2026 Foodthink Climate Grant Awardees Announced

Extreme weather has shifted from ‘news’ to ‘the everyday’, and we need action rooted in the land and driven by genuine needs more than ever.

At the end of April this year, Foodthink officially launched the sixth round of the Lianhe Plan small (action) grants. We are looking for place-based solutions that go beyond grand concepts and truly mobilise the intrinsic strengths of communities, helping frontline smallholder farmers and communities respond to climate change.

During the call, we received 58 applications full of sincerity and drive. They spanned topics of varying scope and depth, from ecological restoration to community composting, from low-cost disaster risk reduction for smallholder farmers to women’s empowerment. Whether frontline producers exploring place-based wisdom, or researchers and creators reshaping urban-rural linkages through data, art and drama – every concrete idea enriches our imagination of climate resilience.

Following initial screening by the project team, in-depth online interviews, and scoring and discussion by the review experts, 12 projects ultimately stood out and were selected for this round of the Lianhe Plan.

Awardee List

*In no particular order

Review Panel

Du Ling｜Director, Chengdu Shuguang Community Development Capacity Building Centre

Meng Fanqiao｜Professor, College of Resources and Environment, China Agricultural University; Director, Environmental Impact Assessment Centre, CAU

Liu Juan｜Associate Professor, College of Humanities and Development, China Agricultural University; Researcher, Beijing Innovation Centre for Rural Revitalisation and Urban-Rural Integrated Development

Li Dajun｜Director of Industry Development, Beijing Heyi Green Public Welfare Foundation

Kong Lingyu｜Programme Director, Food Think Tank

The number of grants is limited, but the sparks of action are limitless. Our admiration extends equally to those partners who did not make this round’s awardee list but are already taking action.

Going forward, Foodthink will continue to follow up on and support everyone’s projects through matching communication resources and facilitating peer-networking, among other means, so that more compelling food and farming stories can be seen.

Amid change, let us “take one small step first, then talk about bigger things”.

Editor / Design: Z X

Layout: Little Tree

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