This is the new worktitle for the research I am preparing in co-operation with WUR, Tamera and other international partners. Here a brief outline.

The main objective of the proposed research is to give scientific insight into permaculture as a powerful design method for sustainable land use & settlement. The basic principles of permaculture will be outlined and illustrated by practical examples. Desk research of theory and global practise will be combined with more in-depth study of several case studies. Attention will be given to ecological and socio-economic aspects, within the larger context of the global need for system change, to face the challenges in water, food, energy, climate change and war. The research investigates the value of permaculture as a tool for sustainable land use and settlement development, both in itself and in relation to other land use and design methods. Key aspects as well as constraints for successful implementation are defined. As a result, recommendations can be formulated for e.g. policy-making, education or transdisciplinary co-operation, in order to enable the wider establishment of permaculture systems.

A project that could serve as a case study, is the permaculture water landscape as being developed in the Peace Research Center Tamera, Portugal. Study and education of modern scientific insights of the nature of the universe, consciousness and human existence, go hand in hand with empirical study and experience in the establishment of a sustainable settlement on 150 hectare of land, with 150-500 people, including permanent residents, students and guests. Tamera co-operates with the Austrian permaculture expert Sepp Holzer in the realisation of a water landscape, an innovative and nature-based approach, reversing desertification to revitalisation of the landscape, and meeting the basic needs of humanity of water, food and safety. The model being established here can serve as a base for further research and study. The key principles can be adapted to many regions of the earth, to support re-establishment of a healthy natural environment, providing reliable productivity and income perspectives for the population.

]]> http://malikaci.wordpress.com/2011/05/01/%e2%80%9cpermaculture-land-use-design-for-sustainable-settlement/feed/ 1 malikaci http://malikaci.wordpress.com/2011/03/15/173-in-de-balie-adam-carolyn-steel-de-hongerige-stad/ http://malikaci.wordpress.com/2011/03/15/173-in-de-balie-adam-carolyn-steel-de-hongerige-stad/#comments Tue, 15 Mar 2011 11:29:07 +0000 malikaci http://malikaci.wordpress.com/?p=97 Continue reading →]]> Gesprek over de weg van voedsel naar de stad

De ooit in gang gezette urbanisatie gaat nog steeds door; wereldwijd geven mensen steeds vaker de voorkeur aan het wonen in steden en metropolen. Tegelijkertijd is de belangstelling voor duurzaamheid en gezond eten sterk toegenomen. Wat betekenen deze ontwikkelingen eigenlijk voor de productie, distributie en consumptie van voedsel? Welke weg heeft het voedsel afgelegd voordat het op ons bordje komt? En hoe beïnvloedt dit proces de relatie tussen stad en platteland?

Architect, docent en schrijver Carolyn Steel komt naar aanleiding van de Nederlandse uitgave van haar bestseller The Hungry City, praten over haar visionaire kijk op voedsel in de stad.

Donderdag 17 maart, 20.30 uur, De Balie, Amsterdam

We staan er wellicht niet altijd even bewust bij stil, maar de impact van voedsel op de ontwikkeling van steden en haar bewoners is enorm. Voor steden ter grootte van Londen moeten er elke dag 30 miljoen maaltijden geproduceerd, geïmporteerd, verkocht, gekookt en gegeten en ook weer (een deel daarvan) weggegooid worden. Zo bezien is het bijna een wonder dat we elke dag te eten hebben.

Architect, docent en schrijver Carolyn Steel komt naar aanleiding van de Nederlandse uitgave van haar bestseller The Hungry City, praten over haar visionaire kijk op voedsel in de stad. Verder met Zef Hemel (directeur Dienst Ruimtelijke Ordening te Amsterdam),Debra Solomon (kunstenaar, aangesloten bij STROOM, maakte van alles over zelfstandig voedselvoorziening in steden) en Jutka Halberstadt (promoveert aan de VU op zaken als obesitas en de psychologische relatie tussen voedsel en de mens). Maar ook met lekker (biologisch) eten, een topkok en meer!

Feiten:
• Steden beslaan maar 2% van het oppervlakte van de aarde maar leggen beslag op    75% van alle hulpbronnen.
• Een derde van de wereldgraanoogst wordt aan vee gevoerd.
• 40% van de volwassen Nederlanders lijdt aan overgewicht.
• Ongeveer een derde van al het eten dat we kopen gooien we weg… Waarom?

Voertaal: Engels

I.s.m. NAi Uitgevers.

Voor meer informatie en kaarten: www.debalie.nl

Article in the Guardian:  http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/mar/08/eco-farming-double-food-output?CMP=twt_gu

Full UN report:  http://www.srfood.org/images/stories/pdf/officialreports/20110308_a-hrc-16-49_agroecology_en.pdf

Kleinschalige boeren kunnen de productie van levensmiddelen binnen tien jaar verdubbelen, door in kritieke regio’s gebruik te maken van ecologische methoden. Dit blijkt uit een nieuw rapport van de Verenigde Naties. Gebaseerd op een uitgebreide evaluatie van recente wetenschappelijke literatuur roept de studie op tot een fundamentele verschuiving richting agro-ecologie.

“Om in 2050 negen miljard mensen te kunnen voeden, moeten we gebruik maken van de meest efficiënte landbouwtechnieken”, zegt Olivier de Schutter, VN-rapporteur. “Wetenschappelijk bewijs van vandaag de dag toont aan dat agro-ecologische methoden beter resultaat geven dan het gebruik van chemische meststoffen om de voedselproductie te verhogen in gebieden waar veel armoede heerst.”

Verder lezen: http://www.agf.nl/nieuwsbericht_detail.asp?id=68410

Volledige VN rapport (Engels): http://www.srfood.org/images/stories/pdf/officialreports/20110308_a-hrc-16-49_agroecology_en.pdf

In Tamera werkt een groep van ruim 150 onderzoekers en pioniers op een gebied van 150 hectare aan de opbouw van een nieuwe, groene, veerkrachtige toekomst op ecologisch en menselijk vlak. Kernthema’s zijn landschap, water, voedsel, zonnetechnologie en andere alternatieve energie en vredeswerk in diverse landen.
De Informatiemiddag is ook een goede gelegenheid geïnformeerd te worden over deelname aan de Initiatiefgroepen Hunzedorp, Polderdorp, Wolddorp en Hondsruggemeenschap en nog op te richten groepen.
Stichting PRO heeft namelijk de ambitie om in elke provincie een ecodorp te realiseren.

Malika Cieremans is sinds november 2009 actief betrokken bij Tamera. Op deze Informatiemiddag geeft ze een introductie over de actuele stand van zaken rond drie kernthema’s: permacultuur en waterlandschap, zonnetechnologie en vredeswerk in de gemeenschap en in de wereld. Ook wordt er een korte film over Tamera vertoond en kan er schriftelijk materiaal worden ingezien. Als u de Informatiemiddag niet kunt bezoeken dan is er tijdens de Toekomstweek van 23 t/m 31 juli in de Noordoostpolder de gelegenheid presentaties bij te wonen van de ecodorpen Auroville (India), Damanhur (Italië), ZEGG (Duitsland) en Tamera.

De Informatiemiddag wordt gehouden op zaterdag 16 april van 14.00 – 16.30 uur in Brennels Buiten, Leemringweg 19, Kraggenburg.
Organisatie en informatie: PRO-werelddorp, Jan Schuiling. 0599-663063 Opgeven via info@pro-werelddorp.nl
http://pro-werelddorp.nl/nieuws/informatiemiddag-ecodorp-tamera/

• Establishing a multi-species edible vegetation on bare, disturbed soil;
• Working with pigs for soil & vegetation recovery;
• Principles & benefits of building a lake;
• The added effects of scale: creating a water landscape with many lakes;
• Developing a natural, mixed, edible forest on eroded hillsides.

Sepp Holzer is a man with a message: We have the responsibility to help restore nature, in order to provide water and food, for us and the next generations.

Establishing a multi-species edible vegetation on bare, disturbed soil. Step 1: Spreading seeds & mulch

Sepp Holzer demonstrated one morning how to start regreening an open, disturbed soil, in this case the terrace slopes and the dam around the newly created “South Lake”. The first step is to spread a seed mixture of old varieties of carrots and salads, then covering the soil with mulch. This is a seemingly simple task, and well-known practise in permaculture, and still, it turns out there is so much to learn about, when you look at it in more depth. What seeds do you use? How to spread them evenly, not too thick or too thin, over the area? Why is it a good thing to have a soil that is rough and uneven, instead of making it flat and even and sowing all seeds at the same depth? This action is a first step towards a multi-species system, that will in time balance and reproduce itself. What to do to help this establish, to get it going? What are the functions of the mulch, and how thick to spread it?

Pigs as coworkers

Holzer pointed out the possibilities to reforest the hills with a mixed, edible, natural forest, working with pigs. The pigs are at home in the forest, and they can very well be used as natural ploughs and dung spreaders. (More about this approach in this blog post) When I see Holzer sketch this image, my heart totally resonates. I can already see the forest-covered hills and I can well imagine to support or be involved in this work for the coming years. Later this week I spoke with Heike Kessler, who is responsible for the work with pigs in Tamera. It is a big question how to deal with animal husbandry in a new way, that fits with the overall community goal: building a model for a society without war or violence. This also means true co-operation with animals, take care that they have a life that fully fits to their nature, and no killing (slaughtering). Then you come to questions like: Who are these animals? How do they want to live, what is their nature? How to give them a meaningful ‘task’ in the whole system? When you have a group of pigs, they will (want to) reproduce. How to deal with this? How is the relation between domesticated animals and wild animals, in this case the wild bores that also live in this area? This and many more questions are topics of study in the Tamera community.

The water landscape – the how, what & why about creating water retention lakes

Sepp Holzer also gave a wonderful more in-depth explanation about the method of building lakes to restore the landscape. During the 8 months I spent in Tamera last year, I was much involved in the building of the new South Lake and the land management around it, as well as open days & courses by Sepp Holzer and the Tamera ecology team. So I already have some understanding of the basic ideas of the function & purpose of the lakes, as well as the technical knowledge how to shape these water basins. This time Holzer answered questions like: How to determine the size and volume of the water retention lakes? What is the added benefit of creating lakes, instead of just working on restoring the soil & vegetation on the hills? And: It is one thing to have one lake, or three. Then the effects on soil and ground water will be very local. But what are the effects of the water landscape on a larger, landscape scale? It will positively affect the entire water household in the region, as well as balancing temperature and climate. It will reduce or even eliminate risks of floods, droughts and fires, three great threats in many-many regions on this planet.

Sepp Holzer – a man with a message: We need to help restore nature in order to provide water and food, for us and the next generations

This man is a true treasure of knowledge and experience, and with a great heart for nature and humanity. He says: “Nature itself has time enough to recover. When we stop with our destructive practises like overgrazing, drainage or overexploitation, then in 100 years, the degraded naked pasture land will turn into a pioneer forest again. And after another 100 years or more, the natural diversity and maturity will grow further. But we cannot afford that it takes so long. We have a responsibility towards the coming generations, to actively help nature to restore the mistakes that our ancestors have made. We have to speed up the process of landscape healing, so that we can harvest food and have healthy drinking water. So many people on this earth are starving today or dying because they have no access to water! This is all a result of human ignorance and mismanagement. There are no sites that are by nature unproductive and useless. It is up to us to design systems in such a way, that we let nature work for us. Water & soil are our true capital: we have to take care to harvest the water when it falls and to allow it to sink into the Earth body, not to let it flow away straight from the land into the sea.”

“If we want peace on earth, we have to create an image of what peace is. How could a world look like, in which all people would be satisfied, where streams can meander again freely, bringing clear water, in which children trust adults again and conflicts no longer lead to violence, but are being solved with intelligence and compassion?

Since more than 30 years, a team of pioneers around Dr, Dieter Duhm, Sabine Lichtenfels and Charly Rainer Ehrenpreis had the idea to develop a model for the future, where these questions will be answered, in the most clear, concrete and convincing way possible.

In a holistic model, all lines of questions are connected with each other and are being solved from an overall picture, since it was exactly the fragmentation of life, the separation of the various aspects of life, which made the whole system lose its track. A holistic model, which is reconnecting again the partial aspects, is activating the hardly researched powers like self-organisation and synergy. These powers are needed in order to bring the whole system onto a higher level of order.

From the original idea, the peace research project Tamera was developed in the Alentejo in Portugal and its international network.”

Outside the large central research institutions, universities and metropoles, here future-researchers are finding a framework for the application of their developments in practical conditions. Compassion, responsibility for the whole and mutual support are the ethical basic principles for living together in Tamera.

The book provides an insight into the state of the work of Tamera through three central themes: permaculture and the water landscape, solar technology and peace education.

The author:
Leila Dregger, born 1959 in Cologne, Germany. Journalist, former publisher of the magazine “Die weibliche Stimme – für eine Politik des Herzens” (“The female voice – for a politics of the heart”), Author of the womens´ book “Ich bin noch nicht in Frieden” (`I am not yet in peace`). Her dream is the foundation of a school for peace journalism.

With best regards, Monika Berghoff, Publisher

–

TAMERA – Model for the Future. By Leila Dregger136 P., Hardcover, 206 colour images, ISBN 978-3-927266-26-1, 19,80 Euro

“In the face of the global threats, there are projects and individuals worldwide, who are preparing a different future with great effort. One of these initiatives is Tamera.”

The book can be ordered at: http://www.verlag-meiga.org/de/node/228

Contact person in The Netherlands: Malika Cieremans

VERLAG MEIGA GbR
Monika Berghoff, Saskia Breithardt
Waldsiedlung 15, D-14806 Belzig
Tel.+49 (0) 33841-30538
Fax: +49 (0) 3212-1048983
Email: info@verlag-meiga.org
www.verlag-meiga.org

GLS Gemeinschaftsbank
Konto Nr. 111 414 2300
BLZ 430 609 67
IBAN: DE18 4306 0967 1114 1423 00
BIC: GENODEM1GLS
Verkehrs-Nr. 96909

V E R L A G  M E I G A – For a Future without War

A Project proposal by Malika Cieremans, Nov. 2010

Project description
The method of decentral water retention, combined with the establishment of edible forests with the help of pigs is an original, creative solution to bring biodiversity and productivity to marginal landscapes. This unconventional agricultural management system has its roots in the Austrian snow-covered mountains (See Sepp Holzer, Krameterhof), and is now to be adapted to Alentejo region in South-Portugal, with its hot and dry summers, alarming deforestation, cork oak dying and desertification. First one pilot model will be realised, which can later serve as a functioning example and education facility for family farmers, as well as larger farmlands in the region and abroad. Key elements are water retention basins, surrounded by multi-cropping ecosystems on the terraces and hills, combining agriculture, forestry and natural biodiversity. Pigs are used as multi-functional ‘co-workers’ to work the land.

The situation of the Alentejo region, Portugal
Despite heavy rainfalls in winter, the Alentejo shows severe signs of desertification. Causes are deforestation in the last century, monoculture plantations of mostly eucalyptus, overgrazing by goats, mismanagement of water and use of heavy machinery, which led to high erosion, fires, a rural exodus and a massive dying of the remaining cork oaks: an ecological, social and economic crisis, which cries for action. For centuries, traditional agriculture consisted of an extensive use of cork and pork. The introduction of sustainable agroforestry and pig-keeping is taking new steps along the lines of the ancient tradition.

The Agro Food Forest concept: A New Form of Spacial and Species Design
An Agro Food Forest is a polyculture cropping system. The structure resembles a natural ecosystem in its(bio)diversity, complexity and self-organisation, only now it is composed of a mixture of edible, supportive and native species. The vegetation cover consists of several layers, both vertically and horizontally. Therefore, the amount of biomass and harvestable products can be higher than in conventional, single-layered cropping systems. The system is highly self-fertilizing, by using specific plant combinations to fix nitrogen from the air and effectively redistribute available soil nutrients. The soil is kept covered with plants and organic material, providing additional nutrients and protection. The species mixture also allows for a high degree of natural control of pests and diseases.

Working with pigs for land restoration
For reforestation to succeed, the dry, compacted and eroded soil needs to be opened up and recovered. To do this with heavy machinery would be riskful and require immense investments. But there is another possibility. The Austrian mountain farmer Holzer states: “Pigs are my best co-workers: They have a built-in plough in front and a dung spreader at their back.” The work of the pigs will create favourable conditions for the germination of seeds, both dormant and newly sown. And these living ‘ploughs-and-fertilizers’ have many more advantages over their artificial counterparts: The pigs can work on slopes, between trees, and in other circumstances where machines are unable to go. They don’t have a negative impact on the soil structure nor damage tree roots. They can be trained to eat harmful insects, but leave a chance for natural biodiversity to survive and thrive. They don’t need fossil fuels or purchased fodder; instead, the pigs help cultivate their own food. If they live in healthy circumstances, the pigs don’t break down or need expensive repairs. They don’t make noise and are attractive in the landscape. They even reproduce themselves and can be sold.

Creating a Water Landscape
An important precondition for the successful establishment of an Agro Food Forest with the use of pigs in these areas with extreme summer-droughts, is the balanced availability of water, both in the soil and as surface water for drinking. For this purpose, since 2007, a start is made with the construction of decentral water retention basins on the test site, according to the Water Landscape concept. Experience proves that this nature-based way of water retention prevents the heavy winter rains from running off from the slopes straight into the rivers and seas, taking with it the fertile top soil, creating flood damage and leaving the land eroded and dry in summer. Now, the rain can sink into the soil, replenishing the ground water table, creating springs and provide water for drinking and plant growth all year round. Biodiversity is increasing: there are new biotopes for water plants and animals. Along the banks, the plants now stay green in the dry season. More birds and land animals come, because they find water, food and shelter. More water retention basins are to be realised in order for the system to fully function and have a lasting impact on landscape scale.

Planned activities
The realisation of another ten water retention basins is planned for the coming years. The construction activities are coordinated by experienced Tamera landscape engineers. During the building, trainees can join in order to spread the knowledge and skills. Both people from the region as well as international trainees are welcome.Along the shores and slopes around the newly built water retention basins, reforestation is planned in the coming seasons. The first step is to start with a group of 10-20 pigs and create an Agro Food Forest on the size of five hectares in several stages of experimenting and implementing. This work needs to be accompanied, monitored and analysed scientifically to be able to generalize the conditions and benefits of this innovation.

How Agro Food Forests improve biodiversity
As described above, most of the Alentejo landscape is well on its way to turn into a barren desert. Biodiversity is minimal. Once the landscape degradation has been stopped by building decentral water retention basins, it is time to reverse the process by soil and landscape recovery. Exactly this is the purpose of the Agro Food Forest approach. This will improve structure, water retaining capacity and fertility of the soil. The realisation of multi-layered polyculture cropping systems and the recovery of natural forests create many habitats and niches for both domesticated and wild species. The resulting landscape is characterized by a large diversity of plant and animal species, in the soil, on the land, in the water and in the air.

Innovative character of Agro Food Forest system
The concept of establishing Agro Food Forests with pigs is very little known worldwide, this in itself has a strongly innovative character. In this specific case, many new solutions need to be developed to translate the available knowledge to the climatic, geographic and social environment of Portugal. E.g. adapt it to the temperature regime and water fluctuations; create favourable conditions for seed germination, tree establishment, crop growth and regeneration of natural vegetation on the degraded clay soils and bare slopes; find suitable species and varieties of cultivated and wild plants and trees, as well as experiment with breeds of pigs.
(Economic) chances of success
The Water Landscape & Agro Food Forest method can give an important economic boost to the Alentejo region, currently one of the poorest regions of the EU. At the moment, at best a marginal existence is possible here. The countryside is massively depopulating, poverty prevails and even starvation occurs. Turnover and profit are NIL. Only EU subsidies give the last remaining goat herds a chance to survive, stimulating them to have ever larger herds, which leads to further overexploitation of the land. The realisation of this system will bring a major change: it supplies a diverse package of products and services, and thus a good family income for the farmer. The yield per hectare is expected to rise substantially, in quantity, quality and economic value. Once the system is established, the necessary investments and maintenance costs are low, compared to the yield. The produce would meet the standards for organic certification and could potentially be sold in the growing organic market of Portugal. Also the significant increase of biodiversity and natural values can have a market value.Turnover and profit can consist for instance of high yields of food products, available throughout the year:vegetables, berries, nuts and fruit trees, herbs, mushrooms; flowers and decorative plants; different types of wood, cork and other forest products; livestock, such as free ranging pigs, poultry, wildlife and birds.
With a proper multi-layered design and management, the yield per hectare can exceed conventional or organic farming, and it is possible to grow crops all year, also in the driest and hottest summer months, in contrast to conventional gardening. The variety of production means risk reduction: If there is a bad harvest season for one crop, there are always others that do provide a good yield.
Services could include various forms of nature recreation and tourism, biodiversity education as well as farmers’ training how to construct and manage Agro Food Forests and work with pigs. Initially, the project is aimed at building one functioning model in the Alentejo, but potentially, the concept can be a stimulus for economic improvement far beyond the boundaries of region and country.

Financing
Financial support will stimulate the development and realisation of the project. Money is needed to cover the material and/or personnel costs. E.g. the purchase of pigs, appropriate seeds and planting materials, tools and materials (such as portable electric fences), as well as work hours for research, consultancy, implementation,and knowledge transfer through education and publication.