Enhancement of agricultural biodiversity for the sustainable development

Food is increasingly a concern for urban development policies, as the recent Milan Pact on Urban Food Policy has made clear. One of the central issues relates to the sustainability of agriculture and ensuring the conservation of the biodiversity of cultivated products, because the spread of modern agriculture has introduced technological and socio-environmental transformations in agricultural production, contributing to a process of “genetic erosion” of the plants used for cultivation
The progressive extinction of agricultural species and the disappearance of ancestral agricultural techniques, together with the ageing of the population that works the land, are factors that lead to the economic and social weakening and the disintegration of our communities.
However, ancestral agricultural varieties, the basis of the traditional diet of peoples, constitute an essential element of identity and a heritage that should not be ignored. On the other hand, ancient agricultural practices guarantee the preservation of soils and the protection of the environment. Therefore, it is urgent to preserve and value traditional agriculture, based on a new approach, bringing it back to our communities, promoting it, especially among young people, and combining, through it, economic development with environmental sustainability and the social cohesion.
Sertã is a region with around 15,000 inhabitants, located in the Centre of Portugal, where agriculture still plays an important role in local development. The problems that threaten agricultural biodiversity, and that lead to the abandonment of agriculture, have been clearly identified in the region. We need a concerted solution, combining our experience with that of other European partners in order to find coherent responses to preserve and enhance the agricultural heritage that is in danger of disappearing in our territories and to safeguard our community.