In the dry climate of southern Spain’s agricultural cork belt near Seville, a German couple are trying to turn back the clock to a traditional way of farming.
In 1996, Hans-Gerd Neglein and Ernestine Lüdeke bought a 600-hectare (1483 acres) cork and livestock farm, in a bid to create a year-round model for sustainable farming.
Each production element of the farm is interconnected. The philosophy is to work with nature in such a way that each element supports the environment’s natural balance.
Ernestine said, “We produce biodiversity in the sense that we keep up the number of species in plants and in animals that would disappear if we were producing in an intensive way. The whole food chain is being restored by our way of farming, starting from insects, bacteria in the soil, birds, any rare species and plants and animals is integrated into our management system.”
The Environmental Atlas of Europe is a UNEP-EEA-ESA joint project showcasing communities responding to environmental change across Europe. The films present a series of these inspirational stories about how people are responding to climate change and in so doing, transforming their lives for a more sustainable future.
Produced by Ace & Ace, Denmark, in cooperation with the European Environment Agency (EEA), United Nations Environment Programme UNEP and the European Space Agency (ESA).
