Soil4Life

“Om” (short for Organic material) is one of the things which stuck deeply into my mind from the soil4life workshop in October – and that soil can never have enough of it to create some nice humus! Even though this wasn’t a completely new information after having taken a PDC in summer, I now remember it even more as one of the most important, easiest and best ways to obtain and/or conserve a healthy soil. While traditionally we are often used to clean our gardens from most kinds of ‘unpretty’ stuff such as weeds, old plants, leaves etc., the first thing I did coming home, was to actually put exactly this ‘stuff’ – shredded old plants (to make it a little easier to de-compost) and leaves – into my mums garden, especially on blank and thus unprotected patches. Now I’m curious if and how it will look like after the winter when the time comes to prepare the gardens soil for the new growing season! However, all in all, the seminar did not only inspire me to put more “Om” into the garden, bu...

Is this going to be an interesting training? I already have lots of background knowledge, having an agricultural university degree and working for 10 years in my field. But I knew one of the trainers and that gave me all the confidence needed to sign up. So I did. It's always inspiring and exiting to meet new people and go to a new place. Let's go! During the week I did learn some new skills, but most things I already knew. It was just hidden somewhere far away in my brain! It was like completing a puzzle. Satisfied and happy I went home. Home is when the real change happened. Where I started to realize the impact of good soil management. And how easy it is to make this change no matter who you are or what your situation is. When I go for a walk, I look at every piece of soil with interest and curiousity. I talk a lot about possibilities and show the short videos we shared during the training. My friends and family respond with the same enthusiasm as I do. The word is ...

The Soil4life Project, a lovely week of training! by Amelie de la Rocha (participant, Belgium) Lately, I have been very curious about soil, and the lack of information and communication we have in Belgium around it. So, when I read on a friend's facebook post about this training week, I subscribed with no doubt! First, the location was breath taking, located at the beginning of the Alps mountains. The training in itself was pretty broad, covering lots of different topics. The focus was on theoretical and practical solutions for soil regeneration. Besides, we received also information on the situation of soil in Europe and the legislation. This lead us to write a first draft for a manifesto on soil protection that should be further developed to be finally presented at the UNESCO. The whole process was not only very rich & informative but also very fun with lots of talks and sharing experiences. It was very hard to stay on schedule, with all the questions and int...

14- 19 October 2019, Vaunieres, France The Soil4Life project aims to raise awareness and share good practices regarding this important subject. As part of the project, CCIVS held capacity building event in one of its member’s centres in France. The participants learnt about the fascinating, living soil web and how they can restore and regenerate soils in their diverse contexts. The course addressed rural as well as urban issues and took place in participatory and non-formal learning environment. We aimed to get our hands dirty- making compost, and natural fertilizers, while exploring skills like reading the landscape, sharing ideas, innovations and inspirations drawn from the diverse group of chosen participants. The young people were supported by expert facilitators and a strong logistics team. During the event, each participant came up with an action plan that they will implement with their local organisations after the training. These can include workcamps, commu...