Connecting to the land: paving the way for young farmers – Ele Saltmarsh

Local Futures Podcast

Ele Saltmarsh is a young farmer, scientist and activist. In this episode, she tells her family’s story of pursuing organic farming, and suggests big-picture policy frameworks that could provide avenues for the growing ranks who dream of a life connected to nature and to community. She also makes a powerful case for agroecology and localised economies for feeding the UK, and speaks candidly about community, climate crisis, and about her worries and hopes for the future.

Ele comes from a small farm in Southern England, where she lives and practices agroecology. Since returning from her studies in biology and agricultural sciences at Oxford and Penn State Universities, she has worked with the Landworkers’ Alliance, and with a young farmers’ organisation called FLAME. She applies her research to show how the UK can feed itself sustainably, and campaigns for policies to support small farmers, food security, and real climate action.

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The music for this series is ‘Pines and Violet’, by Sky Toes.