The course offered by AgroEcos  it is the result of the analysis of the project in the territory of Baixada Santista. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, when AgroEcos had to adapt to the health context the world is experiencing, new forms of commercialization between producers and consumers have been monitored by our team of researchers ( at). Thus, an attempt was made to understand the difficulties faced and the solutions found before and during the pandemic.

The main objective of AgroEcos is the investigation and strengthening of agroecological innovation initiatives related to the Solidarity Economy. Due to the pandemic, methodological changes led to virtual interviews with community organizations.

Live broadcasts were carried out covering the three project teams, as well as interviews with the collectives: Morro das Panelas (Peruíbe-SP), Peruíbe Solidarity Network (Peruíbe-SP) Banana Verde Collective (Bertioga-SP), União of Women Producers of Solidarity Economy of Peruíbe - UMPES (Peruíbe-SP) and Association of Rural Producers of the Rio Branco de Itanhaém Hydrographic Microbasin - AMIBRA (Itanhaém-SP). The Atlantic Forest Connection Project, identified as an important link in the articulation of some of these groups, also collaborated with an interview, as did representatives of the Agriculture Department of the Peruíbe City Hall.

From these dialogues, analyzes were co-produced between AgroEcos researchers and the direct and indirect actors of the initiatives. In these discussions, the difficulties, demands and capacities of the organizations involved were listed. Since July 2021, meetings have been articulated between the Sustainable Rural Development Coordination (CDRS) and the AgroEcos team. Through this collaboration, it was possible to identify some demands of these groups, and among them, the issue of the agroecological transition and how to start the certification process of these products, from family farming and traditional communities, was highlighted.

The course focuses on continuing education and is guided by the praxis of alternation pedagogy, where times of reflection and action are experienced, of alternating dialogue between technical and theoretical content articulated with the participants' daily practices. The target audience is family farmers, food producer organizations, organizations for articulation of short marketing circuits, public managers, extension workers, students and other interested parties.

Enrollments took place in mid-October, and the activities of the first module started on 11/17/2021. The second module is expected to be launched in mid 2022. The theoretical classes are available on the YouTube channel , and the materials provided by the speakers are available in the field below: