Semillero de Ideas centers farmworkers as the leaders of innovation in agriculture.
We create safe spaces for farmworkers to share their knowledge, experience and insights about how to address issues from workplace challenges to climate change.
“Semillero de Ideas’ approach… elevates farmworkers as key contributors to productivity and competitiveness.”
– Enrique Gastelum
Chief Executive Officer, Worker and Farm Labor Association
Semillero collaborates with organizations, industry partners, and local governments interested in addressing climate change, fostering innovation, and advancing sustainable production processes.
Results and Innovations:
Innovation Challenges in 2023 and 2024 with over 150 farmworkers in the US and Mexico awarded prizes to individuals and teams for their ideas to improve the picking of cherries and the production of apples.
Partnership with WA State Department of Agriculture to gather farmworker input for the department’s Climate Resilience Plan.
Partnerships with universities to prototype worker innovations.
Hundreds of workers engaged in Eastern WA, creating a growing network of relationships and knowledge to foster innovation in agriculture
First-of-its-kind Farmworker Consultant certification program to support tree fruit farms to be more productive, more efficient, safer, and have higher food safety protocols.
Challenges
We know that farm workers are and always will be the experts in farm work.
To encourage their creativity, we have designed activities where farm workers can develop their ideas about their work in the fields and have a voice in how working conditions can be improved using those ideas. In recent years, we have held an Innovation Challenge called Your Ideas Count.
Our story
At Semillero de Ideas, we were founded on a simple yet powerful truth: farmworkers hold the key to innovative solutions for the future of agriculture.
Our journey began with our co-founder, Josefina Luciano, an experienced farmworker and innovator.
News and publications
Semillero de ideas in the Media
Our initiatives and the voices of agricultural workers have been featured in major publications and media outlets.
This is important
Si eres trabajador agrícola y te gustaría ponerte en contacto con nuestro equipo
