Welcome
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From The Editor
Welcome to another quarterly Seasonal Supplement issue. A conversation came up recently where it was observed that in our information saturated society we may have become "info addicts" – a numbed state of awareness which craves the next info 'hit' to stimulate our senses or impress our intellect. And of course each 'hit' needs to be better or more novel than the last! If it doesn't meet that criteria, we find ourselves easily disinterested or dulled to what otherwise might be considered valuable, persuasive or wondrous information. So a question to ponder for this quarter is: What kind of news would be capable of moving you these days?
Given the continuous demands on our attention spans and sensory awareness, the gentle art of listening is also being lost. This Seasonal Supplement begins with a look at how skilful listening may be applied in stakeholder dialogue for landscape social change. This issue also features a summary of recent experiences at the Conference on Ecological Restoration, access and benefit sharing in community conserved areas as well as a range of PRESENCE activities: alluvial fan earth works, student workshop and the Elandsrivier gathering. If you are already looking out for fresh eco-gift ideas for the end of year, then consider investing in some Christmas trees of the spekboom variety to support landscape restoration in the Baviaanskloof.
Enjoy the read.
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Feature Story
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The Science of Listening: Relevance to Participatory Restoration
''…I thought to myself, well yes its fine, get a little British girl here, but what is it actually going to help? Who is going to hear it? And if you get people that show resistance against talking it will be because they think well what is it going to help? Let us worry, nobody else is going to worry, you worry because you are doing this for your university or college or something and are going to bring people together or something but what is it going to help? Who is listening in the end? Nobody!''
- Concerned farmer from the Elandsrivier Valley, Baaviaanskloof Mega-Reserve
Is there a science behind listening? Or perhaps it is more important to ask: Where does the practice of listening fit into the science of landscape restoration?
LEARN MORE... |
Collective News
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Earth Collective
Re-establishing Links Through a Collective Journey
Yucatan peninsula, Mexico: the home of the inspirational Mayan culture was the destination of a recent (earth)collective journey. Two EarthCollective initiatives came together to showcase their research and experience, gained over the last three years in South Africa, to participants of the 4th World Conference on Ecological Restoration held in Merida. The initiatives, eyes4earth and PRESENCE were represented by Matthew Zylstra (for Stellenbosch University) and Dieter Van den Broeck (for Living Lands) respectively. Their presentations were well received.
Click here for the full summary
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CULTRUAL VALUES & NATURE INITIAITVE (CVNI)
Protecting Areas or Conserving Biodiversity…or Both?
How do we match access and benefit sharing (ABS) with community conservation opportunities? Following the Convention on Biological Diversity's (CBD) COP10 in Nagoya last year, CVNI's Bas Verschuuren was invited to a think-tank on ABS and Protected Areas as well as a workshop on Community Conserved Areas in Europe. This commentary looks at some these event outcomes as well as recent provisions made to safeguard traditional knowledge through best practice and legal frameworks.
Learn More...
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From The South
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PRESENCE IN THE BAVIAANSKLOOF
Earth Moves: Recreating Alluvial Fans
The first round of Baviaanskloof alluvial fan on-ground restoration measures is now being implemented. After close to three years of research, planning, writing reports, waiting and a lot of animated talking, bulldozers are finally moving the earth…On the 31st August, Living Lands staff Marijn Zwinkels (project coordinator), Julia Glenday (research coordinator, PhD student) and Joris Broekman (intern student) headed into the Baviaanskloof to see the implementation in progress.
Contact:
Marijn Zwinkels marijn@earthcollective.net
Learn More...
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EYES4EARTH
'Reconnecting with Nature' Winners
The winners of the Reconnecting with Nature Contest were recently awarded. As one of our judges said after reading the responses, "Phew, that was a difficult task ... I'm grateful there were only a few (entries)!! A sense of connectedness is such a personal thing, and I found the insights fascinating."Admittedly, we were not swamped with entries, but given the detail and quality of those we did receive, it may have been for the best! So we are grateful that those who did manage to send us their opinions - their time and efforts provide valuable added insight. It appears we are only really just scratching the surface on this critical topic.
Contact:
Matthew Zylstra matt@earthcollective.net
Learn More...
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ELEMENTAL EQUITY
Reducing Eco-Footprints? Re-spek!
In recent months, the Element Equity restoration fund has received valuable contributions. Most creatively, was Coen Boogerd's greening of his baby daughter's emissions generated through use of disposable diapers. Others compensated their carbon footprint made through flight travel and other lifestyle choices. Elemental Equity does this re-planting with the native spekboom (Portulacaria afra) in denuded areas. We are aiming for 10 hectares to be 're-speked' at Goedehoop (near Cambria, Baviaanskloof) by year-end. In doing so, we'll be able to keep our local planting team smiling over Christmas as well. Show your support with a contribution.
Contact:
Marijn Zwinkels marijn@earthcollective.net
ELEMENTALEQUITY.ORG
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PRESENCE STUDENT WORKSHOP
Ethics & Database Priority
The September PRESENCE student workshop was held earlier this week (18th - 21st) at the Learning Village. Participants came together to get to better know one another and provide updates of their research, which helped a shared learning process. Some of these conversations were subsequently continued during the open space sessions. The students picked up on unfinished topics from the previous workshop and discussed the ethics of stakeholder engagement. Representatives from SAEON presented their work which was a valuable contribution in terms stimulating dialogue about how the PRESENCE database should be developed.
Learn more...
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ELANDSRIVIER WORKSHOP
It's all about U
The PRESENCE learning network has recently expanded stakeholder engagement activities to the Elandsrivier Valley. This introductory, co-initiation phase was the first of five steps of the Theory U process to be trialled in the region. In addition, these efforts signal the beginning of a potentially fruitful working relationship between the farmers of Elandsrivier Valley, Living Lands and future students and partners of the PRESENCE network, such as ECPTA and their Baviaanskloof Mega-Reserve stewardship programme.
Learn more...
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DIFFERENT PES-SPECTIVES
What comes first?
What comes first in PES for restoration: the regulation or the willingness? Is it more effective to involve stakeholders in a process with which they believe in? Or does having a strong regulatory framework ensure 'buy-in' to a more credibly perceived PES system? Extrema, a little town in Minas Gerais State of Brazil, has a municipal payment for ecosystem services (PES) scheme built largely on the back of a locally institutionalized PES law. Is it a recipe for long-term success?
Learn more...
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9 Questions in 99 Seconds
(With Students Based At The PRESENCE LEARNING Village) |
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CARINA BECKER
Family? "One brother a mother and a father"
Food? "Pasta"
Fears?"Speed"
Free-Time? "Reading"
Fitness? "Dancing"
Favourites? "Music, Language"
Facebook? "Yes"
Future? "Masters"
Fieldwork? "Carina is an NMMU student (George campus) looking at how soil factors influence the distribution and survival of spekboom in subtropical thicket."
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MIKE FELDMAN
Family? "Distant"
Food? "Healthy"
Fears? "Heights"
Free-Time? "Passion"
Fitness? "Important"
Favourites? "Smiles"
Facebook? "Crackbook"
Future? "Happiness and health"
Fieldwork? "Mike is volunteering at the PRESENCE Learning Village and supporting a range of activities such as the upcoming Wildlands Studies Course, the Kids Eco Club proposal and local efforts toward sustainability." |
EGLE DRAUGELYTE
Family? "Home"
Food? "Tasty"
Fears? "Dark"
Free-Time? "Leisure"
Fitness? "Strength"
Favourites? "Sport"
Facebook? "Friends"
Future?"Escape"
Fieldwork? "Egle is a Wageningen University student looking at the co-initiation of sustainable changes within the social learning context." |
creative corner
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Poetry Piece
Become
Be wind
Be water
Be fire
Be earth
Be
- BY BAS V
We sigh, We cry,
We wonder why-
Lives of meaning
Pass us by.
Denial.
Hang on...
Let me just post that
On my Facebook profile.
- BY MATT Z
Check out eyes4earth.org's Cave Collections Vol I, II & III for a series of recent wilderness inspired poetry
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quotes of the quarter
"The worst thing about new books is that they keep us from reading the old ones."
- JOSEPH JOUBERT
"An economist is an expert who will know tomorrow why the things he predicted yesterday didn't happen today."
- LAURENCE J PETER
"A society of sheep must in time beget a government of wolves."
- BERTRAND DE JOUVENEL
"A dream is just a dream. A goal is a dream with a plan and a deadline."
- HARVEY MACKAY
"Ua Mau ke Ea o ka Āina i ka Pono. "The life of the land is perpetuated by the health of the people."
- THE STATE MOTTO OF HAWAII
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Recommended Reading
Understanding stakeholders' attitudes toward water management interventions: Role of place meanings. Water Resource. Res., 47, by Jacobs & Buijs 2011
Water resource managers need to take the opinions of stakeholders into account when planning interventions. The authors studied stakeholders' concerns in two water management planning contexts, focusing on the meanings assigned to places and on attitudes toward proposed interventions. Five categories of place meanings emerged from the analysis: beauty (aesthetic judgments), functionality (ways of use), attachment (feelings of belonging), biodiversity (meanings pertaining to nature), and risk (worries about current or future events). They conclude that discussing place meanings during participatory planning processes could contribute substantially to catchment management.
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News In A Nutshell
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THICKET FORUM 2011: THE 7-YEAR ITCH
Come one come all to what promises to be an exciting Thicket Forum. This year's event is co-chaired between Rhodes University Environmental Sciences Dept and Living Lands. The event will feature a diverse mix of highly relevant keynote speakers from both public and private sectors as well as presentations on all matters thicket. After 7 years of the Forum, the second day will discuss the "where to from here?" in terms of making the platform relevant to regional sustainable land-use. Register before 14th October!
CLICK FOR INVITE & REGISTRATION
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PRESENCE STUDENT REUNION
Former and future PRESENCE students, interns, and Living Lands staff reunited in Wageningen (The Netherlands) for a cosy meal-out followed by a few drinks at local watering hole De Zaaier. The occasional was a great opportunity to share distant or not-so-distant memories of South African adventures as well as catch up on current endeavours and life paths. For Dieter & Matt, it was tricky to have proper conversation with everyone but nevertheless it was warming to see how the PRESENCE experience has influenced their current endeavours.
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PRESENCE AT ESP CONFERENCE
With an acronym like ESP, you would think participants would already know what's going to happen next month. But in this case, ESP is the burgeoning Ecosystem Services Partnership which will be hosted in Wageningen in early October. Dieter and Odi from Living Lands along with PhD students Maura and Alexander will organize a special session for PRESENCE. Special thanks goes to WUR's Ecosystem & Landscape Services Programme for co-funding our attendance.
Learn More...
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STILL CYCLING SUSTAINABLY
Last issue we featured Fedde Jorritsma, his bicycle and his global wheel-turning. After presenting a number of low tech sustainable energy workshops in Bali, Fedde is now moving onto Malaysia. In his trail he is leaving communities with eco sanitation toilets and solar water heaters developed from waste materials. Most off all, he has left people inspired and equipped with the tools to make a difference for their communities. Fedde is always on the lookout for people and communities that are interested in hosting one of his workshops or joining in for the ride. Click here to see how.
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INITIATIVES
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PRESENCE
PRESENCE functions as a collaborative platform to guide the restoration and conservation of 'living landscapes'. The PRESENCE learning network is coordinated by Living Lands - a South African foundation based at the Learning Village (Kouga Dam) with a vision of: "collaborations working on living landscapes."
NEW WEBSITE NOW ONLINE!:
livinglandscapes.co.za
Email:
dieter@
earthcollective.net
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eyes4earth
eyes4earth.org is a research and education
initiative focused on understanding the role of meaningful experience in behaviour change. eyes4earth combines online social media with community-based outreach to stimulate awareness and dialogue around nature (re)connection.
Website:
eyes4earth.org
Email:
matt@earthcollective.net
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cvni
The Cultural Values & Nature Initiative or "CVNI" is an action research project which
aims to elicit cultural and spiritual perceptions
of nature and the environment and integrate them into ecosystem management,
nature conservation and policy.
Website:
culturalvalues.org
Email:
bas@earthcollective.net
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elemental equity
Elemental Equity is an investment in your future. This ‘natural capital’ fund encourages individuals and businesses to help secure cultural and environmental heritage by investing in nature.
Website:
elementalequity.org
Email:
giving@
livinglandscapes.co.za
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Positive ideas. happening.
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EarthCollective's vision statement is: to act as a catalyst for creating, enabling and facilitating initiatives that restore links between nature and human wellbeing. And simply to get positive ideas happening. The EarthCollective network is institutionally affiliated with the Foundation for Sustainable Development (FSD) in The Netherlands and with Living Lands in South Africa.
EarthCollective's Seasonal Supplement Newsletter is published four times per year on a seasonal basis. Your inclusion on this mailing list is either because you are associated with EarthCollective activities, have previously expressed interest in our work, or you know someone in the EarthCollective network. However, should you no longer wish to receive this newsletter or related updates, click on 'unsubscribe' below or email: 'unsubscribe newsletter' to: info@earthcollective.net. Any other feedback, comments, ideas for future news stories or newsletter subscriptions can also be mailed to: info@earthcollective.net
Seasonal Supplement Editor: Matthew Zylstra
Seasonal Supplement Designer: Andrew Zylstra
Seasonal Supplement Contributors: Joris Broeckman, Angus Joseph, Vanessa Sheehan, Jordy Stokhof de Jong, Dieter Van den Broeck, Bas Verschuuren, Silvia Weel, Marijn Zwinkels, Matthew Zylstra.
Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions:
Email: info@earthcollective.net
Phone: +27 (0) 83 48 28 033
Post: PO Box 570, 6700 AN Wageningen, The Netherlands
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