Eco Tour #2 : Exploring Kidron, a Mediterranean Food-Forest research and development farm

Presentation

Kidron Food Forest is a Permaculture enthusiastic community, growing, living, researching and developing a Mediterranean Food-Forest, as well as practicing Permaculture skills. Based in Israel, the community is working towards a goal of creating a food forest belt circling the Mediterranean sea.

The idea of a food forest is simple and elegant. By implementing ecological principles in designing agricultural systems, they create natural systems that are almost entirely self-sustaining and provide for the needs of people. The ecological and economic benefits of food forests have been demonstrated worldwide in tropical and temperate climates. The food forest in Kidron is an initiative to develop, through research and experimentation, the knowledge and experience to implement the principles of food forest design in the semi-arid climate of the Mediterranean.

The Vision

“One food forest on its own can provide for a lot of people but it is not enough to reverse the destruction and shift towards regenerative living. By creating a contiguous network of food forest throughout the Mediterranean we hope to make a significant impact on the ecology of the region and the planet. We see a belt of food forests extending around the Mediterranean sea, slowly but surely growing providing for increased plant and animal diversity while improving the lives of people.”

The soil coming from Jean Pain compost

Fellowship

The community also proposes fellowship, a 5-month professional training program in applied permaculture. Participants get food forestry courses as well as specialized courses in water retention and food forest design.

Eco Tours

This story is part of the ongoing "Eco Tour" project, a series of transdisciplinary photo-reportages about eco-villages with a focus on permaculture, off-grid communities and decentralization.

by Rubens Ben