Resources

Over time, we’ve gathered resources – videos, articles, projects, etc – which have helped inspire us to do what we do in the area of environmental regeneration.

We share some of them here.

We hope they inspire you too.

ENVIRONMENTAL REGENERATION

ERNST GÖTSCH – SYNTROPIC AGRICULTURE (subtitles)

Ernst Götsch, a farmer and researcher, came from Switzerland to the state of Bahia in Brazil in the 1980s. He succeeded in developing a new form of cultivation, which became known as syntropic agriculture, which is the term for an agroforestry cultivation system (SAF) based on the concept of syntropy – a principle contrary to entropy – characterized by organization, integration, balance and preservation of energy in the environment. For Götsch it is necessary to establish a relationship of mutual acquaintance with nature and to think always in terms of ecosystems rather than single species.

SEE MORE

ANTÓNIO NOBRE – FLYING RIVERS AND THE BIOTIC PUMP (subtitles)

António Nobre holds a degree in Agronomy from the University of São Paulo (1982), a Masters in Tropical Biology (Ecology) from the National Institute of Amazonian Research (1989) and a PhD in Earth System Sciences (Biogeochemistry) from the University of New Hampshire (1994). He was a full researcher at the National Institute of Amazonian Research for 33 years, and is currently a full researcher at the Earth System Science Center of the National Institute of Space Research, where he has been working for 15 years as a visiting researcher and where he leads the land modeling group.

 

READ MORE

HUGH WILSON – HINEWAI NATURE RESERVE

Fools & Dreamers: Regenerating a Native Forest is a 30-minute documentary about Hinewai Nature Reserve, on New Zealand’s Banks Peninsula, and its kaitiaki/manager of 30 years, botanist Hugh Wilson. When, in 1987, Now considered a hero locally and across the country, Hugh oversees 1500 hectares resplendent in native forest, where birds and other wildlife are abundant and 47 known waterfalls are in permanent flow. He has proven without doubt that nature knows best – and that he is no fool.

 

READ MORE

1001 MARGARAÇAS – O CAMINHO DE MARGARAÇA (in Portuguese)

The documentary series “1001 Margaraças” begins its journey in the Mata da Margaraça, one of the oldest and best preserved native woods in the country, and aims to show projects that, on the ground, try to respond to some of the challenges that the native forest of mainland Portugal faces. These are real, civil society projects, which have been underway for several years, which are little known but deserve a closer look.

 

READ MORE

ASSOCIAÇÃO MILVOZ (in Portuguese)

Milvoz – Association for the Protection and Conservation of Nature was created in May 2019 with the aim of creating a network of bio-reserves. The first, which covers less than one hectare, is located in Almalaguês, a little over 15 kilometres from Coimbra.

 

READ MORE

RESERVA NATURAL PRIVADA DA FAIA BRAVA (in Portuguese)

In 2010, the Faia Brava Reserve was classified by the Institute for Nature Conservation and Biodiversity (ICNB) as the first Private Protected Area in the country and is now also a pilot area for the European Rewilding project. In addition to these aspects, Faia Brava increasingly operates as a demonstration centre for forest protection, environmental education and ecotourism, involving the local community, schools and businesses.

READ MORE

Kiss the Ground

Kiss the Ground reveals that, by regenerating the world’s soils, we can completely and rapidly stabilize Earth’s climate, restore lost ecosystems and create abundant food supplies. Using compelling graphics and visuals, along with striking NASA and NOAA footage, the film artfully illustrates how, by drawing down atmospheric carbon, soil is the missing piece of the climate puzzle. (The video is only a trailer. The full movie is available on Netflix or to rent on Vimeo.)

READ MORE

Allan Savory – Running out of Time

Grasslands are vast landscapes that have the capacity, if properly managed, to address some of humanity’s most urgent challenges such as water and food insecurity, poverty, and climate change. Currently, grasslands are desertifying at alarming rates. Holistic Management of grasslands results in the regeneration of soils, increased productivity and biological diversity, as well as economic and social well-being.

READ MORE

ANTÓNIO VICENTE – restoring the rainforest (subtitles)

For years, Antonio Vicente begged his neighbours to heed his warning. The water at Pouso do Rochedo, Brazil, would disappear and, with it, life in this piece of rainforest. And he was right. But now, after having devoted the last 40 years to reforesting his land, the water is coming back … and all thanks to him.

 

READ MORE

Planting Nature (subtitles)

Research shows that nature is at least a third of the solution to climate change before 2030. These natural pathways are cost-effective, available now, easily scalable, and are critical to reducing the risk of catastrophic climate change. Encompassing an area equal to the size of Portugal, Serra de Mantiquiera within the Atlantic Forest is an ecosystem located in the financial heart of Brazil.

 SEE MORE

FANTASTIC FUNGI

A film about the myceliium network that takes us on a journey into the earth beneath our feet, into an underground network that can help heal and save our planet. Through the eyes of mycologists like Paul Stamets and others, we become aware of the beauty, intelligence and solutions that the fungi kingdom offers in response to some of our most pressing medical, therapeutic, and environmental challenges. (The video is only a trailer. The full movie is avaiulable here.)

READ MORE

THE SOCIAL LIFE OF FORESTS

Before Suzanne Simard and other ecologists revealed the extent and significance of mycorrhizal networks, foresters typically regarded trees as solitary individuals that competed for space and resources and were otherwise indifferent to one another. Simard and her peers have demonstrated that this framework is far too simplistic. An old-growth forest is neither an assemblage of stoic organisms tolerating one another’s presence nor a merciless battle royale: It’s a vast, ancient and intricate society.

READ MORE

A Forest Garden

Instead of neat rows of monoculture, forest gardens combine fruit and nut trees, shrubs, herbs, vines and perennial vegetables together in one seemingly wild setting. This type of agroforestry mimics natural ecosystems and uses the space available in a sustainable way. UK-based Martin Crawford is one of the pioneers of forest gardening. Starting out with a flat field in 1994, his land has been transformed into a woodland and serves as an educational resource for others interested in forest gardening.

READ MORE

Shubhendu Sharma – How to grow a forest in your backyard

Forests don’t have to be far-flung nature reserves, isolated from human life. Instead, we can grow them right where we are — even in cities. Eco-entrepreneur and TED Fellow Shubhendu Sharma grows ultra-dense, biodiverse mini-forests of native species in urban areas by engineering soil, microbes and biomass to kickstart natural growth processes, using Akira Miyawaki’s method of high-density, high-diversity native species planting.

READ MORE

ONLINE LIBRARY

ESPÉCIES ARBÓREAS INDÍGENAS EM PORTUGAL CONTINENTAL

Guia de utilização

ICNF

Processamento e conservação de sementes florestais

Guia técnico

ICNF

NOVA POLÍTICA PARA A REMUNERAÇÃO DE SERVIÇOS DOS ECOSSISTEMAS
EM ESPAÇOS RURAIS EM PORTUGAL

O Problema, a Política e a Implementação

Rui Ferreira dos Santos, Paula Antunes, Carlos Rio Carvalho, Alexandra Aragão

Forests, atmospheric water and an uncertain future: the new biology of the global water cycle

Douglas Sheil, Forest Ecosystems, 2018

Join our Mailing List!

 

HEADQUARTERS

Rua da Capela 36

3305-037 Pai das Donas

Coimbra, Portugal

 

 

Social