Global Seed Savers recently held a Seed School 1: Basic Seed Saving Course with partners from Partners for Indigenous Knowledge (PIKP) partner communities at the Maryknoll Ecological Sanctuary. This two-day training brought farmers and community members together to deepen their knowledge of seed saving, explore practical methods, and commit to building a stronger foundation for local food security.
Participants began by sharing what they hoped to learn such as when to harvest seeds, how to preserve them, and how to plant them correctly as well as what experiences they could contribute to the group. These exchanges created a collective learning environment where knowledge flowed both ways, setting the stage for an engaging series of discussions and hands-on activities. Through the Seed School Modules 1 and 2, participants explored the power of seeds, their anatomy, and the basics of storage and quality control.
The training emphasized practical experience. Participants learned wet and dry methods of seed processing, practiced germination testing, and tried cleaning and sorting for seed purity. They also identified local crops to prioritize for saving including bugnay, kale, eggplant, sampalok, mulberry, and Bontoc tea. By the end of the workshop, participants formally organized themselves into the Baeng Seed Savers (BSS), a new community-led Seed Saving Community composed of several local associations and individual farmers. This marks an important step toward reclaiming seed diversity, reducing reliance on agri-supply seeds, and ensuring that future harvests are rooted in farmer-managed, locally adapted varieties.
