The Navdanya Farm Derhadun, India
The Navdanya farm is thriving! Walking the farm, in the foothills of Dehradun below the Young Himalayas, is always a reminder that organic farming is inherently robust and resilient. Crops are producing beautiful yields in fields teaming with biodiversity. We’re talking blankets of bees and butterflies and over 72 species of birds! In 1995, Vandana Shiva set out to build Bija Vidyapeeth (School of the Seed), also known as Earth University, in an old eucalyptus orchard in the Doon Valley in Utterkahand, India. Many said this could not be done, but Dr. Shiva persisted and transformed the soil and land into a successful thriving organic farm. Today, Navdanya's Bija Vidyapeeth is a fully operational 47-acre organic farm, seed bank, and biodiversity research center for farmers, educators, students, and thought leaders from around the world to come visit and learn about regenerative farming, agroecology, and the Navdanya movement.
The Sacred Cow on The Farm
The Navdanya Farm is a remarkable model of what a biodiverse ecosystem can achieve. It’s a living classroom and seed sanctuary for organically grown crops, regenerative soil, grandmother seeds, and the cows that live there, feeding the soil and fueling the farm. Across India’s organic farm landscape, the cow is at its center. Contributions go far beyond milk. Cows plow the fields, enrich vermiculture systems, generate compost, produce liquid fertilizers like jeevamrutha, and provide dung used as both a soil amendment and as fuel for the farm’s biogas generator. The cows on the Navdanya farm are looked after with care and revered for their many contributions to the land, the harvest, and the community.
This full-circle integration of animal, soil, seed, and sustenance is a cornerstone of Navdanya’s organic agroecological model. Rather than relying on synthetic inputs like fossil fuels for fertilizer and soil amendment, the farm draws its energy and fertility from within. In honoring the cow within organic farming practices, Navdanya challenges the conventional logic of industrial agriculture and restores a sacred, reciprocal relationship between animal, human, and Earth. It is a living model of Earth Democracy, where food systems are built not on domination, but on dignity, biodiversity, and mutual respect.
Research on The Farm & Beyond
Important research is happening every day— in the soil, fields, and gardens. Navdanya scientists and farmers work together to study how organic farming supports healthier soil, better water retention, and more pollinators like bees and butterflies. At Navdanya’s Biodiversity Farm in Dehradun researchers track earthworm activity, crop growth, and the cycles of insects to prove that nature-friendly farming works better than chemical agriculture. The farm is a living laboratory where new ideas are tested to help farmers grow food that is good for people and the planet. From cotton to millets, findings prove that farming ecologically is not only more resilient, but it’s the future.
This science doesn’t stay on the farm—it spreads across India through Navdanya’s network of researchers, women farmers, seed savers, and community gardens. These local farmers collect data from their own fields to understand how climate change affects their crops and how traditional seeds perform in tough weather. From the mountains of Uttarakhand to the dry fields of Maharashtra, Navdanya’s farmer-led research is helping build a future where communities grow nutritious food, create surpluses, share seeds, protect nature, and share their knowledge with each other and the world.
Saving Seed. Saving Lives.
The seed bank at the Navdnaya farm conserves and cultivates thousands of crop varieties. Navdanya has saved 4,000 indigenous rice varieties, 2,200 varieties of millets, pseudo cereals, pulses, oilseeds and vegetables, 205 varieties of wheat and 151 species of tress including orchard fruit. As the number of natural disasters began to increase in India, Navdanya started conserving climate resilient seed varieties in a program called Seeds of Hope to help disaster-affected farmers. Since 1998 farmers who have experienced either floods or droughts have been able to cope with these extreme conditions by planting flood tolerant, salt tolerant and/or drought tolerant seeds saved by Nadvdany’s multi-state seed collaborative saving network.
Earth University
Navdanya welcomes all visitors to attend courses at Earth University/Bija Vidyapeeth that offer a unique opportunity to learn from nature and biodiversity about the practice of agroecology, food sovereignty, and peace and harmony with nature and in the human community. Earth University offers weekend, week and month-long courses, many including conversations with Dr. Vandana Shiva. The thriving organic farm, biodiversity research center and seed bank welcomes farmers, students, researchers, and thought leaders from all over the world to come learn and engage in nature, surrounded by the Himalayas. Learn more about the Navdanya farm.
