It was a visit to Pembrokeshire in 2019 that set Benjamin Rwizibuka, an agricultural scientist from DR Congo, on a path to share learning between land-based communities around the world.

While he was there he visited a few farms in the Gwaun Valley, and it was an eye-opener. “I was struck by many things,” says Benjamin. “First, some farms were extremely large, sometimes more than 400 hectares. The contrast with Congo is enormous – the average landholding is less than one hectare per household.”

This is because farming in Wales is largely commercial, “while in Congo farmers grow food for their families, with very limited surplus for the market”. Meanwhile, “they are held back by the lack of infrastructure and also by poor access to bank credit, which makes it hard for them to improve their practices or scale their production’’.

Anxious to improve the state of farming in his native country, Benjamin returned to Congo in January 2020 to complete his first degree in crop production at the Université Catholique de Bukavu and went on to the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), where he worked with rural farmers to put research into practice.

“Through this work, I realised two important things. First, the sheer number of rural households that are not supported by NGOs because project funding and capacity are limited. Second, how urgently rural farmers need guidance and practical resources to adapt to soil health challenges, market pressures, and, more recently, the impacts of climate change.”

Benjamin’s initial response to that was to develop a local programme that would support communities and households who had been left behind.

“I wanted to create a space where farmers and rural communities could access the resources and build skills they need,” he says. “But I quickly realised that to help them effectively, I needed additional knowledge myself. So in 2024 I travelled to Bangor and began an MSc in Agroforestry and Food Security.”

An important aspect of the masters’ degree was visiting farms across Wales and in the Netherlands, which allowed him to get a new perspective on farming in industrialised countries.

“I realised that farmers in Wales also need resources, guidance, and sometimes new skills. The challenges may differ from those in DR Congo, but the need for support, knowledge, and connection is just as real.”

At this point, he saw a much bigger possibility: to create an international network that would connect practitioners across borders, allowing them to share their experiences and support one another. This year, he founded Earth Alliance, a social enterprise that will support practical knowledge-sharing between communities in Wales, the wider UK and the Global South within the farming and nature conservation sectors.

“There is no shame in adopting and adapting solutions that work. I believe that communities in the Global South hold most of the answers to their own challenges. History shows that they have long-standing knowledge in farming and nature-based practices. The goal is not to copy what is happening in Wales or UK, but to learn from other communities’ experiences and successes.”

Meanwhile, communities in Wales also need help in responding to uncertain times. After Bangor, Benjamin’s vision developed further as he started work with Climate Cymru, a movement of more than 400 partners working together to tackle the climate crisis.

“In my coordination role, I work directly with communities on environmental initiatives, and I see every day how strong the need is. Whether it’s understanding soil health, adapting to extreme weather, improving biodiversity, or navigating funding and policy, communities need support, and they want solutions that are community-led.”

The solutions that truly work are those that build on local knowledge and use approaches that make their lives fairer, in Benjamin’s view. And there are already many inspiring examples of local food production, including community farms and small‑scale growers, where low-input, nature-friendly practices are being used.

Benjamin has also spoken to regular family farmers and knows how anxious they are not only to adapt and develop new skills, but also to pass them on to new generations.

“Some farmers have told me they feel there is a kind of ‘knowledge erosion’ happening, that as farming became more industrialised, certain traditional skills and practices started to disappear. Farmers in Wales, regardless of their scale, acknowledge that even just 50 years ago, people were able to produce a much more diverse range of crops on their land.”

He sees the rise of small community-led initiatives as an opportunity to turn that round and reconnect people with the land. That means facing the consequences of economic policies that have led to crashing wildlife populations, a realisation that is behind the new policy emphasis on food security and nature restoration. But how can Earth Alliance help?

“I think the first step is to amplify success stories so that other communities and farmers can see that environmentally friendly farming solutions work, often with fewer resources. It’s difficult for farmers or communities to adopt new practices they have not seen work somewhere.”

Community farms are an important part of the Earth Alliance philosophy. These include a range of projects where land is managed by a community rather than by a single private farmer. Their purpose goes beyond food production to support social, environmental, and educational goals.

An example from North Wales is Pandy Farm, which organizes weekly work days for local residents. This regular involvement helps people feel connected to the land, the food it produces, and each other. The farm also organises community parties, relaxed, friendly gatherings that bring neighbours together and strengthen the social fabric of the area. Other examples are Clynfyw in Pembrokeshire, Glasbren in Carmarthenshire and Henbant on the Llyn.

It’s a way of doing things that has been largely lost in Wales, but persists in Africa, and that is part of the power of Earth Alliance. The learning goes both ways.

“In developing countries I have been to, villagers come together to repair irrigation lines, address erosion, prepare land for planting, or help each other during harvesting.  These collective efforts are not only social; they are powerful ways to share skills and test new techniques. Often, people decide to work on one farm together, then move to the next, and then to another. The logic is simple: if one farm is not well protected, heavy rain or flooding won’t just damage that single plot, it will affect neighbouring farms too. So there is a shared interest in working together.”

Earth Alliance wants to amplify good practices wherever they are found, so that they can be adapted if they are useful. Whether in the food sector, nature conservation or related environmental sectors, Earth Alliance will map the need and the offer and will connect organisations and communities that share the same interest and priorities.

Earth Alliance’s first public appearance will be a session at the Wales Real Food and Farming Conference to be held at the National Botanic Garden of Wales, Carmarthenshire, on 18 and 19 November. Together with Samuel Ombeni from African Youth Integrated for Socioeconomic Development, based in Uganda, and Lisa Shahin from the Arab Group for the Protection of Nature, working in Palestine, Benjamin will share his vision for global cooperation. The session will draw out many other examples of learning exchanges between farming in Wales and the Global South. Get your tickets now!

To contact Earth Alliance, email earthalliance.admin@gmail.com or find them at Earth Alliance – People, Land, Planet on LinkedIn.