Originally published on alliancemagazine.org, this article by Jane Kabubo-Mariara, Executive Director, Partnership for Economic Policy (PEP), reflects on her visit to TomKat Ranch during the GPF Summit—highlighting how regenerative agriculture can enhance climate resilience, biodiversity, and food security, and emphasizing the urgent need for increased philanthropic investment in food-system solutions.
I had the privilege of visiting TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation, a pioneering hub for regenerative agriculture, as part of the Global Philanthropy Forum (GPF) Leaders’ Summit. The 2025 GPF Summit, themed ‘Embracing Risk’, convened global leaders, philanthropists, and policymakers to explore innovative strategies for tackling some of the world’s most pressing challenges, including climate change, economic inclusion, and sustainable agriculture.
This year’s summit provided an invaluable opportunity to engage with thought leaders and practitioners committed to advancing equity and opportunity through locally led development and strategies. One key highlight was the site visit to TomKat Ranch, an 1,800-acre property in California that exemplifies how holistic land management can restore ecosystems, enhance biodiversity, and contribute to resilient food systems.
Regenerative agriculture, as practiced at TomKat Ranch, goes beyond sustainability—it actively improves soil health, water retention and biodiversity, as well as sequesters carbon from the atmosphere. This is achieved through a variety of techniques like rotational grazing, pasture restoration, and predator-friendly livestock management, amongst others.
The learnings from the visit and the conversations that followed highlighted a critical gap in climate funding and strategy. Food systems are a major contributor to emissions, amounting to 1/3rd of the global emissions, and also a key part of the solution. Yet, they remain underfunded and siloed when compared to the billions that flow into climate action. Bridging this gap through directing high impact philanthropic capital to fund food-system solutions with high impact could unlock significant progress in food security, climate resilience and economic sustainability.
The conversations identified three key priority areas for action, including scaling regenerative agriculture, reducing food loss and waste, and advancing nutritional density for building more sustainable and resilient food systems. This would mean focusing on climate-smart farming techniques, optimising and transforming supply chains, and promoting access to nutrient-dense food alongside other related solutions.
Beyond the environmental impact, TomKat Ranch is also invested in knowledge sharing and capacity building. They offer demonstration plots, training sessions, and internship programs, equipping future agriculturalists with practical skills rooted in evidence-based practices. This aligns closely with PEP’s model of Locally-led Evidence-Informed Policy Making (EIPM), which bridges the gap between research, policy, and implementation.
PEP’s commitment to evidence-based solutions is reflected in our own projects across Africa. For instance, our Earth4All initiative in Kenya explores transformation of food systems and their impact on well-being, inequality, and food security. This project aligns with our goal of linking agricultural innovation with market access, ensuring smallholder farmers benefit from sustainable practices. Additionally, PEP research has generated evidence on climate resilience strategies, emphasizing the need for increased support for smallholder farmers, particularly women, in adapting to environmental challenges. These efforts mirror the approach championed by TomKat Ranch through its partnerships with local farmers’ markets, restaurants, and urban food supply chains.
PEP (Partnership for Economic Policy) has supported a wide range of groundbreaking research projects in countries around the world that have not only informed policies to improve the well-being of local communities but also shaped the careers of the Southern researchers who led them. We not only generate evidence-informed policies but also support their practical implementation.
For example, in Cameroon, PEP-supported researchers conducted a study on the productivity gap between male and female smallholder farmers. Their findings revealed structural disadvantages faced by female farmers, leading to policy recommendations that were incorporated into the National Strategy for Rural Development (2020-2030). Similarly, in Côte d’Ivoire, PEP researchers evaluated the impact of the National Rural Electrification Program (PRONER) on rural women’s empowerment, finding that decentralised electrification through biomass power plants provided better access to electricity compared to alternatives. In Guinea-Bissau, a national policy conference organised by PEP researchers brought together key stakeholders to discuss how impact evaluations can enhance national policies in education, agriculture, and economic development. These examples illustrate how PEP empowers local researchers to produce high-quality, policy-relevant evidence that informs and influences decision-making at national levels.
As we continue to advocate for sustainable development through evidence-based policies, TomKat Ranch serves as an inspiring case study. Their model of ecological restoration, knowledge dissemination, and market integration offers valuable insights for policymakers and practitioners alike.
The visit to the Ranch reaffirmed the power of research-driven interventions in shaping sustainable practices—lessons that we at PEP will continue to champion in our work, ensuring that policy frameworks support the transition to sustainable and inclusive agricultural systems across the global South.
The insights gained from the Global Philanthropy Forum will continue to inform our work at PEP, strengthening our efforts to bridge research, policy, and practice in pursuit of sustainable development.
Jane Mariara is the Executive director at PEP (Partnership for Economic Policy).
