OUR DEFINITION

Regenerative Agriculture:

A systems and place-based approach that restores ecosystems, communities, and economies.

Regenerative Agriculture builds healthy soils, reduces air and water pollution, maximizes efficiencies, and increases biodiversity while promoting equity and public health. And by simultaneously storing carbon, building resilience to extreme weather, and eliminating chemical inputs, regenerative agriculture also empowers farmers and ranchers to mitigate and adapt to climate change.

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Regenerative Agriculture Farming Methods

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Measuring Regenerative Agriculture

REGEN1 is place-based. By reducing or eliminating chemical inputs and building resilience to extreme weather, regenerative agriculture simultaneously offers a solution for sequestering carbon while empowering farmers and ranchers with tools to mitigate and adapt to climate change. This whole system approach to people and place is designed to spotlight issues of inequity across the value chain and deliver approaches to improve livelihoods for people and benefits for the environment.

Recognizing the Importance of Certifications

REGEN1 asks producers to list their certifications and uses that information to simplify the onboarding process for new producers, while rewarding them for implementing certified standards. Certification adds a layer of verification for the marketplace. It can tell you a lot, but not everything, about a grower and their operation.

Getting certified can be challenging for many reasons, so REGEN1 offers pathways for reporting and verifying practices that may not be certified, opening regenerative to a greater diversity of farmers and ranchers.

*The history of organic certification began nearly 35 years ago with Harry McCormack and Bob Copperrider’s work on Oregon Tilth and Seattle Tilth. They took the principles of Lady Balfour (who founded the Soil Association in the UK) and JI Rodale (Pay Dirt, Rodale Institute) and created the first organic standards. In the beginning, farmers took a single piece of paper—printed on two sides—and took the organic rules written on them to certify each other. Within a few years, this farmer-to-farmer certification spawned a national movement and organic agriculture was born. The same peer-to-peer, farmer-led definition of regenerative agriculture standards has been developed by REGEN1, but instead of a practices-based certification, we are exploring the development of a place-centered, outcome-based model similar to the appellation model used in the wine industry.

Quantitative + Qualitative Measurement

By concentrating on what makes each region unique, REGEN1 integrates a mix of qualitative and quantitative measurements with farmers to co-create good outcomes.

You don’t need to be a scientist to learn to listen to the land. The REGEN1 measurement modules go beyond soil samples to help people to see connections between sensory observations and natural processes. Together, empirical scientific measurement and observational approaches can generate a more holistic account of on-farm outcomes.

Reducing and Eliminating Chemical Inputs

Agricultural systems managed without synthetic inputs can find a healthy and productive equilibrium, but this takes time, practice, and experimentation by farmers and ranchers to find what works best for where they are. Reducing chemical inputs is not just about substituting one additive for another. A regenerative system recognizes the value of holistic management.

Continuous Improvement: Outcomes and Impacts

Because regenerative agriculture is a place-based process, practices can lead to different outcomes farm to farm, even field to field, and year to year. REGEN1 focuses on outcomes, not just practices. This promotes creativity, autonomy, and observation-based management in farmer/rancher decision making. These outcomes include improved soil health, water quality and quantity, reduced air pollution, increased biodiversity, and promoting equity.

Value Ecosystem Benefits

Building soil health is a universal pillar of regenerative agriculture, but cultivating healthy soils leads to many more ecosystem benefits, including improved water infiltration, increased biological diversity, reduced air pollution, and more. Farmers and ranchers should be recognized and rewarded for the benefits they provide to all of us.

Estimating Carbon Sequestration

Carbon sequestration—removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it in soil and plant matter—is important not just for climate change mitigation, but also for building soil health and resilience. Estimating the amount of carbon sequestered on-farm could quantify this valuable outcome so that farmers and ranchers may be rewarded for drawing down carbon by choosing to implement regenerative agricultural practices.

Budding soil carbon offset markets are designing programs to pay producers for the carbon they capture and store. Several practices promote carbon sequestration, such as responsibly adding nutrients using compost or manure, incorporating trees into fields, adding cover crops, and leaving roots in the soil system. Reducing soil disturbance by reducing tillage will help not only reduce erosion but also carbon loss in soils.

About REGEN1

REGEN1 was created by Douglas Gayeton. It is a program of Green Brown Blue, a food systems solutions activator produced by The Lexicon with support from Food at Google. It brings together food companies, NGOs, scientists, entrepreneurs, and food producers from across the globe to tackle some of the most complex challenges facing our food systems, from regenerative agriculture to agrobiodiversity. Instead of an activator for startups or new products, participants design, rapidly prototype, and release tools for change every six months. Learn more by visiting greenbrownblue.com.

Team

REGEN1 features an unprecedented collaboration of leading food service companies, purchasers, soil scientists, academics, farmers, ranchers, environmental NGOs, and technical assistance providers.

This website was built by The Lexicon™, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization headquartered in Petaluma, CA. Check out our Privacy Policy, Cookie Policy, and Terms of Use.

To the extent possible under law, The Lexicon™ is releasing all its content under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO) licence.

Water Quality

Providing best water quality conditions to ensure optimal living condition for growth, breeding and other physiological needs

Water quality is sourced from natural seawater with dependency on the tidal system. Water is treated to adjust pH and alkalinity before stocking.

Smallholder Farmer

Producers that own and manages the farm operating under small-scale farming model with limited input, investment which leads to low to medium production yield

All 1,149 of our farmers in both regencies are smallholder farmers who operate with low stocking density, traditional ponds, and no use of any other intensification technology.

Worker Safety

Safe working conditions — cleanliness, lighting, equipment, paid overtime, hazard safety, etc. — happen when businesses conduct workplace safety audits and invest in the wellbeing of their employees

Company ensure implementation of safe working conditions by applying representative of workers to health and safety and conduct regular health and safety training. The practices are proven by ASIC standards’ implementation

Community Livelihood

Implementation of farming operations, management and trading that impact positively to community wellbeing and sustainable better way of living

The company works with local stakeholders and local governments to create support for farmers and the farming community in increasing resilience. Our farming community is empowered by local stakeholders continuously to maintain a long generation of farmers.

Frozen at Peak Freshness

Freezing seafood rapidly when it is at peak freshness to ensure a higher quality and longer lasting product

Our harvests are immediately frozen with ice flakes in layers in cool boxes. Boxes are equipped with paper records and coding for traceability. We ensure that our harvests are processed with the utmost care at <-18 degrees Celsius.

Deforestation Free

Sourcing plant based ingredients, like soy, from producers that do not destroy forests to increase their growing area and produce fish feed ingredients

With adjacent locations to mangroves and coastal areas, our farmers and company are committed to no deforestation at any scale. Mangrove rehabilitation and replantation are conducted every year in collaboration with local authorities. Our farms are not established in protected habitats and have not resulted from deforestation activity since the beginning of our establishment.

Natural Feed

Implement only natural feeds grown in water for aquatic animal’s feed without use of commercial feed

Our black tiger shrimps are not fed using commercial feed. The system is zero input and depends fully on natural feed grown in the pond. Our farmers use organic fertilizer and probiotics to enhance the water quality.

Increased Biodiversity

Enhance biodiversity through integration of nature conservation and food production without negative impact to surrounding ecosysytem

As our practices are natural, organic, and zero input, farms coexist with surrounding biodiversity which increases the volume of polyculture and mangrove coverage area. Farmers’ groups, along with the company, conduct regular benthic assessments, river cleaning, and mangrove planting.

THE TERM “MOONSHOT” IS OFTEN USED TO DESCRIBE an initiative that goes beyond the confines of the present by transforming our greatest aspirations into reality, but the story of a moonshot isn’t that of a single rocket. In fact, the Apollo program that put Neil Armstrong on the moon was actually preceded by the Gemini program, which in a two-year span rapidly put ten rockets into space. This “accelerated” process — with a new mission nearly every 2-3 months — allowed NASA to rapidly iterate, validate their findings and learn from their mistakes. Telemetry. Propulsion. Re-entry. Each mission helped NASA build and test a new piece of the puzzle.

The program also had its fair share of creative challenges, especially at the outset, as the urgency of the task at hand required that the roadmap for getting to the moon be written in parallel with the rapid pace of Gemini missions. Through it all, the NASA teams never lost sight of their ultimate goal, and the teams finally aligned on their shared responsibilities. Within three years of Gemini’s conclusion, a man did walk on the moon.

FACT is a food systems solutions activator that assesses the current food landscape, engages with key influencers, identifies trends, surveys innovative work and creates greater visibility for ideas and practices with the potential to shift key food and agricultural paradigms.

Each activator focuses on a single moonshot; instead of producing white papers, policy briefs or peer-reviewed articles, these teams design and implement blueprints for action. At the end of each activator, their work is released to the public and open-sourced.

As with any rapid iteration process, many of our activators re-assess their initial plans and pivot to address new challenges along the way. Still, one thing has remained constant: their conviction that by working together and pooling their knowledge and resources, they can create a multiplier effect to more rapidly activate change.

Douglas Gayeton

Co-Founder
THE LEXICON

Michiel Bakker

Vice President
Global Workplace Programs
GOOGLE

Who can enter and how selections are made.

A Greener Blue is a global call to action that is open to individuals and teams from all over the world. Below is a non-exhaustive list of subjects the initiative targets.

Creatives and storytellers with a passion for food and the willingness to support small-scale fisherpeople and experts worldwide. This category includes, but is not exhausted in photographers, videomakers, illustrators, podcasters, and writers.
Food Activists working to change open sea fishing and aquaculture;
Members of fishing and indigenous communities that support their communities, share their stories and protect their way of life;
Local and International NGOs work every day with actors across the whole value chain to create more sustainable seafood models.

To apply, prospective participants will need to fill out the form on the website, by filling out each part of it. Applications left incomplete or containing information that is not complete enough will receive a low score and have less chance of being admitted to the storytelling lab.

Nonprofit organizations, communities of fishers and fish farmers and companies that are seeking a closer partnership or special support can also apply by contacting hello@thelexicon.org and interacting with the members of our team.

Special attention will be given to the section of the form regarding the stories that the applicants want to tell and the reasons for participating. All proposals for stories regarding small-scale or artisanal fishers or aquaculturists, communities of artisanal fishers or aquaculturists, and workers in different steps of the seafood value chain will be considered.

Stories should show the important role that these figures play in building a more sustainable seafood system. To help with this narrative, the initiative has identified 10 principles that define a more sustainable seafood system. These can be viewed on the initiative’s website and they state:
Seafood is sustainable when:

it helps address climate change
it supports global ecosystems
it optimizes impact on resources and nutrient cycles.
it promotes a safe growing environment for safe food sources.
it advances animal welfare.
it enhances flavor and nutrition.
it builds resilience and self-sufficiency in local communities.
it prioritizes inclusion, equality, and fair treatment of workers.
it preserves legality and the quality and the story of the product throughout the value chain.
it creates opportunities along the whole value chain.

Proposed stories should show one or more of these principles in practice.

Applications are open from the 28th of June to the 15th of August 2022. There will be 50 selected applicants who will be granted access to The Lexicon’s Total Storytelling Lab. These 50 applicants will be asked to accept and sign a learning agreement and acceptance of participation document with which they agree to respect The Lexicon’s code of conduct.

The first part of the lab will take place online between August the 22nd and August the 26th and focus on training participants on the foundation of storytelling, supporting them to create a production plan, and aligning all of them around a shared vision.

Based on their motivation, quality of the story, geography, and participation in the online Lab, a selected group of participants will be gifted a GoPro camera offered to the program by GoPro For A Change. Participants who are selected to receive the GoPro camera will need to sign an acceptance and usage agreement.

The second part of the Storytelling Lab will consist of a production period in which each participant will be supported in the production of their own story. This period goes from August 26th to October 13th. Each participant will have the opportunity to access special mentorship from an international network of storytellers and seafood experts who will help them build their story. The Lexicon also provides editors, animators, and graphic designers to support participants with more technical skills.

The final deadline to submit the stories is the 14th of October. Participants will be able to both submit complete edited stories, or footage accompanied by a storyboard to be assembled by The Lexicon’s team.

All applicants who will exhibit conduct and behavior that is contrary to The Lexicon’s code of conduct will be automatically disqualified. This includes applicants proposing stories that openly discriminate against a social or ethnic group, advocate for a political group, incite violence against any group, or incite to commit crimes of any kind.

All submissions must be the entrant’s original work. Submissions must not infringe upon the trademark, copyright, moral rights, intellectual rights, or rights of privacy of any entity or person.

Participants will retain the copyrights to their work while also granting access to The Lexicon and the other partners of the initiative to share their contributions as part of A Greener Blue Global Storytelling Initiative.

If a potential selected applicant cannot be reached by the team of the Initiative within three (3) working days, using the contact information provided at the time of entry, or if the communication is returned as undeliverable, that potential participant shall forfeit.

Selected applicants will be granted access to an advanced Storytelling Lab taught and facilitated by Douglas Gayeton, award-winning storyteller and information architect, co-founder of The Lexicon. In this course, participants will learn new techniques that will improve their storytelling skills and be able to better communicate their work with a global audience. This skill includes (but is not limited to) how to build a production plan for a documentary, how to find and interact with subjects, and how to shoot a short documentary.

Twenty of the participants will receive a GoPro Hero 11 Digital Video and Audio Cameras by September 15, 2022. Additional participants may receive GoPro Digital Video and Audio Cameras to be announced at a later date. The recipients will be selected by advisors to the program and will be based on selection criteria (see below) on proposals by Storytelling Lab participants. The selections will keep in accordance with Lab criteria concerning geography, active participation in the Storytelling Lab and commitment to the creation of a story for the Initiative, a GoPro Camera to use to complete the storytelling lab and document their story. These recipients will be asked to sign an acceptance letter with terms of use and condition to receive the camera.

The Lexicon provides video editors, graphic designers, and animators to support the participants to complete their stories.

The submitted stories will be showcased during international and local events, starting from the closing event of the International Year of Fisheries and Aquaculture 2022 in Rome, in January 2023. The authors of the stories will be credited and may be invited to join.

Storytelling lab participation:

Applicants that will be granted access to the storytelling Lab will be evaluated based on the entries they provided in the online form, and in particular:

The completeness of their form
The relevance of their story (coherence with the main goal of the initiative and 10 principles)
Written motivation explained
Geography (the initiative aims at showcasing stories from all over the world so the mix of locations will be a factor that the selection committee will take into account)

Applications will be evaluated by a team of 4 judges from The Lexicon, GSSI and the team of IYAFA (Selection committee).

When selecting applications, the call promoters may request additional documentation or interviews both for the purpose of verifying compliance with eligibility requirements and to facilitate proposal evaluation.

Camera recipients:

Participants to the Storytelling Lab who will be given a GoPro camera will be selected based on:

Quality of the story (coherence with the initiative and the 10 principles)
Motivation demonstrated during the interaction in the online class
Participation in the online class (participants that will attend less than 4 classes will be automatically excluded)

The evaluation will be carried out by a team of 4 judges from The Lexicon, GSSI and the team of IYAFA (Selection committee).

Incidental expenses and all other costs and expenses which are not specifically listed in these Official Rules but which may be associated with the acceptance, receipt and use of the Storytelling Lab and the camera are solely the responsibility of the respective participants and are not covered by The Lexicon or any of the A Greener Blue partners.

All participants who receive a Camera are required to sign an agreement allowing GoPro for a Cause, The Lexicon and GSSI to utilize the films for A Greener Blue and their promotional purposes. All participants will be required to an agreement to upload their footage into the shared drive of The Lexicon and make the stories, films and images available for The Lexicon and the promoting partners of A Greener Blue.

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OUR DEFINITION

Regenerative Agriculture:

Regenerative Agriculture Farming Methods

Measuring Regenerative Agriculture

Water Quality

Smallholder Farmer

Worker Safety

Community Livelihood

Frozen at Peak Freshness

Deforestation Free

Natural Feed

Increased Biodiversity

Douglas Gayeton

Michiel Bakker

Eligibility, Submission Terms and Conditions

Sponsor

A Greener Blue Global Storytelling Initiative is sponsored by The Lexicon, a US based 501(c)(3) public charity.

Opportunity

Terms

Offering

All selection criteria

Additional Limitations

Contact us