Heal the land, heal the people manifesto

A manifesto of a likeminded value-driven community that cares about people, the land and the future. Click here to download this manifesto.

 

Economics of restoration project - ASSET Research

Wisdom of the Ages

Two weeks ago the man who some describe as a founding father of Regenerative Agriculture was in South Africa giving a number of Master Classes. It was a privilege to sit for two days and listen to a man who has a global following but doesn’t want to be guru; who has enormous experience but admits he doesn’t know all the answers; who doesn’t believe that his way is the only way, but who does want to share his experience; who shared his belief of how farming should be a marriage with nature, approached as one approaches a responsive lover, not as a warrior engages with an enemy.

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Berg and Breede Riparian Rehabilitation Programme, Western Cape, South Africa

The Berg and Breede Riparian Rehabilitation Programme (est. 2013) is one of the largest active riparian rehabilitation projects in South Africa. Initiated by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning, the project has planted approximately 2.16 million plants since its inception within an area of 18 ha. The primary aims of this project is to improve ecological functioning of the river, to create jobs (through EPWP) and to buffer the effects of climate change (flooding). The programme has involved over 30 landowners over the years, as key partners in their endeavours and Intaba Environmental Services has been one of the main service providers in this programme.

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Regenerative agriculture case studies and the story of Laureano

In order to better understand the impact of what has been happening among the more than 15 million smallholder farmers using “regenerative agriculture” (RA) across the developing world, let’s first look at the impact it has had on a single, more or less average farmer, among them. In the photo above, Laureano is showing us the nature and results of his switch to RA. Why did Laureano begin practicing RA? Frankly, it’s because of the impressive list of benefits. One of the many beauties of RA is that by the very act of benefiting the individual farmer in multitudinous ways, it also benefits all of humankind in multitudinous ways. Contrary to what so often happens in human life, there is no contradiction in RA between the individual welfare of the producer and the general welfare of humankind.

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Meijer’s Rust Restoration

In 2010, Barry Meijer returned from the United States where he had lived for the last 35 years. He’d had great memories of his time in the army at Oudtshoorn so he decided to buy a farm there. Barry had grown up on a farm near Eshowe and, while running his garden services business in California, he had done some sideline farming of oats and barley, so he knew a little about farming. When he started farming at Meijer’s Rust in Meiringspoort near the town of De Rust he continued what had been done there before and if he needed any advice, he asked the neighbours.

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Mahlathini Development Foundation – transforming through collaboration

The MDF started working with smallholder farmers in a village outside Bergville in 2013. Today 350 farmers from 18 villages in the area and 30 from the Bergville Youth Group take part in the programme. In southern KwaZulu-Natal – Highflats, Ixopo, Creighton and Umzimkhulu – 150 farmers have joined the movement, whereas 180 farmers from the region stretching from Greytown to Wartburg and Tongaat participate.

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