When some of our team first visited Asia Plateau in 1966 it was a bare hillside which is now covered in trees and a source of much wildlife. Later, in 2002, some of our colleagues from East Africa came to Asia Plateau to attend an International Farmers’ Dialogue followed by visits to Indian farms, and they were so inspired by what they had seen and heard that they decided to work together to hold similar events in their countries. This programme has since then expanded to involve Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, DR Congo, Mayotte and is reaching out to Southern Sudan and Burundi.

This article appeared in the TAA (Tropical Agriculture Association) winter 2016 magazine. As a programme of Initiatives of Change – a global movement of people who are changing the world for the better, starting with themselves – Farmers’ Dialogue is part of a worldwide network of people committed to the task of transforming society through change in the individuals, beginning with themselves.

Over the years and decades, change has been demanded from people to governments, corporations, media and the other person. The 'Punarutthan Padyatra' or 'March on Foot', which was recently held in Jamshedpur in the state of Jharkhand, India, asked everyone they met along the way one thing, 'Change your country by starting with yourself'. A journey across 12 panchayats (village councils), through three districts, with many villages, covering a total of approximately 350 km. People from all backgrounds and ages were inspired by it.

Final declaration following the Farmers' Dialogue that was held in Battambang, Cambodia, from 26 to 30 November 2016.

On Saturday 26 November 2016, at Chour Khour Restaurant in Battambang, the international Farmers’ Dialogue was welcomed by the Cambodian organizing IofC team. The catholic Bishop Enrique Figaredo Alvargonzalez of the Battambang Apostolic Prefecture greeted 100 participants and many other guests before blessing the gathering.

The commitment of Muna Ismail, originally from Somalia, to restore farmer’s livelihoods in dry areas is resulting in pioneering work. She is convinced that yeheb, a unique dry-land wild and domesticated crop, could be a part of the future for food security in the arid lands of the Horn of Africa.

News of the launch of the international meeting of the International Farmers' Dialogue on 12 November 2015 in Mayotte. The presence of foreign farmers led one journalist to state that it was perhaps the first international meeting that has taken place on the island.

Visiting the Romanian region of Transylvania in August 2015, farmers and agricultural officials from Mauges, western France, exchanged and explored ways of developing rural production and associated projects.

On 28 October, the online newspaper, JDM (Journal de Mayotte), echoed the work of the Farmers Dialogue in Mayotte: 'After the success of the agricultural fair in 2011, Mayotte will once again move to the rhythm of the countryside. From 13 to 15 November, an agricultural exhibition will be held in Mtsapere, alongside an international conference organised by the NGO Farmers’ Dialogue.'

The International Farmers’ Dialogue was officially opened on Thursday 4 December. Where do the farmers get their motivation from, when faced by so many difficulties, and in order to fulfil their task to feed the world?