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Regenerating Nature-Based Systems – The Solution to Cooling the Climate
The climate news isn’t good now, with devastating storms, droughts, floods, and fires everywhere.
The facts are that solar/planetary cycles, greenhouse gases, and forest/vegetation cover have roles in climate forcing and contribute to the changing climate. While we cannot change the solar/planetary cycles, we can change the level of greenhouse gases and regenerate ecosystems to cool the planet and restore the hydrology and climate.
We have enough evidence based on current best practices that scaling up a percentage of best practice regenerative agriculture systems can remove more than the current emissions of CO2 to reduce the levels in the atmosphere and oceans. The scaling up of these systems by regenerating a high biodiversity of plants and animals in agroecosystems will cool the planet.
The following articles in this series will detail how we can do this. The good news is that we can turn it around by regenerating our planet. We know how to do it – it isn’t rocket science. Many of us are doing this now. We need many others to join us. Together, we can give ourselves, our children, and all the living species we share our planet with a great future.
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Strong El Nino Affects Southern Africa: How Creating Landscape and Farmer Resiliency to Shocks is Going to Help us all Keep Moving
Year after year we realize that the extreme weather patterns are making it hard for farmers to make ends meet from their landscapes.
I am in western Zimbabwe, Hwange where I am engaged with communal farmers working on regenerative projects together. We are currently in an unprecedented dry spell in the midst of a growing season! Reports show that a great population will be in lack of food this year in our country, quoting about 2.8 million people. The rains delayed, the temperatures were soaring, wildlife, people and livestock were all desperate for the smallest shower we could get from the skies. We have a very short growing season, that starts in mid November to mid-March, and this 2023/2024 we have only had precipitation for 9 days, and a long dry spell, of 15 days (and it looks like we are still counting).
All regenerative efforts like Agroecology, organic farming, permaculture, and so on are so important to relieve stress in events like this. Regeneration in at the core meant to help farmers manage the complexity that is involved with living systems work. The odds are never predictable, and with the ever advancing climate crisis- the shocks are almost inevitable. Our networks are doing the very best moves to pressure the powers that be to make policies and plans that will finally see us moving ahead with confronting climate emergency. While this effort is important, we also celebrate the brave efforts of being able to work at policy levels while building strong farmer movements to create capacity to small holder farmers across the region for such times.
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Mekong Organics Invites Regeneration International to Promote Regenerative Organic Development Across Vietnam
In January, our friend and partner Mekong Organics invited Regeneration International to participate and share knowledge on a very successful series of events they brilliantly managed entitled “Strengthening Trade and Investment in Organic Agriculture between Australia and Vietnam”, held from January 15 to 21 in both Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, funded by the Australian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and part of a program to bolster economic cooperation between the two countries.
HO CHI MINH CITY
“Strengthening Trade and Investment in Organic Agriculture between Australia and Vietnam” occurred following our trip to Dong Tháp Province in the Mekong Delta. Prominent regenerative farmers from Australia, such as Regeneration International’s Prof. Dr André Leu, Peter Randall, and Alan Broughton, were welcomed by Mekong Organics and the University of Social Sciences and Humanity of Ho Chi Minh (USSH) to give keynote presentations that showcase the triple bottom line benefits of regenerative organic agriculture to an attentive and discerning audience at USSH during a three-day event that included a forum and workshop by Mekong Organics, and an organic food expo of local and regional producers working under OCOP (One Commune One Product of Vietnam) a national cooperative developed to create value chains for small hold farmers.
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Global Alliance for Organic Districts (GAOD)
The vision of the Global Alliance for Organic Districts (GAOD) is to co- create a global network able to support the local development of Organic Districts in different territorial contexts and scaling up examples of practical solutions. Our work is based on the principles of Health, Ecology, Fairness and Care.
There are more than 60 Organic Districts in Europe and concrete plans for establishments in Argentina, Taiwan and the Pacific’s.
A major task for us in the coming year is the support of the newly established Organic District in Norway and as an integrated part of Bodø and the county of Nordland as the European Capital of Culture 2024. It is North of the Artic Circle – at 67 degrees north – the land of the midnight sun and northern light. The Sami indigenous culture is central in the region together with small scale agriculture, gathering and harvesting in a close interaction with Artic nature.
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Joint Declaration in Defense of our Biodiversity, Seed and Food Freedom – Resisting GMO Imperialism
Seeds are the first link in the food chain. They embody our heritage and enfold the future evolution of life. It is our inherent duty and responsibility to protect our seeds and pass them on to future generations. The cultivation of seeds and their free exchange among farmers have been the basis for maintaining biodiversity and our food security. Today, our seed sovereignty is threatened by intellectual property rights and new GMO technologies that have transformed seeds from a commons shared by farmers, to a commodity under the control and monopoly of agribusiness corporations. To have control over seeds is to have control over our lives, our food and our freedom.
Over the last few decades, GMO crops have been imposed in countries all over the world, advertised as a solution to food insecurity and the malnutrition crisis. However, hunger, disease and malnutrition have increased, while biodiversity has declined and toxins have spread.
In Mexico, which is the center of origin of maize, just as in other centers of biodiversity, there has been a long struggle by society and organized communities against this GMO imperialism threatening the subsistence and culture of native peoples. To date, Mexican society has achieved a ban on the planting of GM maize in Mexico through a class action lawsuit filed against the companies Bayer-Monsanto, Syngenta and Corteva Agriscience. This ban is still in force.
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Online Certificate Course on Regenerative Agriculture by South Seas University in Association With Regeneration International
Become a certified regenerative agriculture practitioner! Join South Seas University (SSU) and Regeneration International (RI) in 2024 and beyond for exclusive 5-week online courses.
Join Regeneration International director Dr. Andre Leu in an interesting course starting February 26.
90 minute sessions; Maximizing Photosynthesis, GroundCovers and Weed Management, Soil health and Nutrition, Using Functional Biodiversity to Manage Pests and Diseases, Making It Happen – Applying the knowledge.
Dr. André Leu, is a practising farmer, the International Director of Regeneration International, and the Author of Growing Life (2021), Poisoning Our Children (2018), and The Myths of Safe Pesticides (2014). His work appears in Television, magazines, universities, institutions, NGOs, and worldwide workshops, including the United Nations. André and his wife, Julia, own and manage an organic tropical fruit farm in Daintree, Australia.
A reduced price will be available to anyone on a limited income wanting to take this course.
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Essential Reading and Viewing
Monarch Butterflies Wintering in Mexico Drop to Second-Lowest Level Ever Recorded
The estimated number of monarch butterflies migrating to Mexico for winter has reached its second-lowest level ever for the 2023 to 2024 overwintering season. The estimate, based on the size of the butterflies’ hibernating forest area, has dropped by about 59% from the previous year, according to officials.
The Great Cash-for-Carbon Hustle
Offsetting has been hailed as a fix for runaway emissions and climate change—but the market’s largest firm sold millions of credits for carbon reductions that weren’t real.
The World Is Changing Too Fast for Us: Organic Farmers on Urgency of French Protests
France taken by surprise by scale and fury of grassroots demonstrations amid crisis in organic sector. The French government has been taken by surprise by the scale and fury of grassroots farmer demonstrations that have spread from the south-west across the whole country this week.
World Board Approves IFOAM – Organics International’s 2024-2034 Strategy
IFOAM - Organics International's World Board has recently approved an ambitious strategy for the next 10 years to unite our movement and position organic as a solution to global crises of climate, biodiversity, food security, and inequality. The implementation of this strategy will be led by Ravi R. Prasad, the newly appointed Executive Director.
Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems: 10th Anniversary Collection
To celebrate 10 years of ASFS, in this special collection, we have gathered some of our most-read and most-cited papers from the decade, as well as several “editors picks” we feel exemplify the agroecological focus the journal promotes. The collection will be available open access for the next six months, and we hope you will read and share the articles, reviews, and editorials with your colleagues, students, co-organizers, and more.
Are you looking to regenerate your land and livelihood?
The natural world is composed of beautiful and infinitely complex living systems. Land, animals, people, plants, fungi, and more are all interconnected and in a relationship with each other. Holistic Management is a decision-making framework that enables us to make the best decisions amidst the complexity of these living systems.
IFOAM – Organics International Stands Firm on the Importance of Grower Group Certification Amidst Litigation Pratum v. USDA
IFOAM - Organics International considers group certification a vital tool for ensuring millions of organic farmers around the world can access global markets whilst ensuring the robust integrity of the products produced. We understand that the USDA’s new regulation for producer groups differs from both the recent EU legislation and IFOAM Norms for grower groups in a few ways, but still support the regulatory recognition of producer groups in the USDA rule.
Whole landscapes, whole communities - Working with Nature to heal, transform and regenerate landscapes in Southern Africa.
A short animation video that gives an introduction to the Agroecology Landscape work that SKI has been pioneering in seven pilot sites in Southern Africa since 2021.
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Support Our Work
Dear Friends of Regeneration International
Regenerative Agriculture is under attack by agribusiness. The poison cartels such as Bayer/Monsanto and Syngenta, along with their captive government departments, are trying to hijack regenerative agriculture to greenwash their degenerative systems.
“We need your participation and support as we move forward in this world-changing campaign we call Regeneration International. We need to build a massive international alliance to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, to sequester billions of tons of excess atmospheric carbon in our soils and biota, to regenerate billions of acres of degraded ecosystems, to eliminate rural poverty, to reverse our deteriorating public health and to revitalize rural communities all over the globe. The hour is late, but we still have time to regenerate.”
Please support our campaign to stop this greenwashing and ensure Regenerative Agriculture’s integrity by restoring farmer’s independence, promoting social justice, fair trade and regenerating ecological health.
Can you give $10 monthly or a one time donation today to support Regeneration International and our campaigns?
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Upcoming Events |
In Person:
02/26 - Holistic Financial Planning
02/27 - Overcoming Challenges in Weed Management in Regenerative Agriculture
03/06 - Slow Carbon Agriculture Show 2024
03/07 - Huertos Familiares 2024
03/08 - San Juan Island Agricultural Summit
03/11 - Accelerating Nature-based Solutions Conference
03/12 - Producción de Lombricomposta y Lixiviados
03/12 - Climate Day 2024
03/12 - Agricultura Regenerativa con Vetiver
03/16 - Agricultura Regenerativa en huertos urbanos
03/19 - Opportunities, Challenges in Funding Regenerative Agriculture
03/21 - Organics 2024
03/25 - International Conference on Regenerative Agriculture and Agroecological Restoration
03/26 - Bases de la Agricultura Agroecológica 2024
03/16 - Agricultura Regenerativa en huertos urbanos
03/19 - Opportunities, Challenges in Funding Regenerative Agriculture
03/21 - Organics 2024
Online:
02/26 - Webinar - Online Certificate Course on Regenerative Agriculture
03/05 - Webinar – Advances in Cover Crop Management, Maximise the Nutrient Use Efficiency Benefit
03/05 - Webinar – Exploring Plants with Joel Williams
03/07 - Webinar - Tree Hay, Using Trees as Livestock Fodder
03/13 - Webinar – Liberar el potencial del Biocarbon, impactos en la salud y la productividad del suelo
03/15 - Webinar –Reproducción de la colmena
03/26 - Webinar - Producción de hortalizas orgánicas, cultivos de cobertura y labranza cero
*Click here to view full events calendar and submit your own
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Regeneration International is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit, dedicated to building a global network of farmers, scientists, businesses, activists, educators, journalists, policymakers and consumers who will promote and put into practice regenerative agriculture and land-use practices that: provide abundant, nutritious food; revitalize local economies; regenerate soil fertility and water-retention capacity; nurture biodiversity; and restore climate stability by reducing agricultural greenhouse gas emissions while at the same time drawing down excess atmospheric carbon and sequestering it in the soil.
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