Please join us in sponsoring two talented students to attend a one-week immersive course on climate mitigation and adaptation on farms.
Our Mission
On 13-14 December 2024, my friend and colleague Filipe Cunha and I will run the 24h Zevenheuvelen winter trail in Nijmegen, Netherlands. This race, consisting of a 5km-lap to run as many times as possible, is a powerful metaphor for the relentless and continued efforts that addressing the climate and biodiversity crisis will require. The climate and biodiversity are no issues to be fixed, no problems to be solved… they are to be cared for, unconditionally, continuously, patiently. So we will run this lap, again and again and again, embodying the resilience needed to care for our planet.
About Me
My name is Gabriel Moinet. I am a father, a scientist and a teacher. Last year, I organised a transdisciplinary one-week course on sustainable farming in a changing climate, together with my amazing colleagues Ina Moller and Alix Vidal. As the climate changes, the environment degrades, biodiversity shrinks and the world population keeps increasing, agricultural ecosystems are on the spot.
How can farms produce enough food while safeguarding biodiversity, provide living wages to workers, mitigate climate change and adapt to it?
The first iteration of the course (see here) a was a great success. With the 15 participants from various horizons, we talked to soil and social scientists, ecologists, legislators, carbon certifiers. We also talked to the farmers, we ate their food, we treaded on their fields. Using an immersive approach, we sought to really understand: what is farming and how can it be nudged at scale towards sustainability, climate action and global food security?
Why we need your help
One thing rang off though. Most participants came from very privileged professional positions, as students from very well-funded universities or young professionals from NGOs with strong institutional support. The course runs at cost, excluding time from the teachers which is covered by their universities or companies. Still, accommodation, food and logistics for an immersive one-week course is unaffordable to many. This is problematic, because social equity is at the heart of sustainability.
So next year, we aim to offer to two bright students with less favourable financial situations the opportunity to take part in the course for free .
Our Goal: €5,000
This will fully support their participation, enabling them to gain critical knowledge and skills. If we raise less than €5,000, we’ll find alternative funds. If we raise more, we’ll support additional students, now or in future editions.
