EBDA, together with SEKEM has been honored with the 2024 Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. This prestigious award recognizes EBDA’s significant contributions to global food security, climate resilience, and ecosystem protection. EBDA, along with SEKEM (Egypt), has been active in promoting biodynamic agriculture practices for almost five decades. We share the €1 million prize funding equally with our co-winners, SEKEM, Andhra Pradesh Community Managed Natural Farming (India) and Rattan Lal (USA/India), a scientist who pioneered a soil-centric approach to agriculture, to help continue and scale their work for more secure and sustainable food systems.

The Climate Heroes event, held across Marsa Matruh, El-Wahat Oasis, El-Minya, Aswan, and Luxor, honored 230 Egyptian farmers for their exemplary commitment to biodynamic farming. These farmers, recognized as climate heroes, received carbon credit incentives for their efforts in sequestering carbon emissions through sustainable agricultural practices.

The event celebrated the dedication of these farmers to organic and vital agriculture, compost manufacturing and usage, and renewable energy utilization. Their work not only contributes to environmental sustainability but also enhances food security and supports the local economy.

Prominent figures, including local governors, attended the ceremonies to acknowledge and reward the farmers for their significant contributions to mitigating climate change. This recognition aims to inspire more farmers to adopt biodynamic farming practices, promoting a sustainable and prosperous future for Egyptian agriculture.

Understanding the long-term impacts of conventional agriculture on society and the environment, and believing in the necessity to transition towards more sustainable agricultural systems, The Egyptian Biodynamic Association (EBDA), an independent non-governmental organization, was established in 1994 to promote organic and biodynamic agriculture in Egypt.

Since its establishment, EBDA has worked with more than 1500 farmers all around the country and has been supporting them every step of the way, by helping them during the conversion process, improving the quality of their work and products, and ultimately enhancing their well-being and livelihood.