Por qué emprender en turismo sostenible

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Publicado: 16 de julio 2018

Autor: Martín Riverós

Publicado por: Entrepreneur

Nuevos paradigmas en el turismo abren la puerta a nuevas oportunidades de negocio. Cuidar el medio ambiente puede impactar positivamente en tu emprendimiento.

En 2016 la Organización de las Naciones Unidas (ONU) ha fijado un nuevo norte en la industria del turismo hacia el 2030, al crecimiento económico le exige un desarrollo incluyente y por sobre con foco ambiental. Este escenario abre una gran oportunidad para nuevos emprendimientos en una de las industrias más pujantes del mundo.

Según informa la Organización Mundial del Turismo (UNWTO), a diferencia de otras industrias, el turismo posee un crecimiento anual sostenido en orden del 4% al 5%, y representa el 10% del PIB mundial.

Nuevas oportunidades

En este contexto comienza a desarrollarse un nuevo mercado en torno a la sostenibilidad en el turismo. Y esto implica un nuevo tipo de consumidor que posee características particulares, un mayor nivel de conciencia por el cambio climático y por el impacto social de sus actividades.

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Consecuencias de la aplicación del “greening” en España: merma el monocultivo mientras ganan terreno leguminosas, proteaginosas, partos permanentes y barbechos

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Publicado: 16 de julio 2018

Publicado por: Agronews Castilla y León

En el día de hoy, 16 de julio, el Fondo Español de Garantía Agraria, FEGA, ha publicado un informe sobre la aplicación del “Greening” o “Pago Verde” durante la campaña 2017.

Una de las principales conclusiones alcanzadas hace referencia a que, el trienio de aplicación del pago para prácticas agrícolas beneficiosas para el clima y el medio ambiente o pago verde en España, continúa demostrando el avance positivo en términos medioambientales, habiéndose consolidado en 2017 los efectos verificados del primer año de aplicación de esta ayuda, pues sigue aumentando la superficie de leguminosas, proteaginosas y oleaginosas al igual que aumenta ligeramente la superficie declarada de barbecho.

Continúa observándose en 2017 una evolución interesante respecto de la diversificación de cultivos, de lo que se deriva un avance en términos de biodiversidad y de la mejora del suelo, pues se ha determinado que el monocultivo, notablemente existente en 2014, ha evolucionado hacia una mayor diversificación de explotaciones con un mayor número de cultivos. Así, por ejemplo, el 14 % de las explotaciones sujetas a diversificación, en 2014, tenían 1 cultivo, cifra que se ha visto reducida en más de la mitad (hasta el 5 %) en el año 2017; igualmente, el número de dichas explotaciones que en 2014 tenían 2 cultivos, se ha reducido desde el 25 % hasta el 11 % en el año 2017. Por el contrario, se ha incrementado el número de explotaciones que en 2014 tenían 3 o más cultivos de un 61 % a un 85 % en 2017, en comparación con las explotaciones de un solo cultivo que siguen en descenso cada campaña con el objeto de cumplir con la diversificación.

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The Future of Agriculture with Del Ficke and Graham Christensen

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Published: July 11, 2018

Del Ficke and Graham Christensen own farms that advocate a practice called Regenerative Agriculture. This practice sequesters a massive portion of CO2 in the soil and even in forests. Del is the owner of Ficke Cattle Company, a family run farm and livestock operation with a history dating back to 1860. Graham is the Founder of GC Resolve, an environmental consulting company based in Nebraska that specializes in grassroots community development, education, and mobilization.

Del and Graham join me today to discuss the practice of Regenerative Agriculture and what they have done to implement it in their farms. They share how they learned about regenerative practices and their success stories and explain why this type of practice is based on what’s already been done before, but long forgotten due to mass production. They also share examples of how regenerative ag can benefit farmers financially.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST HERE

Regenerative Farms Yield Soil Health and Higher Profits than Chemical-Intensive Operations

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Published: July 11, 2018

Ecologically-based farming systems contain far fewer pests and generate much higher profits than their conventional, chemical-based counterparts according to research published in the journal PeerJ earlier this year by scientists at South Dakota State University and the Ecdysis Foundation. The study supports calls to reshape the future of agriculture, as ‘regenerative’ farms, which avoid tillage and bare soil, integrate livestock, and foster on-farm diversity. These farms are found to represent an economically viable alternative to overly simplified, pesticide and fertilizer-dependent cropping systems. Given the study’s focus on corn cropping systems, such a shift is possible for thousands of farmers throughout the United States.

Researchers looked at roughly 75 fields on 18 farms, measuring the organic matter in the soil, insect pest populations, corn yield as well as profit. Farms using pesticide treatments, which in corn fields is represented primarily by the use of neonicotinoid-coated seeds, had 10x higher pest levels than regenerative farms. As noted in the study, pest populations are a function of the biodiversity within the crop field. Biodiveristy increased on regenerative farms not only because farmers sprayed fewer pesticides, but because they also allowed more plants to grow in between rows. More plants lead to higher numbers of predatory insects and increased competition for pests, while conventional farms mistakenly attempt to simplify the ecosystem by replacing this diversity with pesticides. Lower levels of biodiversity, however, leads to fewer predators, less competition for crop pests like aphids, and the rapid development of pesticide resistance which facilitates pest outbreaks.

KEEP READING ON BEYOND PESTICIDES

Regenerative Agriculture: Merging Farming and Natural Resource Conservation Profitably

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Authors: Claire E. LaCanne and Jonathan G. Lundgren | Published: February 26, 2018

Most cropland in the United States is characterized by large monocultures, whose
productivity is maintained through a strong reliance on costly tillage, external fertilizers,
and pesticides (Schipanski et al., 2016). Despite this, farmers have developed a regenerative model of farm production that promotes soil health and biodiversity, while
producing nutrient-dense farm products profitably. Little work has focused on the
relative costs and benefits of novel regenerative farming operations, which necessitates
studying in situ, farmer-defined best management practices. Here, we evaluate the
relative effects of regenerative and conventional corn production systems on pest
management services, soil conservation, and farmer profitability and productivity
throughout the Northern Plains of the United States.

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Los proyectos agroecológicos en el Estado español “aprueban en sostenibilidad y suspenden en apoyo institucional”

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Publicado: 12 de julio 2018

Publicado por: AraInfo

Ecologistas en Acción ha presentado un informe que evalúa la situación de los proyectos agroecológicos en el Estado español. El estudio concluye que los proyectos agroecológicos contribuyen a la sostenibilidad medioambiental y al desarrollo económico, pero no tienen el suficiente apoyo institucional. La organización ecologista defiende la agroecología como apuesta productiva para el desarrollo del medio rural.

Ecologistas en Acción ha realizado el informe ‘Sistematización de experiencias productivas agroecológicas’ con el objetivo de analizar las problemáticas y necesidades comunes de los proyectos agroecológicos en el Estado español y de generar una herramienta para poder articular futuras acciones de cooperación.

El informe se ha llevado a cabo mediante la realización de una encuesta a setenta proyectos productivos. En dicho cuestionario se han abordado las tres dimensiones de la agroecología: la técnico-productiva, la socioeconómica y la político-cultural y de género. Desde esta perspectiva, no solo se tiene en cuenta una producción ecológica, sino que además se incluye una forma de economía local y cercana (generando red en el territorio) y por tanto más justa para personas productoras y consumidoras.

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‘Soil My Undies’ Challenge Has Farmers Burying Underwear In Their Fields

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Across North America, farmers are burying tighty-whities in their fields.

Author: Dan Nosowitz | Published: July 9, 2018

Started by the Farmers Guild in California, the Soil Your Undies Challenge is a test designed to show the power and importance of healthy soil.

The Challenge is easy: Simply bury a pair of 100 percent cotton underwear—generally white briefs have been the garment of choice—in your farm, garden, or pasture. Two months later, dig them up and inspect and document the changes.

Healthy soil contains all sorts of bacteria, earthworms, fungi, and other little organisms that like to eat organic matter, like, just for example, cotton underwear. In two months, underwear buried in healthy soil will be completely eaten through, leaving little but an elastic waistband.

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Scientists Find Grasslands Important as Carbon ‘Sinks’

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Author: David Reese | Published: July 9, 2018

With five of California’s most destructive wildfire seasons happening since 2006, that state should include grasslands and not just forests as promising carbon sinks, according to researchers at the University of California, Davis.

The environmental scientists found that California grasslands are better at storing carbon from the atmosphere than fire-prone trees and forests, which have transitioned from carbon sinks (reserves) to carbon generators.

Forests have been a major way to store atmospheric carbon, but when they burn they become carbon generators, and years of wildfire suppression and drought have increased wildfire risks.

Grasslands have the capacity to be more drought- and fire-resilient than forests, and should be considered in California’s carbon cap-and-trade market, which was established in 2012, according to the study published Tuesday in the journal Environmental Research Letters.

KEEP READING ON COURTHOUSE NEWS SERVICE

Soils Ain’t Soils

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The world-renowned Andre Leu gave a fascinating insight recently in his presentation on regenerative agriculture to a group of local farmers at Hallora. The Gazette’s RUSSELL BENNETT headed along to soak in as much as he could about, among a range of topics, where most farming starts – the soil…

Author: Russell Bennett | Published: July 5, 2018

A guest of the Baw Baw Food Movement, Andre Leu’s presentation late last week on regenerative agriculture broke down just what it is for farming to be ‘sustainable’ or ‘organic’, and explored how to regenerate the environment in which agricultural farming takes place.

An internationally-recognised speaker and the author of ‘The Myths of Safe Pesticides’, Andre is also a past president of IFOAM – the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements – and was the first Australian to hold that position.

He has over 40 years’ experience in all facets of organic agriculture, including growing, pest control, weed management, post-harvest transport, new crops and education – not just in Australia, but right across Asia, Europe, America, and Africa.

KEEP READING ON PAKENHAM-BERWICK GAZETTE

Main Street Project Hosts Carbon Farmers and Ranchers to Share Midwest Regenerative Agriculture Model

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Each year, Northfield-based Main Street Project has made strides in its goals to develop community-based, regenerative, sustainable agriculture in and around Northfield. It’s made enough progress now to be an example for others.

Main Street Project Chief Strategy Officer Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin, left, stands with Aaron Clare, of Nebraska Forest Service, at Main Street’s demonstration farm. Photo credit: Philip Weyhe/Northfield News

At the end of June, a few dozen people from all across the Midwest made their way to Northfield to see and learn about Main Street’s systems and consider how they might bring elements of the operation back home. The visitors saw Main Street’s new 100-acre demonstration farm, just north of Northfield, and one of its free-range poultry units, just south of Northfield. Then they stayed the night downtown and gathered there in the morning to talk about what’s happening and what’s in the future.

Read the full article at www.southernminn.com/northfield_news/news/article_d822c4a2-9813-57bd-9d67-371c02142906.html. The article requires a subscription to read. Subscription options, including a one-day $1.99 digital pass, can be found at www.southernminn.com/subscription_options.