards a regenerative agri-food system." This approach recognizes that transformation requires multiple interventions working in concert.
The organization operates through several key initiatives:
Building Communities: Creating connections between regenerative farmers across Europe who previously worked in isolation. These communities form the foundation for knowledge sharing and mutual support.
On-Farm Learning: Organizing regular gatherings on regenerative farms where conventional farmers can see these practices in action. As Philippe notes, "Once you have seen regeneration with your own eyes, it's impossible to unlearn what you have seen."
Measuring Ecosystem Services: Developing verification systems to quantify what makes agriculture truly regenerative, working with academic institutions like Wageningen University to establish scientific benchmarks.
Systems Change Consortium: Bringing together 25 stakeholders from across the food system to map relationships between actors—from farmers to supermarkets to research institutions—and identify leverage points for transformation.
Education: Addressing the knowledge gap with specialized training programs for agricultural graduates, introducing them to regenerative principles and practices.
The path forward
As Climate Farmers continues to grow its impact across Europe, several key lessons emerge from Philippe's experience:
Show, Don't Just Tell: Nothing convinces farmers like seeing successful regenerative systems with their own eyes.
Build Local Networks: Context-specific knowledge and relationships drive adoption more effectively than general principles.
Embrace the Spectrum: Recognize that regenerative agriculture is a journey with many entry points and pathways.
Measure What Matters: Develop rigorous systems to quantify ecosystem services to prevent greenwashing and build credibility.
Transform the System, Not Just Farms: Work simultaneously on farm practices, consumer awareness, policy frameworks, and economic models.
"I don't like the term 'now you're regenerative, now you're not,'" he explains. "There are many different steps on that regenerative journey."