Spore Hosts: Food sovereignty as a form of resistance in times of multiple crises

The experiences of the Tashrin protests in Iraq, the Syrian revolution and the October uprising in Lebanon have brought people together and inspired them to fight for food sovereignty. They are demanding the right to food, collecting and reproducing seed-resistant seeds, resisting dependence on pesticides imported from Europe and banned there and exploring new ways of marketing their agricultural produce. They are thus developing alternatives to counteract the harmful consequences of crises, climate change and the modern globalized (agricultural) economic system.

One of these initiatives is the network for food sovereignty in Iraq and Kurdistan "Gwez W Nakhl" (Walnut and Date Palm) and another is the collective "Buzurna Juzurna" (Our Seeds are our Roots) in Lebanon. Two representatives will present their work in a local and regional context and discuss the challenges and glimmers of hope on the horizon.

Film Screenings (OT with German subtitles):

Gwez W Nakhl:

Journey towards Food Sovereignty in Iraq and Kurdistan (16min)
A network of activists, farmers and scientists in Iraq explores what food sovereignty can mean.

A million and one types:

the story of a farm defying monopolies (14min)
The Buzurna Juzurna collective in Lebanon presents their approaches to peasant seed work and their educational work.

Followed by a discussion with:
Faika Aljasim, coordinator of the seed bank of "Buzurna Juzurna", Lebanon/Syria
Dr. Schluwa Sama, co-founder of the network "Gwez W Nakhal", Iraq and Kurdistan.

Moderation:
Ulrike Lauerhaß, Consultant for Lebanon, Iraq and Syria, Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung
The discussion will be held in German and Arabic with simultaneous interpretation.

A cooperation of the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung with Spore Initiative and FHXB-Museum as part of the exhibition "We call it Revolution. Transnational activism in Berlin"

For more info click here.