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Research.

Empowerment.

Sustainability

Why we do it

Why SEEDS?

The potential for life is always carried and present in a seed. All it needs is the right environmental context to let the seed germinate. As an organization, we exist to unlock the potential that is already present in Afghanistan.

SEEDS is devoted to research as its central mission. We empower local partners to implement research-based solutions, gather valuable feedback, and contribute to a sustainable future for the most vulnerable populations in Afghanistan.

Know more about our Mission
Learn about our Approach
Check our objectives
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Afghan young boy thinking, and other watching direct to the camara

Our Challenges

Working with NGOs and local implementation partners in Afghanistan, we have seen that a great amount of good work is being done in and for Afghanistan. However, organizations often lack the scientific expertise to validate and maximize the work they are doing. We have identified a number of challenges:

Building local expertise: projects often lack sustainable scientific collaboration at thelocal level.
  • Building local expertise is crucial for sustainable food security solutions. Enduring scientific collaboration at the local level is hard to build up and maintain. But when local scientists and researchers are equipped with advanced skills and knowledge, they can address the unique challenges within their context more effectively and ensure that solutions are tailored to the specific needs of their communities. Building local capacity also fosters ownership and continuity. By investing in local expertise, food security initiatives can become more resilient, impactful, and responsive to change.
Local wishes and insights are often not taken into account sufficiently.
  • In Afghanistan, food security research must take local insights and priorities into account. Without actively involving Afghan communities and respecting their knowledge, research risks promoting approaches that do not align with local needs or practices. Engaging local voices is essential for creating practical, sustainable strategies that truly address food insecurity in Afghanistan’s varied and complex context.
Organizations often lack the knowledge and information they need to upscale projects.
  • Organizations often develop good solutions that are effective in tackling aspects of food insecurity. But often projects fail to get scaled up for lack of robust scientific validation of those interventions. Many NGOs lack the technical expertise, data, and resources needed to expand initiatives effectively, which limits the impact of promising solutions. We aim to partner with organisations to empower them to reach and maximize benefits for local communities.
Sustainable impact is often not achieved.
  • Sustainable impact in Afghan food security research is rarely achieved. This is partly due to limited local engagement and inadequate consideration of Afghanistan’s diverse agricultural and cultural contexts. Too often, research initiatives are still driven by external perspectives, overlooking local knowledge and the region's unique environmental challenges. Additionally, the lack of consistent, collaborative frameworks with Afghan scientists and communities results in solutions that are difficult to implement or sustain. Effective, lasting impact requires deeply rooted local partnerships and adaptable approaches that align with Afghan realities.
Knowledge translation: too often research remains in the academic sphere.
  • In research addressing challenges in developing countries, knowledge translation often falls short, limiting the real-world impact of valuable findings. Academic insights and technical innovations are frequently published in formats or languages inaccessible to local stakeholders, preventing community leaders, practitioners, and policymakers from applying them effectively. Additionally, without culturally relevant adaptation, research findings may not align with local practices or priorities. Effective knowledge translation requires simplifying complex information, making it accessible, and involving local voices to adapt research into practical, actionable solutions for on-the-ground challenges.

Support SEEDS' Research and Initiatives

Our Approach

Pioneering Collaborative Research for Food Security

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Local Engagement: A Bottom-Up Strategy
Expanding Impact: Making Results Available
Collaborative Research for Holistic Solutions
Open Source Knowledge Sharing: Empowering All
Feedback and Continuous Improvement: Maximizing Impact
Know more about our approach
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Partnerships

While SEEDS does not directly implement projects, we acknowledge the significance of translating research findings into practical solutions. To accomplish this, we partner with local implementing partners within Afghanistan where possible. These partners are well-placed to apply the results, tools, and practical components that are generated by our research. By doing so, they actively contribute to the process of addressing food security issues within their communities.

Local Stakeholders and Collaborators
  • SEEDS, as a research institute, seeks established partners to collaborate with in tackling food security problems. We believe in bottom-up solutions, and we believe that local stakeholders are best placed to deliver sustainable impact. We link local initiatives and questions with excellent research partners.
Engaging with NGOs and Government Agencies
  • We engage with NGOs and government agencies to undertake research that has ahigh potential for impact. We support research that focuses on practical solutions that can be placed in the hands of those who are embedded in the local context to make an immediate difference.
Online Tools for Knowledge Sharing
  • All our research is open source. We believe in making knowledge and solutions available for all. A part of this is that we work towards making an up-to-date and relevant knowledge library available for all who aim to deliver food security in Afghanistan.
Partner with organizations already on the ground making a difference
  • Developed and implemented data-driven marketing campaigns across multiple channels, resulting in a 25% increase in website traffic and a 15% boost in leads generated.

Become a Research Partner: Use Your Skill to Improve Nutrition, Healthcare, Education and More.

Our Mission

SEEDS exists for
Research, Empowerment, and Sustainability.

At SEEDS, our mission is to confront the complex challenge of food security and insecurity in Afghanistan head-on. We are dedicated to the well-being of Afghanistan's most vulnerable, specifically widows and orphans, by providing sustainable and local nutritional solutions.

Know more about our Mission

Our recent projects

Recent Collaborative Research Projects

These are  projects we have been or are currently involved with:

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Developing a monitoring and evaluation strategy to measure results and impact

Measuring and improving impact that the High Diversity Gardens have on participating households’ food security and dietary diversity; training local stakeholders to implement this system.

In collaboration with Katherine Pittore MSc and Wageningen University & Research

Read about this project
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Developing agricultural planning algorithm

This research aims to use computational models to optimize crop choices and land use for smallholder subsistence farmers, enhancing their nutrition. Algorithms will assist in decision-making, helping farmers grow crops that meet their household's nutritional needs.

In collaboration with Dr. Ioanna Lykourentzou,  Dr. Mihaela Mitici, Pim Vroom and Utrech University

Read about this project
Young Afghan boys sitting on the floor participating in a workshop

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Strategies for NGOs to deal with FS in a conflict situation

This research investigates how humanitarian aid is used as political leverage by both the Taliban and the international community in Afghanistan. It identifies opportunities for grassroots NGOs focused on sustainable livelihoods, culminating in a report on best practices.

In collaboration with Dr. Niels Terpstra, Centrum for International Conflict Analyses and Management (CICAM), Radboud UniversityJordi Berends, MSc

Read about this project
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Developing a Children's Growth Monitoring Program

Due to the lack of open-source, reliable growth charts, we created an Excel program to monitor children's health indicators in food security programs and visually represent their growth. Local NGOs use this program to 1) track improvements in children's health and 2) identify children who need medical care.

In collaboration with De Nieuwe Gevers

Read about this project

Support SEEDS' Research and Initiatives

Your donation help us to continue developing local research and improving Afghan lives.

Donate to Seeds afghanistan

Become an Afghan Research Partner: Use Your Skills to Improve Education, Healthcare and More.

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