sábado, 25 de fevereiro de 2012

Introduction à la permaculture pour les agriculteurs



Présentation donnée initialiement à l'Ecole d'Agriculture de Châteauneuf, Valais, Suisse.

quarta-feira, 22 de fevereiro de 2012

Natures Matrix: Linking Agriculture, Conservation and Food Sovereignty




John Vandermeer and Ivette Perfecto discuss their recent book: 'Natures Matrix: Linking Agriculture, Conservation and Food Sovereignty' UC Berkeley.

segunda-feira, 20 de fevereiro de 2012

Biosfera 332 Morcegos em perigo




O misticismo a que os morcegos estão votados não tem ajudado no estudo e conservação destes animais. Muitos desconhecem a sua importância no controlo de pragas e insectos, por exemplo. No Ano do Morcego, o Biosfera foi perceber como vivem estes mamíferos em Portugal. Descobrimo-los na Quinta da Regaleira e nas galerias subterrâneas do Museu Nacional do Traje.

Fonte: Farol de Ideias

Biosfera 276 Condominio da terra




Biosfera 276 Condominio da terra (English Subtitles)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phla5CSMZv4

Partilhamos todos a mesma casa, mas só alguns dos moradores é que cuidam dela. No entanto, os benefícios dessa manutenção vão para todos. É esta a realidade de injustiça em que vivemos e que o projecto “Condomínio da Terra” quer alterar. É um modelo socioeconómico revolucionário, que propõe que cada condómino analise o que fez de bem e de mal para o planeta e contribua para um Fundo global segundo essa pegada ecológica.

Fonte: Farol de Ideias

sexta-feira, 17 de fevereiro de 2012

Biosfera 309 Permacultura


http://permaculturaportugal.ning.com/

O que esconde a palavra permacultura? Define-se como um modelo de sustentabilidade que procura a harmonia com a natureza e que, encontra em Portugal, cada vez mais adeptos. Descubra o que são florestas comestíveis e de que forma as galinhas ou os porcos ajudam a recuperar solos pobres e com problemas de erosão. O Biosfera desta semana, ajuda-o a desvendar os segredos da permacultura.

Fonte: Farol de Ideias

quinta-feira, 16 de fevereiro de 2012

TEDxManhattan - Fred Kirschenmann - Soil: From Dirt to Lifeline


http://www.tedxmanhattan.org/2012talks

Fred Kirschenmann has been involved in sustainable agriculture and food issues for most of his life. He currently serves as both a Distinguished Fellow at the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University, and as President of the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Pocantico Hills, New York. He also still provides management over site of his family's 2,600 acre organic farm in south central North Dakota. He was recently named as one of the first ten James Beard Foundation Leadership Awards which recognizes visionaries in creating more healthful, more sustainable, and safer food systems. He is the author of a book of essays which track the development of his thought over the past 30 years; Cultivating an Ecological Conscience: Essays by a Farmer Philosopher, published by the University of Kentucky Press.

More information at http://www.tedxmanhattan.org

Living Mulch Sustainable Farming near Missoula




http://www.permies.com

Helen Atthowe, Missoula County Horticulturist (1995-2010)  speaks about a variety of Living Mulch Management - Balancing Crop and Clover Interrelationships. 2011.

Helen talks about creating beneficial insect habitats: bees, parasitic wasps, (in april she was experiencing a 1-to-1 ratio of parasitized aphids to non parasitized aphids), spiders, ground beetles ...

Broccoli, brussel sprouts and cabbage yields are explored. Using three foot wide raised beds.

The minimum till was done with a single shank chisel plow followed by a light tilling with a tiller/rotovator.

Living mulches experimented with include clover which contributes nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, but also competes with the production crop. The trick is to find the balance and get the best of all worlds.

Music by Jimmy Pardo

quarta-feira, 15 de fevereiro de 2012

¿Por qué la agroecología es la solución al hambre y a la inseguridad alimentaria?




Los movimientos por la alimentación, la agroecología y el futuro de la
alimentación y la agricultura. Hoy en día, mil millones de personas viven
con hambre. Los precios pico del petróleo y la degradación del medio
ambiente ponen en peligro la seguridad alimentaria de miles de millones
más, especialmente si tenemos en cuenta que la mitad de la población
mundial vive en entornos urbanos, dependiendo de alimentos industrialmente producidos e importados. Se requiere urgentemente una transición, pero, ¿cómo?, ¿qué políticas alternativas pueden permitirles a las comunidades lograr su seguridad alimentaria de cara a los desafíos ambientales, mientras que al mismo tiempo se mejora su calidad de vida, se construye resiliencia y se conservan los ecosistemas?

Varios movimientos sociales relacionados con los alimentos ya han surgido en todo el mundo, pero ¿desafíos actuales enfrentan actualmente?

Miguel Altieri (profesor de Agroecología en la Universidad de California,
Berkeley y autor de Agroecología: La ciencia de la Agricultura Sostenible) comparte sus puntos de vista en una conferencia sobre Agroecología co-organizada por el Transnational Institute (TNI), el Instituto de Estudios Sociales (ISS), y el Real Economics Group en la Universidad de Amsterdam (diciembre de 2011).

Para recibir actualizaciones y noticias sobre próximos eventos y nuevas publicaciones, puede suscribirse al boletín de TNI en el siguiente link: http://www.tni.org/civicrm/mailing/subscribe

terça-feira, 14 de fevereiro de 2012

Debaixo da floresta da gente tem gente 30' | There are people inside our forest




Este vídeo é um retrato do modo de vida de comunidades caboclas do Rio Arapiuns (Santarém PA) em sua busca por novas oportunidades de desenvolvimento socioambiental em parceria com o Projeto Saúde e
Alegria. Através de registros realizados ao longo dos últimos dois anos (2008/2009), podemos vislumbrar caminhos e conhecer um pouco mais sobre esta gente.
A Eletrocooperativa, em parceria com o Núcleo Oikos, foi responsável pela filmagem, edição, produção e montagem do vídeo "Debaixo da Floresta da Gente tem Gente".

A history about the way of life of the "caboclos" comunities in Arapiuns River (Pará - Brazil) on their search for new opportunities of social and environmental development.

Séminaire agroécologie: Potentiel redox (Eh) et pH: un cadre global de fonctionnement des systèmes sol/eau/plantes/microorganismes?



Animation scientifique "Agroécologie - Intensification écologique des systèmes de culture" (Montpellier)
agropolis.fr/agronomie/animation-scientifique-agroecologie.php

Séminaire du 10 janvier 2012 : Potentiel redox (Eh) et pH, un cadre global de fonctionnement des systèmes sol/eau/plantes/microorganismes / Olivier Husson, unité propre de recherche Cirad Systèmes et Ingénierie Agronomique (SIA)
cirad.fr/ur/couverts_permanents

L’intensification écologique, repose sur la mobilisation des processus écologique afin de favoriser certaines fonctions éco-systémiques. Sa mise en œuvre présuppose la compréhension de ces processus et en particulier comment ils participent au fonctionnement du système sol/eau/plantes/ microorganismes. Pour cela, l’agronome doit être capable d’intégrer l’approche de nombreuses disciplines, et ceci à diverses échelles et dans des milieux variés. L’identification de paramètres susceptibles de transcender disciplines et échelles de travail permettrait de créer des ponts entre disciplines et entre échelles. Les électrons et les protons, à la base du fonctionnement énergétique de toute cellule, sont des candidats intéressants à ce titre. Le pH qui caractérise l’activité des protons est d’ailleurs un paramètre clef classiquement utilisé en agronomie. A l’inverse, et de manière surprenante, le potentiel redox (Eh), qui est classiquement utilisé pour caractériser le niveau d’oxydation-réduction des organismes vivants, n’est que rarement étudié en agronomie où son utilisation est restée limitée aux milieux très réduits (rizières, sols organiques). A partir d’une revue bibliographique transdisciplinaire, allant de la physiologie des plantes à la biogéochimie en passant par la génétique, l’écologie microbienne, l’éco-physiologie, la pathologie, la bioénergétique, la biochimie, l’écologie, les sciences du sol, la chimie et la physique, nous montrons l’importance de prendre en considération le potentiel redox (Eh) en agronomie, et en particulier pour l’étude des systèmes sol/eau/plantes/microorganismes. Cette revue nous permet de proposer un cadre conceptuel original pour l’analyse et la modélisation, basé sur le fonctionnement des systèmes sol/eau/plantes/microorganismes et de proposer de caractériser ces milieux par trois paramètres : Eh, pH et résistivité électrique. Ce cadre conceptuel apporte un nouveau regard sur le fonctionnement de ces systèmes et pose de nombreuses questions à l’agronomie. Il ouvre ainsi de nouvelles perspectives pour les agronomes, mais aussi pour les chercheurs des disciplines qui « alimentent » l’agronomie.

segunda-feira, 13 de fevereiro de 2012

¿Qué comemos hoy?




¿Sabemos realmente lo que comemos?

¿Qué comemos hoy? Part 2
http://youtu.be/9Xzh2j3spJ0

¿Qué comemos hoy? Part 3
http://youtu.be/BFjmzNBNpqM

¿Qué comemos hoy? Part 4
http://youtu.be/aLqkBhI2iZY

¿Qué comemos hoy? Part 5
http://youtu.be/WCSPJJ7L28Q

¿Qué comemos hoy? Part 6
http://youtu.be/HvtmmBqWqUs

domingo, 12 de fevereiro de 2012

Natural Capital Speaks!, excerpt from 'Costa Rica Counts the Future'




In a series produced by Griesinger Films from 1991 to 1996, the 180 minute DVD Natural Capital Speaks! presents four provocative 45 minute documentary videos that cover the historic emergence of the young science of ecological economics. Providing unprecedented access to the inspirational analyses and prescient warnings of some of the world's most renowned ecologists, economists, scientists and politicians, Natural Capital Speaks! captures the fascinating, early days of an economics that counts the earth
This excerpt is from: COSTA RICA COUNTS THE FUTURE, 45 minutes, 1996, San Jose, Costa Rica -- Costa Rican President Jose Maria Figueres, Juan Martinez-Alier, Donella Meadows, Paul Ekins, Dr. Rodrigo Gamez, Dr. Alvaro Umana and three rural Costa Rican Southern Zone cooperatives appear in this elegant, bilingual documentary (with Spanish/English subtitles) that presents Costa Rica's adoption of ecological economics as official policy. CO2 mitigation services; secondary forest protection; commercial exploration and preservation of biodiversity; botanical medicine; eco-tourism; organic agriculture; economic opportunity for women; and sustainable yield mangrove charcoal production are included in this richly illustrated video.
Be sure to watch excerpts from the three other videos in the series featured in the DVD 'Natural Capital Speaks!': An Introduction to Ecological Economics, Investing in Natural Capital, and Conversation for a Sustainable Society.

Ecological Farm Design for Pest Management In Organic Vegetable Production: Successes and Challenges on Two Farms Webinar




Presenters: Helen Atthowe and Doug O'Brien, Doug O'Brien Agricultural Consulting. This webinar will describe the more than 20 year journeys of Pinnacle Farm, San Juan Bautista, CA and Biodesign Farm, Stevensville, MT. These farms increased plant diversity though practices such as planting insectaries and hedgerows, and employed reduced tillage, pest thresholds and crop planting timing to manage pests in vegetable crops with minimal or no spraying. Learn more about this webinar at http://www.extension.org/pages/61953.

Entrevista a Javier Carrera, Red de Guardianes de Semillas


defensaterritorios

En este corto video, Javier de la Red de Guardianes de Semilla de Ecuador explica su experiencia en la conservación e intercambio de semillas en el camino de la Soberanía Alimentaria
Este corto se encuentra en el documental Aprender a comer, aprender a vivir, que es una producción de El Kinógraf para Entrepobles, Barcelona 2009.
Si quieres conocer videos similares puedes acceder al canal de Defensa de Territorios de Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/defensaterritorios o en la página web del proyecto: http://www.defensaterritorios.org, dónde en el menú multimedia puedes acceder a documentales, entrevistas, filmación de conferencias.
La página web de Defensa de territorios forma parte del trabajo que lleva adelante la Asociación Entrepueblos (web: http://epueblos.pangea.org/)
Si quieres ponerte en contacto: defensaterritorios.ep@gmail.com

De la mata a la olla. Comercialización campesina y comercio justo





Durante los últimos años las grandes cadenas de supermercados han llegado a controlar de forma dominante la mayoría de los espacios de venta de productos alimentarios y de primera necesidad. Su expansión ha comportado graves problemas, tanto en los países del Norte como en los del Sur: empobrecimiento de las personas productoras, destrucción del comercio local, condiciones laborales precarias, reducción de las opciones de compra a unas pocas marcas de empresas transnacionales,… Ante los impactos de este modelo, las poblaciones de muchas partes del mundo han empezado a organizarse y a construir alternativas concretas. Este documental muestra experiencias de Ecuador, Nicaragua, México y Catalunya (estado español) encaminadas a un mismo propósito: democratizar el sistema de producción y distribución de alimentos.
Realización y Producción: Erica Tomas; Investigación y Producción: Ernest Cañada; Guión: Ernest Cañada y Erica Tomas.
Alba Sud y Fundación Luciérnaga (Investigación y Comunicación para el desarrollo), Nicaragua 2008
Duración 47 minutos
Entidades que han promovido el video: Xarxa de Consum Solidari, Alba Sud, Luciérnaga. Con el apoyo de Progressio, Agència Catalana de Cooperació al Desenvolupament, Embajada de Finlandia en Managua.

Si quieres conocer videos similares puedes acceder al canal de Defensa de Territorios de Vimeo (vimeo.com/channels/162059) o a la página web del proyecto: defensaterritorios.org, dónde en el menú multimedia puedes acceder a documentales, entrevistas, filmación de conferencias.
La página web de Defensa de territorios forma parte del trabajo que lleva adelante la Asociación Entrepueblos (web: epueblos.pangea.org/)
Si quieres ponerte en contacto: defensaterritorios.ep@gmail.com

De la mata a la olla (Português)

La Via Campesina em Movimento... Soberania Alimentar Já!



Assista este filme de 20 minutos e exiba-o aos seus vizinhos, amigos, sua comunidade, sua organização local, nos centros culturais, nos festivais de filmes, nas demostrações... Você pode organizar uma exibição seguida de uma discussão na qual poderá convidar camponeses locais, chefes locais e qualquer pessoa interessada.

sábado, 11 de fevereiro de 2012

Rhizoshpere Biology - Kris Nichols



The Biology of the Soil - Kris Nichols



Kris Nichols has been a Soil Microbiologist with the USDA, Agricutural Research Service (ARS) Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory (NGPRL) in Mandan, ND for over seven years. She was raised on a primarily corn-soybean conventional farm in southwestern Minnesota. Kris received Bachelor of Science degrees in Plant Biology and in Genetics and Cell Biology from the University of Minnesota in 1995, a Masters degree in Enivronmental Microbiology from West Virginia University in 1999, and a Ph.D. in Soil Science from the University of Maryland in 2003. Since 1993, she has studied arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi – a plant-root symbiont. Her most recent work involves the investigation of glomalin – a substance produced by AM fungi. Glomalin contributes to nutrient cycling by protecting AM hyphae transporting nutrients from the soil to the plant and to soil structure and plant health by helping to form and stabilize soil aggregates. Kris has been examining the impacts of management such as crop rotation, tillage practices, organic production, cover crops, and livestock grazing on soil aggregation, water relationships, and glomalin at NGPRL.

1. Building Soil Health



In this video we discuss soil health in general. We first start (1:10) with why conventional tillage was used and what soil disturbance does in terms of destroying soil health and what the other costs of conventional tillage. We end off discussing some of the practical benefits of soil health (3:24).

Soil Stories - The Whole Story




In "Soil Stories", our protagonist, Francine, embarks on a journey of discovery that begins with her realization that soil is alive and that without soil, life as we know would not exist. In her journey of discovery she meets with soil scientists who help her "see" beneath the surface of the soil and help her understand how diverse yet ordered soil bodies are in the landscape and how much work has been done in soil survey. In the second half of the story, Francine meets with characters that help her take an up close and personal look at some physical and biological attributes of soils without which they would not function. In the final part of the video, a character from history shares an epiphany about soils with Francine and translates this to modern terms.

"Soil Stories" was born out of a collaborative effort between ESRI-SC and SC NRCS. We (Buz Kloot and Pam Thomas) wanted to get all the information about soils across, but in a way that was engaging. While facts came easy, it's not always easy to be engaging on this subject. Until that is, when I (Buz Kloot) was at a ScienceFilm workshop with Jeff Morales and Colin Bates where I began to see that the story trumps all when making videos. Colin's advice to me one morning was "why don't you make a movie about people who have a relationship with the soil?" - well, the rest is history. Credit goes to so many and I have tried to acknowledge all at the end of the video, but I fear I may still have left some out. To those I apologize. This series along with other experiences of making video for the NRCS in the last three has changed the way I look at natural resources in general and more specifically, at soils . My profound thanks to all of the professionals in the NRCS and to the many land owners who have helped shape my thinking. .

Agroecologia e educação no interior de SC




Vindas de famílias historicamente atreladas à monocultura de fumo ou cebola, crianças de Imbuia e Leoberto Leal (SC) aprendem a Agroecologia nas escolas rurais. Projeto implementado pelo Cepagro com financiamento da Kinder Not Hilfe.

Jardim Botânico de Brasília






DVD-4 do II CTV - Jardim Botânico

O Jardim Botânico de Brasília possui 4500 hectares de unidade de conservação do cerrado brasileiro aberto ao público. É um lugar de rara beleza do cerrado que cerca o planalto central. Criado em 8 de março de 1985, o JBB passou por muitas reformas a fim de alcançar os objetivos almejados: ser uma área protegida do cerrado, um espaço de pesquisa, educação ambiental e lazer para a população. Título da obra: Jardim Botânico de Brasília / Ano da produção: 2008 / Cidade / Estado: Brasília/DF / Tempo de duração: 13' 27'' / Produção: UnBTV- Centro de Produção Cultural e Educativa

sexta-feira, 10 de fevereiro de 2012

Como fazer um aquecedor solar de baixo custo




Existe uma maneira barata para ter um aquecedor solar. Para isso, bastam dois canos de água, forros de PVC e duas peças para separar e distribuir a água para o chuveiro de sua casa.
Manual disponível no site: http://www.sociedadedosol.org.br/

A contribuição da permacultura na construção da sustentabilidade




Palestra com o permacultor Cláudio Jacintho na Universidade de Brasília - UnB. Um vídeo com diversas fotos em alta definição que demonstram a prática da permacultura.

Abandoned stable becomes off-grid, luxurious family dream home


When Carlos Alonso and his sister Camino were looking for a country home for their extended family, they stumbled upon an abandoned stable in rural Extremadura, Spain and recognized it as a special place.

High on a hill and far from city water or an electrical grid, the crumbling cow shed was far from the conventional image of luxury estate, but Carlos and Camino run the prestigious Madrid architecture firm Ábaton Architecture (which includes Camino's husband and 2 other Alonso siblings) and could envision a transformation.

Wisdom of those who work the land

This part of the province of Cáceres (near the Portuguese border) has been home to generations of cattle ranchers and the Alonsos recognized the wisdom those who came before them.

“What we found here was magnificent. The position of the architecture is here as it was originally because the experience of the rancher was to choose the best position on the property where you have water and sun all year round.”

A stable becomes home

Building on the instinctual knowledge of the ranchers before them, the Alonsos preserved much of the old stable. The old watering trough became a fountain and interior patio where water now helps cool the home in summer. The hay loft above became bedrooms.

The facade is still the original stone, though given the homes crumbling state, they were forced to add cement behind it.

A second skin for an off-grid home

Without access to the grid, the Alonsos added photovoltaics and hydro power (weighted toward solar in summer and hydro in winter) and worked to ensure the home wouldn’t use much energy.

The original position of the stable worked to their favor. The southern exposure allows for the sun to be the main source of heat during the winter. It’s position and a generous eave prevents much sun from entering the home during summer, thus keeping it cool.

The Alonsos also added large wooden shutters that slide closed like a second skin, covering the large windows at night to trap in most of the home’s daily solar heat gain.

Water pure enough to drink

The home was located far from city water, but perfectly positioned below two streams that flow year round. Since there is no one else above the home on the mountain, the water is pure and can be used for drinking and bathing (after a simple filter and rest period to allow for the sediment to sink off).

The natural stone swimming pool acts as a holding tank for use in irrigation. And greywater is purified and the water is put back to use on the property for watering the fields. On those fields, cattle still graze.

Mixing modern with wabi-sabi

In many ways little has changed on the property. The Alonso’s added their taste in architecture: a mix of modern cement and iron beams with the well-worn stone, weather-beaten wood and local stone.

Their love of a Japanese aesthetic led them to incorporate nature into nearly every room in the home: bathrooms with views of the interior patio and its stone water fountain, bedrooms with huge picture windows looking out at chestnut trees or cattle grazing.

Working with nature

But the property has changed little with the arrival of the Alonsos. The house sits exactly as the stable did. The sun continues to hit it the same way and the water flows around it as before.

Even local rancher José Vicente Jiménez, whose family has worked this land for generations, is still here. His cattle graze the property and he clearly is pleased the Alonsos have rescued the old stable from certain ruin (he points to a nearby stable in the process of collapse).

The Alonsos share a mutual respect for the experience of those who used this land before them. “People from the country know a lot. They take from nature and their experience in nature, since it accompanies them and helps them to survive, and they work with nature, not against it.
 

Cave home in Loire is charming bioclimatic troglodyte house


In the Saumur region of France there are over a thousand miles of underground tunnels and thousands of caves, known as “troglodytes”, homes, hotels, restaurants, museums, wineries, farms (silkworms, mushrooms, snails) and even a disco and a zoo (for nocturnal animals like bats).

What makes this land so perfect for underground dwellings is its very malleable rock. 100 million years ago, this part of France was covered by sea. When the water receded, it left a layer of tufa, or tuffeau, a type of limestone that turned out to be ideal for building castles, churches and homes in the surrounding area during the Middle Ages.

All of this quarrying created lots of tunnels and caves that turned out to be ideal homes, especially for quarrymen. Up until the early 20th century, troglodyte living was still common in the area. Even entire villages, like that of Louresse-Rochemenier, were housed underground.

In 2000, when Henri Grevellec retired from teaching, he bought an old quarry and moved into one of the old caves. On his property in Grezille, France, there are 6 caves that had once housed quarry workers centuries ago.

The site was abandoned when Grevellec purchased it, but he cleared away the growth and renovated the caves himself. He put in a modern kitchen and bathroom and in his bedroom (at the far back of the cave) he added a skylight to improved air circulation and add a bit of light.

Of the 6 original caves, one became a guest room (which he connected by tunnel to his main home), another is now his workshop (for his stone-working tools), another he left as it once had been (complete with wood-burning oven) and he uses part of one as a wine cellar.

Grevellec says the temperature in his cave home is naturally temperate. He doesn’t need air conditioning and leads much less heat than a normal home because the earth walls act to naturally regulate the indoor temperature (see more on earth sheltering for details on earth walls as thermal mass).

In this video, Grevellec shows us his cave home, the fossils he has discovered on his property, his stone-working tools and he talks about his love of the rock.

* Music credit: "Ranz des Vaches" by Kevin MacLeod, "The Forest and the Trees" by Kevin MacLeod, "Divertissement" by Kevin MacLeod (http://incompetech.com)

terça-feira, 7 de fevereiro de 2012

Programa Biosfera - Agroecologia






O programa Biosfera visita uma propriedade de agricultura familiar em Cunha/SP, onde discute sobre a Agroecologia.

VVH-TV News Special - Organic Farming: Can It Feed Us?




Karl Grossman Chief Investigative Reporter examines Organic Farming on Eastern Long Island.

What is organic farming?
Organic farming can be defined as an approach to agriculture where the aim is to create integrated, humane, environmentally and economically sustainable agricultural production systems. Maximum reliance is placed on locally or farm-derived renewable resources and the management of self-regulating ecological and biological processes and interactions in order to provide acceptable levels of crop, livestock and human nutrition, protection from pests and diseases, and an appropriate return to the human and other resources employed. Reliance on external inputs, whether chemical or organic, is reduced as far as possible. In many European countries, organic agriculture is known as ecological agriculture, reflecting this reliance on ecosystem management rather than external inputs.

The objective of sustainability lies at the heart of organic farming and is one of the major factors determining the acceptability or otherwise of specific production practices. The term 'sustainable' is used in its widest sense, to encompass not just conservation of non-renewable resources (soil, energy, minerals) but also issues of environmental, economic and social sustainability. The term 'organic' is best thought of as referring to the concept of the farm as an organism, in which all the component parts - the soil minerals, organic matter, micro-organisms, insects, plants, animals and humans - interact to create a coherent and stable whole.

The key characteristics of organic farming include:

protecting the long term fertility of soils by maintaining organic matter levels, encouraging soil biological activity, and careful mechanical intervention;

providing crop nutrients indirectly using relatively insoluble nutrient sources which are made available to the plant by the action of soil micro-organisms;

nitrogen self-sufficiency through the use of legumes and biological nitrogen fixation, as well as effective recycling of organic materials including crop residues and livestock manures;

weed, disease and pest control relying primarily on crop rotations, natural predators, diversity, organic manuring, resistant varieties and limited (preferably minimal) thermal, biological and chemical intervention;

the extensive management of livestock, paying full regard to their evolutionary adaptations, behavioural needs and animal welfare issues with respect to nutrition, housing, health, breeding and rearing;

careful attention to the impact of the farming system on the wider environment and the conservation of wildlife and natural habitats.

(c) WVVH-TV 2007 all rights reserved

segunda-feira, 6 de fevereiro de 2012

Biosfera 318 - Abelhas em perigo


 
Gosta de café? Não dispensa a melancia no Verão e tem o hábito de comer uma maçã entre refeições? Todos estes alimentos dependem da polinização e podem desaparecer dos campos de cultivo com a redução drástica de abelhas. Em Portugal, os apicultores procuram respostas para as quebras de produção de mel e mortalidade das colónias. Doenças e vírus, como a varroa continuam a dizimar apiários. O impacto dos pesticidas continua a ser ignorado pelas autoridades nacionais.

Fonte: Arquivo Farol de Ideias

Stefano Mancuso: The roots of plant intelligence


http://www.ted.com

Plants behave in some oddly intelligent ways: fighting predators, maximizing food opportunities ... But can we think of them as actually having a form of intelligence of their own? Italian botanist Stefano Mancuso presents intriguing evidence.

domingo, 5 de fevereiro de 2012

Alimento orgânico: o sonho da autossuficiência




Para alguns consumidores, uma alternativa de vida mais saudável. Para os agricultores, também a oportunidade de um novo negócio. Nesta vídeo-reportagem, conheça todo o processo de cultivo de alimentos orgânicos, da compostagem à mesa.

O protagonista dessa história é o agricultor orgânico, Jorge Studer, que nos recebeu no Sítio Aredês, sua propriedade no município de Teresópolis, região serrana do estado do Rio de Janeiro. Depois de largar a carreira de administrador na Suíça, virou agricultor e mudou-se para o Brasil. O objetivo principal de Jorge é alcançar a total subsistência, vendendo somente o excedente da produção.

De acordo com o produtor, esse é um caminho viável para agricultores conquistarem maior autonomia e independência, livres da necessidade de compra de insumos agrícolas (como agrotóxicos). Sua propriedade, de 48 hectares, é uma Reserva Particular do Patrimônio Natural (RPPN) e protege integralmente 40% de sua área. Localizado na Zona de Amortecimento do Parque Estadual dos Três Picos é um exemplo de atividade sustentável na região.

A produção depende da estação do ano. Em setembro, nesse início de primavera, a variedade oferecida por Jorge impressiona. Além de mel, banana e limão, que ele tem o ano todo, ele tem Yacon (uma raiz andina com sabor que lembra a maçã), inhame, feijão, aipim, abóbora, salsa e cebolinha, grama de trigo, broto de alfafa, alface, azedinha, repolho, couve, acelga, alho-poró, cenoura, couve-flor e beterraba. Esperemos que essa bem-sucedida experiência desperte o interesse de outros produtores em potencial.

Serviço: Sítio Aredês, conhecido na região como Sítio do Jorge, telefone 21-2644-7815

sábado, 4 de fevereiro de 2012

sustainable food - people per acre of food




http://permies.com
http://farmerscrub.blogspot.com
http://veganicpermaculture.com

How many acres does it take to sustainably feed one person when there are no other inputs. No manure, no compost, no animal feed, no fertilizers ....

Helen Atthowe shares her experiences of growing enough food to cover 75% of her own food needs plus enough to sell at the farmers market. Based on years of experience, she attempts to estimate how many acres she would need to feed herself if she has to grow her own fertilizers. Helen's perspective is dominantly rural.

Norris Thomlinson and Tulsey Latoski have carefully measured the production of food from their urban lot. They have optimized the food production a lot, and have some ideas on how to optimize it more. The also compare their initial expectations to the results they experienced.

"MONDEGO" by Daniel Pinheiro



Final Project of my Masters´s Degree in Wildlife Documentary Production from the University of Salford.
Film marked with a distinction. Filmed in Portugal during May/June 2011. A voyage by the Mondego river´s wildlife from the mountains to the sea.

Synopsis
A river acclaimed by poets and songwriters, closely entwined in the History of Portugal. As its waters merge with the sea, a small stream, hidden in the high mountains of Serra da Estrela, continues to ensure the Mondego breathes life into its great variety of habitats and wildlife.

danielpinheiro.wildlifefilms@gmail.com

"MONDEGO" Versão Portuguesa



Projecto final de mestrado em Wildlife Documentary Production da Universidade de Salford, Reino Unido.
Documentário classificado com uma distinção. Filmado em Portugal durante Maio/Junho de 2011. Uma viagem pelo rio Mondego e a sua vida selvagem, das montanhas até ao oceano Atlântico.

Sinopse
Um rio aclamado por poetas e compositores, intimamente ligado à história de Portugal. Enquanto as suas águas se fundem com o mar, uma pequena fonte, escondida no alto da Serra da Estrela, continua a assegurar que o Mondego dá vida à sua grande variedade de habitats e de vida selvagem.

danielpinheiro.wildlifefilms@gmail.com

sexta-feira, 3 de fevereiro de 2012

Chagfoods Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), Chagford, Devon


Chagfood is a Devon based Community-Supported Agriculture project renting three acres of land and producing vegetables for the local community. Chagfood has 48 members who receive a weekly share of the harvest and get involved with harvesting and packing the boxes.

Source: http://www.soilassociation.org/communitysupportedagriculture

Permaculture: Leadership for Sustainable Futures




A presentation by Professor Stuart Hill University of Western Sydney, to the Blue Mountains Permaculture community in June 2011, on permaculture and the 'inner landscape'.

Back to Eden Film OFFICIAL TRAILER


http://www.backtoedenfilm.com/

Produced & Directed by: Dana Richardson & Sarah Zentz
Executive Producer: Michael Barrett

Watch Full Documentary here

After years of back-breaking toil in ground ravaged by the effects of man-made growing systems, Paul Gautschi has discovered a taste of what God intended for mankind in the garden of Eden. Some of the vital issues facing agriculture today include soil preparation, fertilization, irrigation, weed control, pest control, crop rotation, and PH issues. None of these issues exist in the unaltered state of nature or in Paul's gardens and orchards.

"Back to Eden" invites you to take a walk with Paul as he teaches you sustainable organic growing methods that are capable of being implemented in diverse climates around the world.

The Permaculture Neighborhood Center - Permaculture Artisans HQ


PermacultureArtisans

Erik Ohlsen takes you on a tour of an edible oasis he created on a 1/3 acre asphalt lot, encouraging you to think about sustainable living for small-town and suburban life. In the face of drought, fire, peak oil, energy depletion, soil depletion and more, what can you do to live a more eco-friendly life?

The Permaculture Neighborhood Center - Permaculture Artisans, Earth Activist Training

Brogo Permaculture Gardens with John Champagne


TransitionBondi

Transition Bondi goes on an adventure to the NSW far south coast & visits John Champagne @ Brogo Permaculture Garden. John shows us how he has implemented permaculture principles to create an abundant food garden in a temperate region.

quinta-feira, 2 de fevereiro de 2012

Biosfera 325 Fruticultura biológica




Faz bem à saúde, cuida do ambiente e oferece sabores originais, nem sempre fáceis de encontrar numa banca de supermercado. A fruta biológica tem atraído agricultores nacionais a investir num produto de qualidade, com reduzidos custos ambientais. No Biosfera desta semana, viaje ao encontro de variedades regionais com cunho “bio”, como a pêra-rocha, a cereja de Resende e as maçãs de montanha de Armamar.