Creating a cultural landscape and developing nature through agriculture, with the help of many hands: this is where social farming can play a pioneering role. The commitment to people with support needs, who – as demanded by the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities – should be considered an integral part of society, is the underlying motivation for most social farming initiatives. "Social inclusion" in agriculture transforms farms: the elimination of manual labor is no longer the top priority, but rather the design of the farm and its operations in such a way that meaningful manual work is created. This empowers people who have often experienced their entire lives as recipients of assistance to make a positive contribution to the farm and to agriculture – and even more importantly: to contribute in areas that, on conventional farms (organic farming is no exception), fall victim to time constraints due to a lack of helping hands. The nurturing care for nature, the conscious promotion of biodiversity, and measures that foster the development of nature and the cultural landscape become possible. Conservation measures such as maintaining species-rich mountain meadows on the aforementioned farm in the Vosges Mountains, but also "conservation through use," by rejuvenating hedges through the harvesting of leaf hay, which serves as nutritionally effective winter fodder for livestock and reduces veterinary costs… Social farming has the potential for ecological inclusion, for the care, attention, and appreciation of landscape features that, as "wasteland" and fallow land, have long since been removed from the farm context in the course of the industrialization of land use. Here, too, a prerequisite is raising awareness of the development opportunities and needs of nature and landscape – landscape perception is the first step.

 

For further reading:

van Elsen, T., Köppl, K., Kalisch, M. (2006): Social farming. A perspective for nature and cultural landscape. - Ecology & Agriculture 139 (3): 22-24, Bad Dürkheim.

Kalisch, M., van Elsen, T. (2008): Cultural landscape design in agricultural holdings with the integration of people with disabilities – case studies in Germany. – In: van Elsen, T. (ed.): From individual farm conservation advice in organic farming to the overall farm concept. - FiBL Germany eV: 133-151, Witzenhausen.