STUDENTS, graduates and members of the community around Dartington will get the chance to apply for experimental space in a new Incubator Field on the Dartington Estate.
The Regenerative Farming Incubator Programme, funded by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation will enable them to test new agro-ecological techniques. Seven acres of land have been earmarked for the scheme which is to to start next spring (2023).
The announcement comes as Schumacher College welcome welcomes its first ever undergraduates onto a BSc in Regenerative Food & Farming – the first agricultural degree in Britain to be based entirely on regenerative principles.
Director of Learning Dr Pavel Cenkl said : “This grant from Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is going to allow us to make some great leaps forward with regenerative farming, which we hope will spread across the country as we strive towards a sustainable and more self-sufficient food system.
“We believe that big ideas can make the world a better place and this will truly allow us to practice what we preach. “
The College also offers Horticulture Residencies, grows a substantial amount of its own food and has its own five-acre agroforestry which is used by growers as well as being used for teaching. All the food an farming programmes have been developed in collaboration with partners on the estate and within the local area, including the Apricot Centre, School Farm, Old Parsonage Farm.
The Incubator is being set up with funds from a grand by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, with the aim of providing a viable model of resilient local food production and establishing Dartington and the local area as a centre for sustainable food excellence.
