Across Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus, growing pressures on food systems—ranging from biodiversity loss to climate stress—are renewing interest in locally adapted seeds and community-based solutions. Seed libraries, which enable people to freely exchange, grow, and return seeds, offer a simple yet powerful response. Two Czech Challenge Fund projects implemented between 2022 and 2024 in Moldova and Georgia demonstrate how this concept can evolve from pilot initiatives into sustainable, scalable systems embedded in communities and institutions.
Implemented by Semínkovna together with local partners AO Grădina Moldovei (Moldova) and the Biological Farming Association Elkana (Georgia), the projects were supported by the Czech-UNDP Partnership for Sustainable Development Goals through the Czech Challenge Fund and funded by the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Their impact continues to grow well beyond the formal project timelines.
The Seed Library Model in Practice
Seed libraries—developed under the Czech Semínkovna initiative—are community spaces where people can borrow seeds, grow them locally, and return part of the harvest for others to use. The focus on open-pollinated, locally adapted varieties helps preserve agrobiodiversity, revive traditional knowledge, and strengthen local resilience.
Founded by botanist Klára Hrdá, the Semínkovna network has expanded over the past decade to more than 180 community seed libraries in the Czech Republic. The Challenge Fund projects adapted this model to Moldova and Georgia, embedding it in libraries, schools, farms, and community organizations.
Moldova: From Seed Libraries to Heritage-Based Food Systems
The 2022 project “United through seeds: launching Czech-Moldovan seed libraries in Moldova”, implemented with AO Grădina Moldovei, responded to the gradual loss of local crop varieties despite Moldova’s strong agrarian traditions. By the project’s conclusion, 20 seed libraries had been established nationwide, with founders receiving training, starter seed collections, and practical guidance.
Since 2023, the network has remained active and continued to evolve. Building on early lessons, AO Grădina Moldovei has linked seed libraries to a broader heritage-based food system approach, positioning them as an entry point to local food value chains. Public engagement has been central to this effort. At the “Local seeds – better food” exhibition held at the Botanical Garden in Chișinău, visitors engaged directly with seed packets, a wooden seed library box, and step-by-step guidance on establishing libraries. Seed librarians, farmers, and researchers presented their collections, while children participated in hands-on planting workshops, highlighting the educational potential of the model.
Institutional partnerships have further strengthened sustainability. An online webinar with over 60 libraries, organized with the National Library of Moldova, led to the launch of a public seed library service combining seeds, literature, and agroecological knowledge. In December 2025, an online workshop on “From heritage to market” linked seed libraries to policy frameworks and market access.
Georgia: Embedding Seed Libraries in Communities and Education
The 2023 project “Bridging Cultures Through Seeds – Czech Seed Library Inspiration Spreads to Georgia” was implemented with a local Biological Farming Association Elkana. Activities focused on Samtskhe-Javakheti and Kakheti, combining training, outreach, and institutional anchoring.
By the end of the project, 12 seed libraries had been established across schools, a public library, and family farms, and formally recognized during Elkana’s 30th anniversary event. By mid-2025, the network had expanded to 13 active seed libraries, including Elkana’s Seed Ark conservation farm. During 2025 alone, the libraries reached around 900 people, with 300 seed borrowers and over 100 seed donors, including international contributors.
Elkana continues to support the network through regular trainings, seed exchanges, and educational activities, providing heritage seed packets and providing access to the Georgian translation of Klára Hrdá’s Seeds in Our Hands book. For an organization active in agrobiodiversity conservation since 1996, seed libraries have opened new ways to engage schools, libraries, and urban communities alongside farmers.
From Local Results to International Scale-Up
The Moldova and Georgia projects have also contributed to international learning and replication. Semínkovna and Elkana are members of the Let’s Liberate Diversity! network, where the methodology has been shared as a practical model for community-based seed conservation.
Inspired by this approach, new initiatives are emerging in Hungary, Luxembourg, and Uganda, where organizations are adapting the Semínkovna methodology to their local contexts. Meanwhile, Semínkovna continues to develop educational programmes, digital knowledge-sharing tools, and community seed bank concepts, creating further opportunities for collaboration.
Seeds for Long-Term Resilience
Together, the two Challenge Fund projects show how seed libraries can move beyond short-term pilots to become lasting community assets. By embedding them in public institutions, supporting local champions, and openly sharing methodology, the initiatives in Moldova and Georgia demonstrate a replicable pathway for strengthening agrobiodiversity, education, and resilient food systems—starting from seeds in people’s hands.
