The Big Planetary Connect:
Counteracting Climate Change with Proven, Low-Tech Solutions Centered on Natural Water Cycles, Vegetation, Livestock, Living Soils, Agriculture and People
(… the creative reconstruction of our Planet) Carbon rich sponges are the substrate of living soils, biodiversity bio-fertility, water and food security, and Life on Earth. Photo Pierre Masson
Ulrich Schreier Le Monde de l’Agriculture Régénérative INSEAD Fontainebleau June 29, 2022
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ction u r t s e d l a t n e m e Environn ution ll o p , n io t a t s e r o f de ge and climate chan took o
Having made no progress in slowing Global Warming and reducing Extreme Weather Events by combining Greenhouse, CO2, GHG, high-tech, mega-project based thinking, with sophisticated computer models, we urgently need
New Ideas, a New Vision!
Historical perspective of soil and environmental degradation
tions a v r e l obs today a c i t Iden e made can b
Bare soil, Drought Flooding, Erosion, Gullying, Desolation!
At this stage of ecosystem breakdown, Nature Needs Man as Partner and Co-Creator to heal its sick body!
Water sinks in, the soil heals and stabilizes! Rainfall increases and the climate becomes more moderate. The land recovers, becomes productive and hospitable.
Man walked across the rain Earth : the Harvesting and left a desert in his footprints
n deserts!
rdania
rain that falls locally to ”prime the pump” The missing for building living plant soils, & cloud cover biodiversity, biomass and contributes to local & global accumulate stable organic warming matter has been the basis for regenerating some of the driest, hottest and most desolate places on the Planet.
Jordania 2009
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Photo by Geo Lawton
2019 Greening the Desert in the Dead Sea Valley
What happened to the Garden of Eden, the fertile crescent of the Middle East, the rich soils around the Mediterranean? New insights into weather and climat, natural water cycles Man walked across the Earth biosphere functioning, and left a desert in his foot steps and agriculture Author unknown can bring these deserts back to life.
The most fertile soils of France go to the beach! We have the understanding, the science, and the practical know-how to stop these man-made disasters
le b a n i ta s u s Un
The soil is the ”creative material” of most of the basic needs of life. William Albrecht, agronomist (1888-1974)
The speed of soil and ecosystem destruction is skyrocketing. What took our ancestors several centuries, we now do in just a few years !
However, we now have the knowledge and the means to stop the destruction and repair the damage just as fast !
Le modèle de régénération du climat et des sols de Walter Jehne " Comme l'eau régit plus de 95% de la dynamique thermique de notre planète, il faudrait mettre l'accent sur la restauration du cycle de l'eau, et non pas sur les émissions de CO2 ”
Résumé par Ulrich Schreier,and Le Mondesoil de l’Agriculture Régénérative Environmental degradation by agriculture, galloping urbanization and industrial development, disrupt natural water cycles
Oroville Reservoir, California 2022 is developing into another record breaking drought year
April 2021
Drought induced stress is a dream come true for Pests. It is the major cause for tree & forest dieback across the Planet.
August 2021
Abandoned almond orchard near Newman Calif. in July 2021.
Without appropriate action, California’s Climate Change may lead to deserti cation and the collapse of it’s huge agricultural complex (Walter Jehne) Rice field lost to Drought
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Grapes Dying on the vine in Bakersfield, Ca
2018 Drought in France Neighbors conventional plot su ering from drought
The spongy, fertile soil retained enough water for the maize to prosper
Both CAUSE and VICTIM, but also the source of the most POWERFUL SOLUTIONS, AGRICULTURE is at the very core of our climate and environmental crisis Human Activity has Upset the Planet’s Carbon and Thermal Balance The Sun is the Driving Force of the Carbon Cycle
Csol + Cvég ≈ 4 x Catm In addition to the 1580 GT shown in this diagram, the soil also contains about 750 GT of C in various mineral forms, mostly as carbonates (Ca, Mg). Vegetation and soil organic matter are the two expandable reservoirs that agriculture can rapidly enlarge to store excess CO2 while waiting for the decrease of GHGs linked to fossil fuels and industrial processes!
In addition to the severe carbon imbalance between biosphere and atmosphere, Planet Earth also suffers from a thermal imbalance. According to the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), our Globe receives on average 342 watts of solar radiation per square meter (W/m2). But because of human activity which has altered various ecological dynamics, in particular the Natural Water Cycles with its lower cloud related albedo effect, only 339 W/m2 are being emitted back. The differential of -3 W/m2 or about -1% is what heats up the Planet.
CO2 and GHGs are only part of the puzzle. Water and its natural cycles is the part that leads the dance, which, via agriculture, gives us powerful levers to counteract Climate Change! The Planet’s natural and free air conditioning system
The small water cycle regulates the climate Vegetation and living, carbon rich soils heal the Planet’s damaged water cycles
Green means cool Walter Jehne: How Healing Water Cycles can Cool the Climate
Source: Walter Jehne
Source: Walter Jehne
”Climate change will persist until we heal the Planet’s water cycles!” Walter Jehne Facts that tell a climate story
Water (H20)
Atmospheric abundance in volume (ppmv) ~25000 Density at 25°C (g/l) 0,8 Heat capacity of gas at 25°C (cal/g°C) 0,5 Ratio of atmospheric heat content ~60 Phases in the range of -50 to +50°C Ice, Liquid, Gas, aerosol Phase changes are energy intensive (cal/g) 80 to melt, 540 liquid to gas Green house e ect (%) ~75 Albedo cooling e ect High & crucial to temp control Chemical reactivity High (acidy-basic, redox) Time in atmosphere (velocity-turnover) 8 to 10 days
© Alisdair Ferrie 2020
We have the science, the innovations, blueprints and the clear self interest to make this change.
What we don’t have is time! - Action is urgent. CO2 ~400 (ratio ~1:60) 1,9 0,2 1 Only gas phase None ~25 None Low (~inert) 100 to 300 years
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Water dominates the Planet’s heat dynamics and temperature control !
Increasing the Planet’s Vegetation Increases Biosphere and Soil Carbon while Lowering Atmospheric CO2
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e ≈ v r u c CO2 is a symptom g n i l il and a co-factor of e K climate change, not
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C déficit 10 milliard t/an
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CO2 is a key actor in Earth’s life processes, but it is not leading the weather & climate dance. Water is !
its primary cause.
N
1850 = 285 ppm
The fact that CO2 rises during the Northern Hemisphere winter when Nature is largely dormant there, and falls from May onwards, when, with increasing sun light and temperatures, plant growth, and photosynthesis (CO2 + H2O -> CHO + O2), get underway, indicates that CO2 levels depend on sun light, temperature, vegetation, soils and water.
s se rea O2) inc ↘ C er ( mm sis su the NH tosyn o ph
ULRICH SCHREIER
CO2 data from Wikimedia Commons
2020 = 411 ppmv
We all know a lot about Nature’s Heating and Cooling Systems On a hot summer day it is much cooler in a lush forest than on concrete, treeless city streets
And • • • • • •
It is cooler after a thunderstorm than before. During the day a cloud cover keeps the mercury down. At night it is the opposite, it stays warmer under a cloud or haze cover. The temperature di erence between day and night is usually much larger during dry weather periods without cloud cover than during rainy periods with permanent cloud cover. In a cloudless desert where the humidity is very low, the temperature differences between day and night are huge. Bare soil is much hotter than soil under standing grass
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In all these situations WATER and its Natural Cycles are the key elements explaining the differences.
Walter Jehne’s climate and soil regeneration model in a nutshell Walter Jehne with his Bio-inclusive ABCD climate model puts water, spongy soil aggregates and vegetation in the center. Dealing with the multidimensional nature of climate, incorporating the biology, the chemistry and the physics, Jehne elucidates many phenomena that lack satisfactory explanations: ”why water and not CO2 and GHGs is the key”, ”Asian brown haze with 4% moisture, 90% relative humidity and pollutant smog”, ”diminishing of Earth’s albedo which increases global warming”, ”high-pressure heat domes over bare, dry areas”, ”humid aridifyinig drought”, ”the role of agriculture in eco-system destruction and deserti cation now and by our ancestors”, or California’s drought and re crisis which, without appropriate action, may lead to deserti cation and the collapse of its huge agricultural complex. ”Since Water governs over 95% of our Planet’s Heat Dynamics, the focus should be on Water Cycle Restoration, not CO2 Emissions.”
Feeding and keeping our ”team” of soil microorganismes happy is the key of the system. We have all it takes for greening the Planet and reversing desertification and Global Warming: the understanding, the know-how, the ressources and the pioneers showing the way. The outcome is in our hands and depends on how we tilt the carbon balance in favor of C and away from B. This balance is very poor, and usually negative, with conventional farming, but can reach 60 to 70% of the produced biomass as stable soil carbon sponges, in regenerative systems with sound water, soil, biomass and microbial management. Jehne Climate Model
Agriculture
Burn by fire or oxidation:
Three of Jehne’s statements:
Maximum plant growth for maximum carbohydrate production via sun, green plants and photosynthesis. Plants & biodiversity - 365 days/year
-> CO2 from slash and burn, cultivation, bare soils, fallow, compaction, irrigation, chemical fertilizers, pesticides.
Carbon sponge Dividends:
Carbon: microbial digestion
“For the last 4 billion years the climate of the Blue Planet has been controlled by hydrological processes. Over 90% of the global heat dynamics and balance is governed by a range of water-based processes.” “Restoring natural processes via the regeneration of our landscapes is now critical in order to restore the former levels of high albedo clouds that naturally helped cool the planet.” ”Water accounts for about 80%, CO2 for 20% of the greenhouse effect,”
1g of soil C holds 8g of water
-> Regeneration -> Global Cooling fi
Pest/drought resistance, Autonomy/very low input Productivity, resilience (+yields)
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Microbial cycles, Root dominance
-> réductive process, binds H20 -> stable soil carbon sponges Raw materials: roots (40%), exudates (40%), litter (20%) -> Humates and glomalin,
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Water/nutrient availability
-> Aridification (releases H2O) -> Global Warming
Increasing green-cover, and repairing natural water cycles, is conceptually simple and affordable… Simple repairs…
• Conserve rainwater which falls to the ground to rebuild aquifers and stop
accelerated run-o . Preserve surface water so it either in ltrates soil, or evaporates locally. Use greening to enhance water retention and lower air temperatures. Reduce erosion to increase the watershed’s carrying capacity and save soil. Don’t drain low-lying land, especially oodplains and mangroves.
• • • •
… A ordable
• Scientists estimate that 0.1% of GDP p.a. over 10-15 years must be invested in
water and soil conservation, plus revised agricultural practices. However, to be effective almost every country will need to participate: global weather stability returns only when adjacent small water cycles are repaired. Poorer countries will require financial aid. Unless local peoples commit to the entire process, failure is the likely result: Education is vital.
• •
Source Kravcik et al
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The problem of climate change is more complex than we think, but, as more and more re-greening endeavors are showing, might be easier, faster and cheaper to solve than we imagine!
We a r e a l l i n t h i s t o g e t h e r The Planet’s ” ”Green Lung Carbon dioxide
Carbohydrates
Water
Oxygen
Sun light
Sugar (carbohydrates) our food
Plant ”food”
Oxygen
Our Lung & Metabolism
Water
These two processes are polar opposites and the basis of life on Earth
Areare
- Plants through photosynthesis produce our oxygen and our food - Humans, animals and other oxygen breathing creatures produce plant ”food” (CO2) The ☀ is the energy source for all life on Earth.
Atmospheric composition - Nitrogen
Water vapor
But there is no life without water ! The increase of atmospheric CO2 (… plant food) increases Photosynthesis, an effect that is used in greenhouses to increase crop yields. By increasing plant growth and the evapotranspiration that goes with it, this has a positive effect on soil développement and water cycling.
Creative Reconstruction, The Proof is in the Pudding Australia 1992 Farming system with continuous grazing
1999
rotational grazing
Herbivores belong to grassland like grass to the soil, or plants to the Planet
Savory Global
Bare soil and water loss through runoff followed by water and wind erosion are causing desertification
Grasslands and herbivores are at the heart of sustainable pastures and a secure food supply!
Having low tags and short payback mostwater projects harmony withinvestment natural processes is our only optionperiods, for restoring cycles, regreening desertifyinghuman, areas, reversing global warming and and fighting malnuproducelarge considerable economic, ecological social poverty, benefits! trition, social and political unrest in many of the world’s poorest regions2.
Holistic Management with Herbivores is the Key to Success Mexico Biodiversity, carbon and water storage have soared!
At this stage of desertification, Nature needs Man Sound management has regenerated this desertifying as Partner and Co-creator to heal the damaged land ecosystem, soil fertility, the local climate and water cycles
1950’s
2007
Savory Global
TheAfrica many successful examples from Savory Global, Brazil, India, China, Pakistan and South many other countries show that the restoration of Nature, soils and water cycles does not Karoo desert
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ub
Ca rbo rotn ben atio efi nal t fro gra m zin g
require huge investments compared to some of the high-tech mega-projects that keep making most of the headlines. Using neither synthetic fertilizers, nor pesticides, nor the controversial techniques of geo-engineering and GMOs, they emploi hardly any fossil fuels or Re-greening other scarce resources. Combined with properly managed livestock and crop production, theythe canPlanet provide large economic, 2009 Gullies heal ecological and social benefits in just a There can be 3 to 4 times starts rainfall increases, few years, sometimes showing signimore carbon in the soil ficant improvements as soon as the than in the atmosphere temperatures drop … here ! first season (see e.g. India’s Water Revoand climate improves lution on page 3). A crucial source of SavoryGlobal … but to get there soil fertility and food security, these we need well managed low-tech solutions allow for an im-
A project with strong social overtones that produced its first tangible results in less than a year ! India's Water Revolution : From Poverty to Permaculture Born in 2016, it is already the biggest Permaculture venture on Earth! Its basis is sound water management and the enthusiastic support of a highly motivated population. Initiated by the Paani Fondation, it has changed, in just 4 years, the lives and prospects of some 4000 of Indias poorest villages! Strong local support, reducing water loss thru runoff and keeping the rain falling during the Monsoon season inside the watershed, are the keys of the system. This is achieved through elaborate networks of harvesting, infiltration and storage of water, both underground and above ground, in order to cover the needs during the dry season.
Etat de Maharashtra
Andrew Millison'sYouTube YouTube channel 2 videos this (India's project Andrew Millison's channel has has 2 videos of this of project (India's Water Revolution #1 and and others proon Water Revolution #1 and #2) and many #2) others on many permaculture permaculture projects in India and other parts of the World. jects in India and and other parts of and the World.
ZBNF : Subhash Palekar
Soil life and biodiversity comme back!
OrganicFarming Farming in the South of India Organic in the South of India
ZEROBUDGET BUDGETNATURAL NATURAL FARMING (ZBNF) ZERO FARMING (ZBNF)
Priorities: management of water, soil life and natural fertility.
When we look at the improvements in the the many ”Man-Nature Co-Creation Projects” presented here, we are astonished by the relative ease and speed of the recoveries.
more temperate climate!
Sebastião Salgado Photos J Two Savory Global projects©in the southern part of Africa Karoo Desert
Holistic planed grazing sustainable system
Conv. continuous grazing leads to desertification
T m
The vegetation promotes water infiltration and storage and protects the soil from water and wind erosion. South Africa: Holistic management on the left has brought back biodiversity and natural fertility by regenerating the soil, greening the desert, restoring water cycles and cooling the climate.
Zimbawe: Thanks to regenerative grazing, the vegetation comes back to life, the climate becomes more balanced and some creeks start flowing again.
2
Pa to in de
In 20 years a Brazilian couple turned a desert into a lush forest Brazil Bare ground, scorching heat, soil erosion, gullying, desertification.
Restoration of a 710 ha forest Good water management, green soil cover and humus accumulation are the basis of land restoration, agricultural production, sustainability and a cooler more temperate climate!
© Sebastião Salgado
A Win/Win Investment that Produces Durable Value Feeds People, Builds Prosperity, and Cools the Planet
Re-greening deserts is possible!
John D. Liu, cameraman and ecologist, has documented since 1995 the greening of the Loess Plateau in China as well as many other Greening Projects around the Planet showing simple, affordable, low-tech, solutions to restore heavily degraded ecosystems in a surprisingly short time. 1995
2009
By the soil soil and theenvironment, environment, over-exploitation has turned Bydeteriorating degrading and over-exploitation this fertile plateau into a desert.
has turned this once fertile area into a desert.
1995
2009
Restoration project of the Loess Plateau watershed in China between The Loess Plateau through the glasses of Wikipedia 1994 and 2009. Approximately 35,000 km2 or 5% of the area were regenerated.
While the Great Green Wall is moving forward...
As the Great Green Wall is advancing … Savory Global
... food and water shortages, poverty and social tensions are receding! 1994
2009
This was the cradle and food basket of ancient civilizations.
This was the cradle and food basket of ancient Chinese civilizations - the Garden of Eden of the Orient.
Their World has changed in just 15 short years!
This government sponsored re-greening project has regenerated 35 000 km2 of land that ancient Chinese civilizations had turned into desert through poor farming methods. In creating real value, jobs and new sources of income, prosperity has increased, and poverty has been eradicated. Lessons from China’s Loess Plateau Documentary by John D. Liu
Regreening the Desert Documentary by John D. Liu
Some achievements: it took 2.5 million people out of poverty - Small dams reduce flooding and provide water to villagers - Reduced erosion and sediment flow to the Yellow River - Beneficial effects on climate. As in the case of ”India’s Water Revolution”, the key ingredients of this project are also sound water, agricultural and environmental management, and strong community involvement!
Egyptian regeneration project with strong cultural and social aspects
SEKEM, sustainable développement at its best © John Liu
An Ecological, Cultural, Social, Economic and Agricultural Oasis in the Egyptian Desert Having been started in 1977 on a 70 hectare stretch on the outskirts of Cairo in the midst of sand and desert by Ibrahim Abouleish (1937-2017), a Medical Doctor, Chemist and the recipient of the 2003 Alternative Nobel Prize, SEKEM is unique in its kind and unites ecological, cultural, social, Our work is directed economic and agricultural development. Its success story towards human development. cannot restore ecology where biodynamic agriculture, soil health and desert gree- You without restoring human beings. ning play important roles, is unique in the World. It now has over a thousand employees and, in cooperation with almost 300 subcontracting farmers, cultivates close to 1700 hectares. SEKEM’s schools which started more than 30 years ago and since 2009 include Heliopolis University for Sustainable Development, have a total enrollment of over 3000 children and youth. https://www.facebook.com/sekemgroup
2020
1979
20
Restoring degraded forests in temperate zones Over millennia, many natural forests in temperate zones have been decimated by over-logging, overgrazing and a lack of renewal. Restoration which needs humans as partners to plant trees and protect young growth from deer and livestock, has been started on a small scale in the 1990’s with more projects launched since then.
Caledonian Forest (Scotland)
This Man-Nature Partnership to restore the Caledonian forest was started by Alan Watson in 1989
Thousands of forests around the Globe are waiting their turn!
and most environmentally friendly SOLUTIONS. Accordin 1 and Allan Savory, a pionnier in holistic management of grasslands in regenerating desertifying grasslands founder of t and of bringing desserts and desertifying areas back to life
A way to feed the planet and reverse climate change!
Savory Global manages more than 15 million hectares of land holistically
It is not drought that causes bare ground, it is bare ground that causes drought. Allan Savory
A must-see vidéo of Allan Savory’s 2013 Ted Talk (over 8 million views) 1
I
In In ta va 55
In developing his holistic approach for regenerating grasslands by mimic strongly influenced by the work of the French chemist and agronomist And
Research Data Shows Benefits of Holistic Management Integrating Grasslands and Herbivores.
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There can be 3 to 4 times more carbon in the soil than in the atmosphere … … but to get there we need green-cover living soils and well managed herds of herbivores!
Publications Source Savory Global
Unconventional wisdom: Cows are not the problem, but a key part of the solution ! Herbivores belong to Grassland (… not to confinement and grain feeding), like Grass to soil fertility, and plants to the Planet ! They are at the origine of many of the Planet’s most fertile soils and are a key element for rebuilding soil fertility and sequestering carbon
e
rg a l n E
Gabe Brown
Water-holding carbon sponge: a key feature in dryland areas
Adding cattle to this crop farm increased annual net income by about $500/ha, while increasing soil fertility, soil health, productivity and food quality.
Taking livestock off the land and confining it to feedlots and grain feeding is one of the major errors of modern agriculture! Creating huge pollution and environmental problems on both sides, this separation is also causing a lack of healthy, living, and naturally fertile soils. In addition, it creates large requirements of chemical and energy inputs and has a negative impact on the quality of our food, soil, environnement, drinking water, air, …
and food basket of the old Dynasties
soil cover and humus s. All of this green happened in a wide range of 1995 accumulation are the basis g by with relatively modest investments. ...this regreening project of restoration, sustainability brings them back to life! and a coolerand climate environmental degradation temperate climate! art of the mostmore effective, most economical
There are Thousands of Successful Regeneration Projects all around the Planet, but We Need Millions of them to Tackle Climate Change, cording to Allan Savory, biologist, pioneer FoodInstitute, and Water Security, Poverty, der of the Savory agriculture in 2009 Social Unrest, Migration, …. © Sebastião Salgado
Started in 2007 but hampered by endless violence and wars, this crucial initiative to slow desertification and stop the Sahel from moving north, is of prime importance not only for Africa and Europe, but for the climate of the whole planet! - FAO article
Photos John D. Liu
https://www.greatgreenwall.org/
Karoo Desert
India
v. continuous grazing ds to desertification
This river carries Restoration in Ethiopia millions of tons of soil to the sea10,000 km2
In 40 years Jadav Payeng, aka "Forest Man of
India single-handedly 550 hecgement on the», lefthasZimbawe : Thanks transformed to regenerative grazing, taresfertiliof desert into a forest brought a y and natural the land vegetation comesthat back to life,back the clivast flora and fauna (birds, elephants {115 on the reening the desert, mate becomes more balanced and some ha}, tigers, rhinos, etc.) ! ooling the550 climate. creeks start deer, flowing again.
Appendix A - Miscellaneous Restoration Projects
A solid North-South partnership is crucial42,200 to the km success of this project and the Planet’s climate NW China’s Mu Us Desert
Biodiversity, carbon and water storage have soared
tes water infild protects the nd erosion.
•
2
Has turned into 10 billion tree Tsunami Started in 2007 and supported by the UN the 8000 km long wall promises to be a compelling solution to the many urgent threats not only facing the African Continent (20% of landmass), but the global community as a whole – notably climate change, drought, flooding, famine, conflicts and migration.
Pakistan: Planting one billion trees to regenerate a 3,500 km2 area in 5 years! Has now been extended to 2028 and 10 billion trees. 2006
2013
Australia
2006
2013
Australia
involvement and enthusiastic support of the various stake holders, most of all the disadvanRestoration in Ethiopia taged populations in poor areas who have seen rapid improvements in their livelihoods. 10,000 km2 by mimicking• Experimental Nature using livestock, Alan SavoryHigh-Tech was - High-Cost - High_Risk The rehabilitation projects which are particularly efomist André Voisin known worldwide as • Full of(1903-1964), technical unknowns fective, both from a climate aspect and from the point of s • Highly energy, resource view of their economic, social and political impact, are dynamic intensive grazing. Voisin is the the author of ering the ones in poverty stricken dryland regions of Africa, India, and capital intensive ealth, the most notable being Grass Productivity (1957) Pakistan, China and asian grasslands. Having accumula• Expensive ted precious know-how and sometimes enjoying organizad and continue to be key references in the field. Source: Mulloon Institute • Timing: ???? tional and financial support at the government level, most of Restoration at the Mulloon Creek Natural Farms couldRestoration uctive (higher rates) thanmangrove continuous grazing. at Palk Bay, India. (OMCAR Foundation) Financial sinkhole these ”Man-Nature Co-Creation Projects” be scaled at the Mulloon Creek Natural Farms Photo•stocking sequence showing restoration in a very short time and produce, within just a decade • Uncertain results 2006 2013 Australia 2006 2013 Australia or two, major impacts on Global Warming, while reducing 1971 2013 Australia food and water scarcity, as well as healing many of the Restoring a 2000 ha Farm in Texas CCS technology Blue Planets damaged landscapes and ecosystems.8
oute
d could be one of several hubs for industry on emissions and send them underground 12 Source: Mulloon Institute 24Natural Farms Restoration at the Mulloon Creek Restoration at the Mulloon Creek Natural Farms
To stop violence and wars, and establish peace and political stability in these regions while slowing migraPhoto sequence showing mangrove restoration at Palk Bay, India. (OMCAR Foundation) tion to big cities and industrialized countries, economic development, job creation, quality food and water in sufficient quantities are crucial! According to a growing number of scientists, consultants and practitioners, the Restoring a 2000 ha Farm inagriculture, Texas best way to get there is in conjunction with regenerative practices such as permaculture, regenerative tree-planting and well managed livestock. Animals have been precious friends and our traveling companions since the dawn of times. They have always played a key role in our lives and in agriculture, for the good and for the bad. good, as Family wild herdsFarm of herbivores and theirs predators roaming the grasslands or as well Rock DhuForatthe Norville managed livestock. For the bad, if they are poorly managed by humans, a problem which unfortunately has 12 been more often the rule than the exception and has accompanied the downfall of most past civilisations. The 8
Crucial sources of soil fertility, water and food security, these low-tech climate solutions allow for an immediate start of thousands of decentralized and autonomous projects all around the Globe.
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Simple and transparent organizational structures Produce fast and easily measurable results Low on capital Low-tech, low-input and low-energy, High on environmental and climate bene ts High on economic and social bene ts High on people and community development
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• • • • • • •
We need more GREEN … …and CLOUDS to cool the Blue Planet One third of the world's land area is grassland, 70% of which is severely degraded, much of its former carbon having been released into the atmosphere as CO 2 NASA
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Given the extent of deserts and desertifying areas located for the most part in the poorest regions of the Planet, the potential for restoring soils, vegetation and water cycles is enormous. Producing food and drinking water in quantity and quality, the deployment of EFFECTIVE SOLUTIONS is crucial not only in terms of climate change, but also from a human, economic, ecological, and social perspective.
What if the most destitute regions in the World and their impoverished populations were rst in line to save our Planet from overheating? Considering the numbers, locations, and results of many of the most successful re-greening projects, this is exactly what seems to be happening. Isn’t that a compelling reason for the rich industrialized countries of the North to join and strongly support, financially and otherwise, the poor regions of the South?
Agriculture is the Corner Stone of Climate Action All it Takes to Counteract Climate Change, Is a Close Partnership with Nature to Restore the Planet’s Natural Water Cycles and Damaged Ecosystems.
Carbon rich sponges are the substrate of living soils, biodiversity bio-fertility, water and food security, and Life on Earth.
2015-2024
International decade of soils
Photo Pierre Masson Photo Pierre Masson
We have what it takes to do the job: the pionniers, the science, the innovations, blueprints and the clear self interest to repair what took us and our ancestors several millennia to ruin!
What we don’t have is time! (W. Jehne) Restoration Initiatives don’t only Mitigate Climate and Weather Extremes by Rebuilding Water Cycles, Green Cover, Soils and Whole Ecosystems, they also build, Communities, People and Prospects for a Better Future.
Bibliography and Videos ->
Appendix We have what it takes to feed the World, and to Green, and Cool the Planet at the Same Time
Source Shutterstock
Regenerative Agriculture can Feed the World
while Restoring Soils and Wastelands, Solving Environnemental problems, overcoming chronic fresh water shortages and counteracting Climate Change Combining livestock with crop production increases productivity and quality
High Yield and Quality with Low Input and Cost … while improving soil life and fertility
Organic
Top Yield for French Soybeans
Growing healthy soils grows healthy people
Multilevel Cropping
Corn Conventional
same yield, but much lower production costs and pollution on the organic side
Turning a Desert into fertile Land
Destined for local consumption
Food produced sustainably and locally is BEST for OUR HEALTH and OUR PLANET!
White Oak Pastures in Georgia - Food production at its Best An initiative that has changed the lives of thousands of people and a whole region!
Vidéo - It’s not the Cow, it’s the How The farmer's word: Things that fascinated me when I was twenty were less fascinating at thirty, and were beginning to disgust me at forty. (Will Harris)
White Oak Pastures, 1000 ha farm - a Savary Global's showcase (hub) Shift in the mid-1990s from a conventional farming system to holistic management according to the principles developed by Allan Savory Before 1995: conventional management •4 employees at minimum wage •Conventional breeding: cattle and pigs •Feed: conventional cereal-based feed laced with antibiotics and hormones •Meat quality: mediocre with pesticide, antibiotic and hormone residues •Economic situation: precarious - end of the road •Social situation: morose with a limited future in a poor and declining area of Georgia le b a n i ta •Environnemental headache s u s Un
After 20 years of holistic organic management •165 well-paid employees and their families •Diversified breeding: cattle, pigs, sheep, chickens, laying hens, turkeys, geese, ducks, rabbits... •Feeding : mainly via rotating pastures •Vegetable crops - biodiversity and soil carbon have soared - so have bio-fertility, yields and productivity! •Slaughterhouse and food processing on site •Product quality: excellent, wide choice •Economic situation: excellent - model for the future •Social situation: very positive, innovative company reviving a village (Bluffton) and a whole area
Integration of livestock, cereal grains, vegetables and processing for optimum productivity and quality
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"What drives life is a little electric current, kept up by the sunshine."
Predator-prey relationships drive the soil food web
Albert Szent-Györgyi Nobel Price in Medecine
heric C02 p s o m t a f xation o sion of 02 and emis
Suga
Root e rs xsu Fixatio dats n of atmos pheric N
Earthworms
Microorganisms in Symbiosis with Plants Form the very Basis of Life on Earth!
Source USDA
Diversity Beats Mono-Cropping Hands Down The Jena Experiment
Better yields and improved resilience to pests and climate hazards
Better Water infiltration and retention
Higher nutrient availability and less erosion
Mono-cropping, and the associated need for large amounts of energy and chemicals, is the achilles heel of modern agriculture. Diversity and bio-fertility increase productivity, autonomy, sustainability and the resilience to pests, weeds, and extreme weather events.
Area Productivity on Small Farms is usually Better than on Large Ones The potential to increase planetary food production is huge 1 PLN ≈ 0,21 EURO ≈ 0,21 US$
It is also true for the modern Victory Gardens The same holds for Small Diversified Plots vs Large Monoculture Fields
Differentiation of the average value of agricultural production per 1 ha of agricultural land in Norfolk farms and other area ranges in 2006-2009 in PLN thousand
There is no Planet B, but there are lots of Plants to Cool it! Partnering with Nature or taking the high-tech route: that is the question
Partnering with Nature to re-green the Planet (see above):
based on the restoration of water and rain cycles, these low-tech systems require little energy, resources and investments. They can be effective and profitable after only a few years. Producing important benefits in terms of soil and landscape regeneration, food and water security, job creation and socio-economic development, they can radically change the living conditions for all of us, in particular for the people in many of the poorest and most desolate regions of the Planet.
•Energy efficient •Resource efficient •Proven and safe practices •Modest investments •Fast payback (5 to 20 years) •Quick results (3 to 7 years) •Favorable socio-economic, ecological and carbon footprints
”We must learn to harvest the sun and cultivate the water to rediscover the path to fertility.” (H. Coves) The High-Tech Route • CCS technologies • Solar geoengineering • Food engineering
•Experimental •Full of technical unknowns •Highly energy, resource and capital intensive •Expensive •Timing: ???? •Financial sinkhole? •Uncertain results •Faustian Bargain?
High-Tech - High-Cost - High_Risk
CCS technology
Direct air capture of CO2 St Fergus in Scotland could be one of several industry hubs to capture carbon emissions and send them underground
Diving adventure into the deep unknown
Even under the IPCC low scenario (SSP1-1.9), life on our Planet by 2050, could get very complicated for many of us !
Agriculture, Our Most Powerful Force for Greening, Feeding, and Cooling the Planet Having been at War with Nature ever since Humanity became sedentary, famines, natural disasters, the rise and fall of civilisation have been faithful companions of environnemental and soil degradation. Although demography, urbanization and industrial activities play a major role today, Agriculture in its manyfold facets, continues to be a key player in the destructive process. Agriculture Agriculture
Agriculture
Accelerating Soil erosion due to Heavy equipment and chemicals
Agriculture
Regardless of its ambiguous past, Agriculture remains our most powerful source, our only avenue, for Climate mitigation and repairing damages from past mistakes
while feeding the World’s growing population.