Regenerative Agriculture

One of the primary focuses of the project is to regenerate the land and ecosystem, in symbiosis with the community/tribe needs and to learn and spread knowledge within a network.

Regenerative Agriculture and Horticulture uses practices which increase biodiversity and soil health rather than exploiting and depleting it or relying on fossil fuels and industrial fertilisers.

Reforestation

Using reforestation planting methods to speed up the succession of the environment to develop into mature woodland with optimised biodiversity, within the permaculture and food growing designs.

Wild fire prevention and protection

Planting fire resistant trees

Creating fire breaks and bodies of water in strategic locations relative to the ecovillage design.

Water systems for protective flood irrigation and fire fighting

Permaculture principles

A balance of earth care, people care and fair share of resources.

Observe and interact.
Catch and store energy.
Obtain a yield.
Apply self-regulation and accept feedback.
Use and value renewable resources and services.
Produce no waste.
Design from patterns to details.
Integrate rather than segregate.
Use small and slow solutions
Use and value diversity
Use edges and value the marginal
Creatively use and respond to change

provide habits for beneficial insects.

Permaculture design and systems

Zoning based on human presence and interaction, from home zones with vegetable gardens, to wildlife zones.

Systems and technologies which integrate into the whole system and combine functions. For example:

Chicken compost ‘tractor’

Edible privacy, sound and wind barriers of trees

Compost toilets to produce humanure for trees and gardens

Grey water processing reed beds which then irrigate gardens

Passivhaus building design and placement to provide shade in Summer and capture heat in Winter.

Food security and sovereignty

Growing a range of food for a healthy diet across all seasons, with resilience in a changing climate, reducing our reliance on food from commercial industrial growers. Connecting to other local regenerative food producers in the area to promote and build a resilient regional food network.

Water retention landscape design

Working with the landscape to best capture and direct water sources for irrigating the land. Slowing down the flow of water away from the land, guiding it to soak into the soil and fill the underground aquifers, rather than wash away quickly into streams and rivers.

Dams and storage lakes.

Restoring ‘levada’ stone water channels

Restoring and creating swales and water channels

Restoring and developing spring source fountains, wells, water mines

Reducing and managing erosion, protecting stream and river banks

Agroforestry

A design for cultivating food producing plants of the full range of forms, in a symbiotic relation with each other - tall trees for nuts, fruit and firewood, giving shade and support; small trees and shrubs for fruit and berries; vines for fruit, growing amongst the trees; vegetables at ground level and climbing and root level; ground cover to protect and feed the soil and provide habits for beneficial insects.