Food For Tomorrow

An extraordinary set of Explorers diving into the future of food, through on-farm scientific research, breathtaking imagery and powerful storytelling.

The National Geographic Society and PepsiCo are collaborating to harness the power of science, storytelling and education to inspire positive change throughout the global food system, with a focus on regenerative agriculture.

The Food for Tomorrow program is supporting an extraordinary set of Explorers diving into the future of food, through breathtaking imagery and powerful stories of regenerative farmers leading change in their communities, on-farm scientific research, and a forthcoming interactive data visualization tool.

Our future will be shaped by how we grow our food today—and we’re reimagining what’s possible when that system nourishes both people and the planet. In collaboration with PepsiCo, we’re investing in bold solutions and the farmers, scientists, and storytellers leading this essential work. We’re proud to fuel a global movement, rooted in science and hope, to help build a thriving future for generations to come.

Jill Tiefenthaler

CEO, National Geographic Society

Climate change is putting unprecedented pressure on the global food system, and farmers feel it every day. As a company rooted in agriculture, we know just how fragile — and vital — that system is. But there are solutions that can help make businesses and farmers more resilient. Food for Tomorrow combines PepsiCo’s deep food system expertise with National Geographic’s power to advance science and inspire action. Together, we’re aiming to support farmers, protect the planet, and help build a stronger, more resilient future for all.

Ramon Laguarta

Chairman and CEO, PepsiCo

Collaboration for Change

A change is needed in the way food is grown, because the choices we make today will shape the world of tomorrow.

Feeding a growing population while ensuring a thriving planet is a complex and challenging task. By 2050, UNESCO estimates that close to 90% of the planet’s soil will be degraded if current trends continue, while the world population is expected to reach 10 billion.

Why does this matter? Degraded soil affects plant health and nutrition, making it more difficult for farmers to grow food as well as sustain their livelihoods. Soil is also key to avoiding desertification and minimizing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, as healthy soil has a natural ability to store carbon underground instead of releasing it into the atmosphere.

The Promise of Regenerative Agriculture

Regenerative agriculture —a set of practices that farmers use to prioritize soil health, improve watershed health and enhance biodiversity —can provide us with the food we eat by working with nature, not against it. These practices often leverage long-standing traditional knowledge with modern-day technology and scientific innovation to blend generations of expertise from people closest to the land.

This program will shine a light on farmers, communities and researchers around the globe that are putting regenerative agriculture into practice using techniques like:

cover crops that ensure soil is never left bare for long —minimizing the disturbance of soil by leaving roots in the ground and reducing plowing or tilling;
intercropping —planting different types of crops that benefit each other in the same field;
lessening dependence on chemical fertilizers through applying compost;
efficiently using water;
moving grazing livestock between different pastures; and
various agroforestry approaches.

Trentis Allen examines regenerative corn at his family farm in the Mississippi Delta in the United States, where they embrace cover crops, crop rotation and biology and ecology to replace chemicals. Photo Credit: Caitlin Ochs

Aline de Castro and her daughter manually harvest coffee cherries on their regenerative farm in Brazil, where they also cultivate beans, corn, and bananas. For them, agriculture is not just a livelihood but a way of life—one rooted in connection with nature. Photo Credit: Pablo Albarenga

Iowan farmer John Murray has been no-till farming for over 10 years. On the right is his land. On the left is tilled land before seeding and with no cover crops. Photo Credit: John Stanmeyer

Noe Borase inspects his cacao trees in a conflict-prone region of the DRC, which he cultivates on land that embraces intercropping, cover crops, and avoids pesticides. Conservation rangers in the surrounding Virunga National Park are helping promote stability with sustainable, hydro-electric powered factories for soap, coffee, chocolate, and palm oil. Photo Credit: Brent Stirton

Farmer Gunashekaran picks vegetables on this South India farm. A friend once said it takes 60 years to revive soil after chemical farming. This prompted him to join a one-week organic training hosted by the NGO Save Soil in South India. Photo Credit: John Stanmeyer

Sheep graze on a newly planted chestnut orchard at the regenerative family farm of Josh Payne in Missouri, United States. Photo Credit: Caitlin Ochs

Manager Ricardo Sales harvests coffee on a regenerative farm in Brazil that was transformed by interweaving coffee plants with native trees, restoring springs, and creating ecological corridors. Photo Credit: Pablo Albarenga

Ramata Camara and other participants of the Great Green Wall youth employment program Xeyou Ndam Yi plant baobab trees in a 130 hectare plot in Gorny, eastern Senegal as part of large-scale reforestation efforts to stop desertification.
Photo Credit: Miora Rajaonary

Cacao farmers lay out sustainably-grown cacao beans for drying at Virunga National Park’s hydro-electric powered chocolate factory in the DRC. Photo Credit: Brent Stirton

On Mbaye Awa’s community farm in Senegal, Mbobo Fall puts her hand above young hibiscus plants. These plants, used for the popular pink-colored Bissap drink and offering health benefits, are growing on regenerated land that now provides a sustainable source of income to the women of the community.
Photo Credit: Miora Rajaonary

Meet the National Geographic Explorers Capturing Insights and Innovation

Pablo Albarenga

Project: Guardians of the Soil

Pablo aims to portray the “Global South not as a region defined solely by crisis,” he emphasizes, “but as the epicenter of innovative solutions and hope in the face of climate change.” He will document stories of farmers and Indigenous communities leading a silent regenerative revolution.

Ahan Dalal

In climate-stressed Spain, Dalal will partner with wheat and maize farmers to test locally rooted, regenerative agriculture practices such as biochar, cover crops and beneficial microbes under normal watering and drought scenarios, developing a blueprint for resilience that can spread across the Mediterranean.

Hewan Degu

In the birthplace of coffee, Degu’s work aims to protect its future — building the microbial evidence base for regenerative coffee and potato intercropping systems in Ethiopia and learning alongside farmers to guide on-farm application and uptake.

Al Greeny S. Dewayanti

On Indonesia’s depleted maize fields, Dewayanti will test the soil regeneration benefits of intercropping sacha inchi, an omega-3 rich vine, while also incorporating DNA metabarcoding and an early-stage AI-powered farmer app combining indigenous knowledge with modern science and digital tools.

Omar de Kok-Mercado

Across maize, soy and wheat farmlands of southwestern Wisconsin, de Kok-Mercado is rebuilding biodiverse corridors through a connected ‘wild grid’ of native prairie plantings on marginal farmland. The project blends ecological data with art and storytelling to advance evidence-based, landscape-scale regeneration.

Caitlin Ochs

Project: Soil to Sustenance

Caitlin will document the regenerative movement in the U.S. and Costa Rica using the power of photography, video and audio. She will showcase innovative and scalable progress through farmers’ perspectives to connect the public with their stories and influence better-informed policy.

Miora Rajaonary

Project: The People of the Green Wall

Using the power of photography and documentary film, Miora will tell the stories of people in the Sahel who are participating in the Great Green Wall of Africa, an ambitious project to create a ‘wall’ of trees and productive land stretching over 8000km across the desert.

Jamie Spychalla

In Wisconsin, a critical hub for potato production in the U.S., Spychalla’s on-farm research will study the benefits of integrating nitrogen-fixing alfalfa as a rotational, harvestable cover crop to mitigate climate-induced moisture stress, regenerate soils, and improve yields - engaging farming communities along the way.

John Stanmeyer

Project: Soil Extinction and Soil Heroes

John will immerse into the causes of soil degradation across five continents, creating evidence of human impact on soil, spreading desertification and emerging solutions. He will also create a testimony that highlights local ‘soil heroes’ to inspire and guide others.

Brent Stirton

Project: The Power of the Land

Through a photo-essay and potential exhibitions, Brent will showcase the transformative potential of regenerative agriculture in reversing climate change, improving food security and empowering farmers globally by sharing stories of sustainable farming.

Latest Updates

Global Regenerative Agriculture Stories

Through a collaboration with National Geographic CreativeWorks, PepsiCo has profiled farmers around the world that are part of the regenerative agriculture transition. Explore stories from:

Iowa (video, article)
Thailand (video, article)
Brazil (video, article)

Interactive Regenerative Agriculture Map

Coming mid-2026, a web-based storytelling platform incorporating multimedia and mapping to explore climate risks and resilience, food production, soil health and regenerative agriculture.

Food for Tomorrow Press Releases

Hear from National Geographic and PepsiCo leadership on how Food for Tomorrow advances a common interest, and check out the announcement celebrating the launch of five science grants that apply science and innovation in a real-world context, focused on feasible, nature-positive, highly-localized solutions.

Click here to learn more about PepsiCo’s sustainable sourcing efforts, including around regenerative agriculture.

Photo credits (from top of page): John Stanmeyer, Pablo Albarenga