Aerial view of an organic seed mandala in ebbs and whorls created from corn, bean, legume, and grain seeds in a spectrum of earthen colors; a small clay bowl with “Cherokee Trail of Tears” black beans rests in the center.

On the Promise of the Commons

‘On the Promise of the Commons’ is an episode of the podcast For The Wild with guest Dr. Vandana Shiva. In the episode, Shiva discusses seeds and the way in which colonisation and neoliberal capitalism have privatised and commodified them.

Shiva takes us through a journey of historical struggle to preserve and celebrate the connection between the diversity of seeds and the diversity of knowledge across the world, particularly in indigenous food cultures. She argues that re-commoning the seed commons is a vital defence against the greed and limitless grabbing of power over seeds and ultimately over ecological and human diversity.

Vandana Shiva is an activist for farmers’, peasants’, and women’s rights. She is a leader in the International Forum on Globalisation and of the Slow Food Movement, and is founder of Navdanya and of the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology.

This podcast episode can be found on Acast, Spotify, Apple podcasts, and the For the Wild website.

“Reclaiming the commons of life, growing our food, reclaiming food sovereignty and seed sovereignty is not a luxury. It’s a necessity.”

Vandana Shiva – Episode 280 of the For the Wild Podcast

The For the Wild podcast is a more-than-human anthology of podcasts on land-based protection, co-liberation and intersectional storytelling rooted in a paradigm shift away from human supremacy, endless growth and consumerism.

‘Sedentist’ bias and the pastoral commons

Future Natures

Pastoralists are often marginalised from common land and resources, even by policies that claim to help them. Policies are based on a bias towards fixed, formalised land ownership.

Treating food as commons, not commodities

Anoushka Zoob Carter

Bioleft: open seeds

Future Natures