dilluns, 22 de maig del 2017

Proyecto MADRE - Metropolitan Agriculture for Developing an Innovative Sustainaible and Responsible Economy

El pasado día 16 de mayo se hizo la primera reunión del grupo de  trabajo local (ámbito geográfico del Área Metropolitana de Barcelona / Región Metropolitana de Barcelona) del proyecto MADRE (Agricultura Metropolitana para el Desarrollo de una Economía Sostenible, Innovadora y Responsable).


Los objetivos de este proyecto son:

  • Mejorar la innovación en Agricultura Metropolitana y Periurbana en los países mediterráneos.
  • Identificar y evaluar los factores clave para el desarrollo económico, mediomabiental y social de la agricultura urbana.
  • Identificar a actores y conectar a actores representativos de agricultura urbana a nivel local y transnacional.

 Los partners son:

  • Medcities - Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona (Barcelona)
  • Avitem - ANIMA (Marsella, Francia)
  • CHIEAM - MAIM (Montpelier, Francia)
  • Área Metropolitana de Bolonia (Italia)
  • Universidad Aristotle de Tesalónica  (Grecia)
  • Universidad de Agricultura de Tirana (Albania)
Parcelas agrícolas de la RMB por X. Recasens


Este proyecto no nace huérfano para la región Metropolitana de Barcelona. En la Escuela Superior de Agricultura de Barcelona - UPC de Castelldefels se llevó a cabo una reunión de trabajo del proyecto europeo COST Action Urban Agriculture Europe 12 - 15/03/2013. En esta reunión se invitaron a los principales actores del territorio y se hicieron visitas de campo a explotaciones agrarias y a huertos urbanos municipales.


La Región Metropolitana de Barcelona fue objeto de dos estancias de investigadores europeos:

A nivel de gobernanza se redacto la declaración de Barcelona:
La Region Metropolitana de Barcelona tiene un capitulo en el libro Urban Agriculture Europe, editado por Jovis (Berlin, 2016). 
  • Barcelona: Outstanding Agricultural Diversity in a Dense and Small Area por Luis Maldonado, Dr Oscar Alfranca, Sonia Callau, Dra  Giulia Giacché, Xavier Recasens y Dr Attila Toth.
Además ha sido objeto de una publicación en el Land Use Policy:
  • The Adaptation of Urban Farms to Cities: The Case of  the Alella Wine Region whitin the Barcelona Metropolitan Region por Xavier Recasens, Dr Oscar Alfranca y Luis Maldonado.







dimarts, 2 de maig del 2017

Educational Garden in a Public Park (Badalona)

The idea of this Educational Garden (Jardí de les Ciències) was born during a meeting of Aloc members (Helena, Roberto, David, Josep Maria, Fernando, Eva and me). We decided to create this space of agriculture inside a public park (Parc de Can Solei i Ca l'Arnús).

Last activity in Jardi de les Ciències (Badalona)
The main objectives of this garden are:
  • Connecting citizens with agriculture.
  • Show different crops that they had been cultivated in Badalona or that they had been related to Badalona's Industry.
  • Offering activities to families or all schools of Badalona or Barcelona Metropolitan Area.
With these ideas we presented our project to Badalona City Council and Barcelona Metropolitan Council. They accepted our idea and we began to work together. 

After several meetings, 19 of April 2015 we planted/ sowed our first crops (cash crops, vegetables, herbs, vines...). 

Activity with pupils in Ca L'Arnús Park
We have carried out more than 10 activities. More of 300 people (families with children or adults) have participated in these activities.

We have achieved these objectives:
  • Connecting people with agriculture: we offered activities related to cereals, pulses and crops to produce sugar and vegetables.
  • We offer an activity with Badalona's Museum to explain Cereals during the roman times.
We have not achieved to offer activities to schools, all schools not only one school (the space is a public park opened to the city).

Planting mints
Each activity needs time to be prepared, to look for plant material (seeds, cuttings ...), to be carried out, elaborate materials and control weekly the crops.

In my personal opinion (after 2 years of this initiative), these projects need a economical support. I do not know if they should be paid by public administration, by the schools or the citizens that they attend to the activities.

I was influenced by several projects of urban agriculture that I had seen in European cities (Malmö, Wien, Sofia, Brussels ...) during my participation in an European Project call COST Action Urban Agriculture Europe and COST Action Urban Allotment gardens.