A Call to Future Farmers
Who Are You? Where Are You?
And Why Are You Not Farming Yet?
ALPA is stimulating bioregional regeneration by securing access to land for agroecology and protecting biodiversity.
The principles of agroecology have been instinctively followed by traditional small-scale farms operating in harmony with nature for centuries. The new trend of agroecology builds on these traditional systems and scientifically based agricultural production, aiming to create sustainable, socially equitable food systems. We find these principles to be consistent with our own, as ALPA.
Our main focus is our own bioregion in Transylvania, Romania.
During the spring of 2025, we are sending out a survey to (mainly) young people, who might be part of a new generation of future farmers in our (or other) bioregions. We developed this survey because we want:
- To get to know better the potential farmers of the future. We want to know who you are, what your ideas and dreams are, what your obstacles and needs are, and how we can support you best in becoming an agroecological farmer.
- To find out how many potential future farmers are interested in agroecology and in collaborating with an access to land organization like ALPA
- To find out how many young people want to farm, though are restricted to do so, and to find out what are those restrictions. Is it because of lack of finances, access to land, education or maybe something we do not think of.
- And ultimately…. To find you, the future farmers who we can help to fulfill a dream and become an agroecological farmer in our beautiful bioregion Țara Călatei/Kalotaszeg!
By spreading this survey we aim to continue to improve our strategy and effectiveness in bringing more young people into the rewarding world of agroecolgy.
Why do we NEED such a survey?
→ Small scale ecological farms are disappearing extremely fast
In Romania, the traditional family farms are disappearing at an alarming speed of 5 per hour.
- The old age of most of the existent farmers; 70% is older than 55 years, only 7% younger than 35 years (this makes us wonder, who will be farming in ten years from now?)
- The younger generation is not sufficiently supported on societal, educational and financial levels to be motivated to start a (regenerative) farming career.
- The market for small scale farmers is extremely competitive with the globalized mass production of cheap food.
- In addition they often have no access to land
→ Young farmers have no access to land
Land is treated like a commodity item. Prices are skyrocketing through speculation and large-scale land grabbing by local and (mostly) international entities: farmers, companies, banks, pension funds, etc. The consequence is that only very little land remains available to local young farmers, land which most of them cannot afford to buy.
→ The result is that
family farms are being replaced by large, mostly corporate-driven, industrial agricultural holdings, with high chemical and petrol inputs. This has devastating consequences for the large range of diverse ecosystems, bringing thousands of species into the danger of extinction, while soil, water and air are being exploited and polluted, thus threatening the ground as the foundation of life. Furthermore, social structures in rural areas fall apart, cultural traditions are disappearing, while financial resources drain away from local people to far away corporations.
→ we believe
that more support is needed for young people to become agreocological farmers and contribute to sustainable and local food systems. ALPA wants to be part of that movement. Do you?
What do we do with your information?
First of all, all information you give is GDPR safe. We only use it for internal use, we do not give out any of your information for other organisation.
Secondly, we want to really see. We analyse your answers based on our needs (see above). We want to extract information to understand the younger generation of farmers why it is hard to start, or to continue. Of course, we have our own assumptions, and previous research – however we are searching for personal opinions, stories, and to create bespoke statistics that specialise in the need assessment of young farmers.
Thirdly, we want to connect. We want to connect to people who are as concerned about access to land as we are and who are concerned about what large-scale farming and its methods do to our biodiversity.
Fourthly, we want to find! Find and meet those handful of people who would be willing and dedicated to move to our bioregion, become part of our pilot farms – so we can fight for these causes together.
Where does ALPA and Young Farmers meet?
ALPA works on following 4 main questions:
1) What if land was not privately owned but commonly stewarded?
We see land and biodiversity as precious heritage to all living beings, both human and non-human, and therefore we are striving to bring agricultural lands back into the commons. We do this by securing the land, by holding it in our not-for-profit organization and by providing affordable long term stewardship agreements to agroecological farmers. By doing so we are setting up a network of farms with a new generation of farmers.
2) What if we, as human beings, while producing our food could also support all other living beings on our planet?
ALPA works with the principles of agroecology.
- works in collaboration with nature instead of working against her
- avoids the use of toxic chemicals
- minimizes reliance on non-renewable energy
- prioritizes local food production and consumption
- cares for vital resources like soil, water and air
- integrates landscape elements to enhance ecosystems and biodiversity
- promotes inclusivity, equanimity and justice
3) What if young people were better supported and rewarded to become regenerative farmers?
We are supporting a new generation of farmers by providing access to land, agroecological education, expert advice on farm management and financial planning and by connecting them to a community and marketplace.
We are working on models in which future farmers are returning to be all-round stewards of the land, in which they are both producing food and supporting nature to regenerate, while being justly rewarded for both acts.
4) What if our bioregion could be regenerated on ecological, economical, social and cultural domains and connect with other regions who are doing the same?
We work on bioregional regeneration by supporting a transition to regenerative bioregional food systems with vibrant rural communities. By doing so we are creating a possible pathway which can be followed by other regions.
ALPA aims to positively contribute to all 4 questions.
You can help us to come closer to our goal by filling in this survey, thank you for your willingness! (And who knows, maybe you will even become a farmer who collaborates with ALPA!)
