Nature and Culture
DiversEarth supports and celebrates innovative sustainable cultural practices that benefit nature and biodiversity around the world
Nature and Culture are tightly linked.
They intertwine in multitudes of ways, shapes and forms. We like to think of Culture as J. Krishnamurti defines it: the flowering of goodness.
In our projects we focus on those cultural practices – for instance, mobile pastoralism – that are or can be beneficial for nature, that have developed in harmonious ways with the natural world, and that are now facing increasing threats.
Mobile pastoralism …
Mobile pastoralism is an ancient form of subsistence farming in which herds of livestock are moved across landscapes seasonally in search of forage and water. The importance of this practice for nature and for the climate can’t be overestimated. And for culture and spirituality this practice is so diverse, so rich. It is a collective human heritage that must be valued and protected.
Find out about our mobile pastoralism projects …
Photo credit: imagenature.com
One Square Meter …
One Square Meter is an interactive exhibition of needle-felt sculptural art and aspires to be a Global Collective of women wool workers from pastoralist communities around the world. It is an exciting, all-encompassing project that includes:
- The empowerment of rural women (indigenous peoples and local communities)
- Skills sharing – techniques of dyeing wool with natural ingredients / needle-felting
- Rural economies related to wool and crafts
- Links to the cultural practice of pastoralism
- A spotlight on local breeds
- A spotlight on local crafts
- Links to nature and especially plant diversity
- Stories about plants and their use and values in the community
- Celebrating women wool workers, their lifestyles and their crafts (international exhibitions)
Explore our One Square Meter project …
The spirituality of pastoralism
There are many strong links between the art and lifestyle of mobile pastoralism and spirituality. In many cases this has a lot to do with the undeniable connections pastoralists have maintained for millennia with nature and with the landscapes they have shaped. This connection is spiritual in itself.
DiversEarth is currently exploring these links, especially through the stories, songs and poetry of those who walk the long road.
Our work on this is not quite ready, but check back for updates!
Mediterranean Consortium for Nature and Culture
For around 8 years, DiversEarth was the coordinator of the Mediterranean Consortium for Nature and Culture. Check out our work on the cultural practices that benefit nature in the Mediterranean here: http://medconsortium.org