Semillero de Ideas centers farmworkers as the leaders of innovation in agriculture.
We create safe spaces for farmworkers to share their knowledge, experience and insights about how to address issues from workplace challenges to climate change.
“We’re almost never listened to, or rather, we don’t encourage each other to share or improve our ideas…Semillero de Ideas is giving us that opportunity to be heard.”
– Luis Alejandro Barrera, Semillero de Ideas Innovation Challenge winner (right)
Semillero collaborates with organizations, industry partners, and local governments interested in addressing climate change, fostering innovation, and advancing sustainable production processes.
Recent Activities
- Impact of Climate Change on WA Farmworkers – Press ReleaseSurvey of 250 Farmworkers from across Washington State shows underemployment, reduced earnings and increased expenses driven by climate related issues, threatening the viability of the State’s agricultural workforce.… Read more: Impact of Climate Change on WA Farmworkers – Press Release
1 October 2026
Changes in climate are pushing Washington’s farmworkers and their families to the brink of economic collapse. Climate related hazards in the workplace remain unmitigated. Many of the 250 farmworkers Semillero de Ideas surveyed want to be part of the solution. Teams of farmworkers are now forming to take on the challenges this report documents, looking to innovate new practices and tools that can mitigate the result of climate change.
Learn about how farmworkers are co-creating with university students
Challenges
We know that farm workers are and always will be the experts in farm work.
To encourage their creativity, we have designed activities where farm workers can develop their ideas about their work in the fields and have a voice in how working conditions can be improved using those ideas. In recent years, we have held an Innovation Challenge called Your Ideas Count.
How we do it
Semillero collaborates with organizations, industry partners, and local governments interested in addressing climate change, fostering innovation, and advancing sustainable production processes.
Our story
At Semillero de Ideas, we were founded on a simple yet powerful truth: Farmworkers hold the key to innovative solutions for the future of agriculture.
Our journey began with our co-founder, Josefina Luciano, an experienced farmworker and innovator.
News and publications
Our initiatives and the voices of agricultural workers have been featured in major publications and media outlets.
