Reinventing ourselves in the rhythm of nature
World Biodynamic Day, June 5, 2022
It is a challenging task to engage in farming now with all the connected environmental, economic, and societal issues we face. This is even more difficult at a time when food security is a growing threat in many parts of the world and both agricultural land and the farming population are diminishing.
The aim to provide nutritious food while protecting the environment, nourishing the soil, and respecting the well-being of animals should be a guiding principle for farming worldwide. In short, the aim must be to work hand in hand with nature. This is what guides biodynamic farming and what the Federation is fighting for at an international level.
It is crucial that this vision turns into reality. On World Biodynamic Day, let’s not hesitate to act to protect nature, to reinvent ourselves when needed, to work for positive change in the world and make the best of this challenging task.
Believe that there is no mission impossible, when you believe in yourself and in your ability to do it, just always do it and prove it, accept that there will be failures on the way, but go on with passion and love, do new things every day, reinvent yourself. If you believe in your vision, you will reach it.
Helmy Abouleish, President of the Biodynamic Federation Demeter International at the Pioneers of Change Summit
The only certainty of biodynamic farming is its constant development. The same is true for the Demeter Standard that is discussed, adjusted, and voted upon every year by our members striving to improve the health and resilience of biodynamic farms.
The need to adapt and reinvent ourselves with the rhythm of nature is fundamental. Change is part of nature; things evolve and transform every day. This becomes even more true when we realise that in nature everything is interconnected.
We tend to look at the beings of nature – the minerals, plants, and animals (…) – as if they stood there in isolation. We’re in the habit of looking at a plant all by itself; then we go on to look at a plant species all by itself, and then at another species next to it. Everything we’re supposed to know about these things is neatly pigeonholed into separate species and genera. But that is not how things are in nature. In nature, and actually throughout the universe, everything is in mutual interaction with everything else.
Rudolf Steiner, Agriculture Course 1924 (Lecture Seven)
Biodynamic farming starts precisely by recognising this simple principle: the mutual connection and interaction of everything in nature. Each farm is viewed as an integrated whole, as a living organism made of different parts and systems: different soil types and characteristics, cultivated and uncultivated, domestic and wild animals, trees, and shrubs, etc. All these elements are integral to the farm and must be managed and brought together to interact positively with one another to support the health of well-being of the whole.
Reinventing ourselves every day is part of farming. A life in the rhythm of nature, adapting to constant change and always striving to combine the production of nutritious food with the best protection of the environment. This is commitment that began with the founding of biodynamic farming and continues evolving to face the challenges of today.
Contact: Clara Behr clara.behr@demeter.net
Brussels, June 5, 2022
