Corporate sustainability goes hand in hand with many terms and…
Roundtable «Refugees & Restoration»
What if we transformed refugee camps into regenerative camps? A practical approach to implementing the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration: public Roundtable on 5th June 2021.
Sounds like a crazy idea? Wait until you hear more!
2021-2030 is declared as the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. #GenerationRestoration. Taking this as an opportunity, Tina Teucher would like to support the scaling and multiplication of regenerative projects: Restoration in refugee camps has an enormous potential to enhance the living conditions of forcibly displaced people and – at the same time – the ecosystem services of the region. The UN Global Goals aim to better the living conditions whilst supporting the natural environment. So why not transform refugee camps into regenerative camps, for the people’s health, wealth and peace – and for the ecosystem’s regeneration?
Two roundtables on the 5th of June 2021 shed light on the learnings from existing projects, combining ecosystem restoration and working with refugees and involved stakeholders such as aid organisations and funders to discuss the growth potential of regenerative practices in refugee camps.
Why are regenerative practices a good idea for refugee camps?
What is needed to establish restoration projects in those camps?
How can projects multiply, speed up and scale?
Regenerative practices are approaches like permaculture, food forests, regenerative agriculture, agroforestry, agroecology or silvopasture. They all help to regenerate soil fertility, improve water security, and can also provide food and renewable building material. Learn more about Ecosystem Restoration.
We won’t stop at talking
The goals for the roundtables were:
- Learn about the needs of stakeholders (refugees, projects, aid organizations, funders…) and structure them (“Matchmaking”)
- Set up a working group for “guideline on regenerative camps” & practice project
- Organise a follow-up event in autumn 2021 including experts also from: politics, finance, design thinking, branding, business modelling…
Both roundtables took place online on 5th June 2021:
Roundtable 1 (2 hours)
10am UTC = 11am BST | 12pm CEST | 1 PM EEST | 8pm AEST
(for participants from Australia, Asia, Africa, Middle East, Europe)
With time for interaction & discussion, arts, and 5 minute short talks from:
- Tina Teucher (facilitator) – The idea of Refugees & Restoration
- Rosemary Morrow (Permaculture 4 Refugees) – Our Experience in restoring with refugees
- Jennie Spears (Lemon Tree Trust) – Gardening experiences in a camp
- Photene Kalpakiotis (refugees.gr) – What would be needed to start in Greece
- Pieter van der Gaag (Ecosystem Restoration Camps) – How restoration can transform places
- Juliet Millican (Re-Alliance) – Learnings from the network: What hinders us?
- Ruth Andrade (Lush; Regenerosity) – What funders & impact investors need to fund projects
Roundtable 2 (1.5 hours)
3pm UTC = 8am PDT | 11am EDT | 4pm BST | 5pm CEST | 6pm EEST
(for participants from America, Africa, Middle East, Europe)
With 5 minute short talks from:
- Tina Teucher (facilitator) – The idea of Refugees & Restoration
- Nathalie Meier (Movement on the Ground) – What we need in order to multiply & scale our projects
- Elham AlAbbadi (Bayoudha Village) – Working with locals and refugees in Jordan
- Noah Ssempijja (YICE Uganda, Bukompe refugee camp) – How regenerative practices can empower refugees (invited, to be confirmed)
- John D. Liu (Ecosystem Restoration Camps) – How knowledge, education and media can help
- Maya Hennerkes (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, EBRD) – What funders & impact investors need to fund projects
Title picture: Azadi Community Garden – Domiz 1 camp – Kurdistan Region of Iraq / Lemon Tree Trust © Dirk Jan Visser
Tina Teucher promotes solutions for sustainable living and management with articles and lectures. As a moderator and speaker, she is present at events online and on site. She speaks on topics such as megatrends, regenerative innovations and sustainable leadership. The cultural scientist completed the Master Sustainability Management and has been a lecturer herself since 2015. She shares her knowledge in numerous publications and articles. In 2020/2021 she particulary focuses on to the topic areas of ecosystem restoration and sustainable finance.
Tina Teucher’s newsletter provides information about current sustainability topics about four times a year.
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