Urban Roots // Madrid learning expedition & online atelier
The Madrid Learning Expedition & Online Atelier form the second activity bundle of the Urban Roots project supported by the 6th EELISA Joint Call. Building on the conceptual foundation of the Online Forums, this phase moves from dialogue to practice—and from observation to synthesis.
During a two-day learning expedition in Madrid on April 23-24, 2026, students from across the EELISA Alliance will engage in curated field visits to community gardens, cooperative food initiatives, and food redistribution spaces. On the first day, through structured urban walks, short talks by local actors, photo-voice documentation, and walking debates, participants will critically explore how food, waste, soil, governance, and community intersect in real urban settings.
On the second day, the expedition will culminate in a group work of synthesizing the previous day’s materials, followed by a challenge-based mini hackathon addressing the guiding question: How can Madrid scale urban agriculture practices for food sovereignty and resilience?
The follow-up Online Atelier of 2–3 sessions in the first half of May transforms field insights into systems thinking and collective reflection. Students will collaboratively map circular food flows and governance structures observed in Madrid, identify key tensions and leverage points, and co-write the Madrid Manifesto on Urban Agriculture and Circularity—a shared statement of principles and provocations to be carried into the final Urban Roots Field School in Istanbul.
Rather than lectures, this bundle functions as an interconnected exploration and synthesis process—combining experiential learning, collaborative mapping, and co-creation across physical and digital space.
Participants who complete both components will be eligible for EELISA credentials aligned with SDGs 11, 12, and 17.
Stay tuned on EELISA and university channels, and visit urbanroots.info!
