The aim is to transform agriculture at scale by facilitating local initiative and enabling everyone who wants positive change to take part.

This note presents the concept of a competition between communes that makes the shift toward life-inviting agriculture Easy, Attractive, Social, and Timely (EAST) for farmers, municipalities, and citizens alike.

The proposal is especially inspired by two initiatives demonstrating the transformational power of village-level competitions:

The Paani Foundation has run competitions in Maharashtra, an Indian state with 112M inhabitants, resulting in over 6,000 villages improving their water situation through volunteer efforts. The foundation now runs the Farmer Cup, through which 6,000 farmer cooperatives were created in 2024 alone. Assuming about five farmers per cooperative, this involves roughly 30,000 farmers. To put that in perspective, France has about 400,000 farmers.

NK Tegelwippen (~the national championship of tile flipping) uses playful competition to inspire environmental action. About 200 municipalities are competing. In a single year, citizens of the winning city removed roughly 100,000 m² of tiles and replaced them with plants. It started in the Netherlands and expanded to Belgium as of 2025.

A possible name: The Good Place Championship.

What could it look like?

Setup. Communes sign up to compete for an annual cash prize. Anything that helps towards the transition of land gains points for individuals that count toward the commune total, as elaborated on below. A mobile app would allow communes, cooperatives, and people to sign up, get guidance, register points, list quests, and more. However, as shown by NK Tegelwippen, a pilot could begin in a low-tech manner.

Knowledge. Farmers and prospective farmers are invited to participate in training. Beyond the pilot-version of the competition, as in the Paani Foundation Farmer Cup, the vision is that hundreds of farmers can participate simultaneously. During training, farmers will learn:

• How to set up and govern farmer cooperatives.
• Standard operating procedures for life-inviting farming practices suited to the region.
• Experimentation protocols for local adaptation.

Participation in training earns points for the commune. After training, farmers form cooperatives, again earning points. Inspired by Save Soil, a support network of experienced farmers provides guidance, e.g. by WhatsApp within 48 hours for technical challenges.

Land. Land may come from:

• Landowning farmers opting into cooperative structures. This could be supported through targeted conversations about what landowners stand to gain. 
• Land purchased during ownership transfer, e.g. with partners such as Terre de Liens or through citizen-owned shareholding structures, e.g. French GFAs. Guidance would be provided to facilitate land acquisition.

All land included in the transition earns points.

Hands. Inspired by the way the Burning Man festival is run, tasks supporting the cooperatives are listed as quests that residents can sign up for. Examples include:

• Running or staffing a farmers’ store.
• Planting.
• Setting up infrastructure.
• Harvest assistance.
• Administrative, legal, or communications support.

Some quests can be done collectively in groups or during events. To simplify listing what needs to be done, common quests can be pre-listed in the app. Completing quests earns individual points that contribute to the commune total.

Funds. Individuals can earn points by dedicating a percentage of their revenues, e.g. 1% like Zero Foodprint, each month to fund the venture. Communes may establish an opt-out local tax for the same purpose, which also earns points. Over time, this could evolve into a Sécurité Sociale Alimentaire (~social security for food), as currently being piloted in France.

Growing. Inviting new people to join the game generates points for both inviter and invitee that contribute to the commune total. Stickers, bracelets, profile-picture frames, and similar elements can signal participation and inspire others to join. 

Rewards. Individual points can be redeemed, leaving the total count untouched. Possible rewards include:

• Selected items at the farmer store. Added benefit: guide more people to the store.
• Depending on type of farming, free guided U-pick sessions on the farm. Added benefit: people visit the farm and see, feel the difference. 
• Potential insurance fee reductions through partner companies.

Celebration. Following NK Tegelwippen’s example, a Champion of the Month of each commune is celebrated. The hope is that having a high score gives a person social status as it’s a sign of generous contribution to the common good. Each year, one commune becomes the regional winner, a region becomes the national winner, and ultimately the competition may expand into a multi-national contest. Final point evaluation would consider population size and possibly agricultural surface area. A celebration of farmers takes place when announcing the champions.

This concept builds on existing successful initiatives. It simplifies a complex transition by assisting with what is needed: knowledge, land, hands, funds, and togetherness. Change emerges from everywhere simultaneously in a decentralised manner from many small, local, self-organised groups, supported by a larger network, much like described by Frédéric Laloux in Reinventing Organisations. This championship mobilizes everyone who would like things to move forward in a positive direction. It is easy and rewarding for all to take part and work together towards a common goal: creating a good place to live. 

Farmers receive the positive publicity they deserve and the farming profession can become more attractive. They are no longer alone as they work in cooperatives and are supported by their community. They may earn more as they can focus on cultivation instead of being stretched thin by everything else. Transitioning becomes easier with assistance at every step.

Municipalities get a tool to facilitate their job of making their commune an enjoyable and safe place to live. By participating, they increase local food security, gain more water security, reduce climate risks, enhance the local economy, and strengthen the community. And they might just win the cash prize too!

Citizens finally have a clear path to have a positive impact and create a beautiful legacy. It may become possible to feel proud of our generation. In the process, people connect with nature and with each other. Their contribution is visible, and points offer attractive perks as well.

A name like The Good Place Championship is inclusive and positive. It avoids climate shaming and does not mention farming or land, which could be perceived as only related to farmers. Anyone who wants their place to be better can participate. Such a name also highlights that land cultivation is not only about producing food but can have much broader benefits. 

Will people actually participate? Existing initiatives suggest that they will but the only way to find out is to experiment. Creating this championship may have a remarkable return on investment by activating a powerful bottom-up movement – a system that invites life to the soil, the farms, and the communities that depend on them.