On June
29, Croome Court Day, a collaborative Open Gate event took place at Croome Court, Worcestershire, in the U.K. The event was organized by RegenAG UK and sponsored by HMI. Though the day was damp and overcast, a broad spectrum of participants (43 total) participated – from local farmers to agroecology researchers, along with several members of the press. Representatives from National Trust, Wildlife Trusts and Pasture-Fed Livestock Association were also present to take part in this first Open Gate event in the U.K
After an introduction to Holistic Management, Rob Drysdale led participants on a tour of the grounds, highlighting the drastic difference between Croome Court and an adjacent property, which in contrast to the abundant grasses, was bare, with obvious soil erosion.
A Winter Stocking Rate exercise followed, and the afternoon sessions included topics such as:
Benefits for organizations of working with HM practitioners
An Introduction to the PFLA (Pasture-Fed Livestock Association), and benefits of/for raising premium meats, and how to get involved
Holistic Goal Formation (including testing a few questions based on Rob Havard’s case study).
The final presentation of the day was Holistic Land Planning for Sustainable Water Management; led by Matt Clegg, a flood management expert. The day wrapped up with some time for questions and evaluations to be completed.
Here’s what participants had to say:
“Fantastic.”
“Excellent.”
“Inspiring, encouraging, and informative.”
“Very interactive & thought provoking.”
“Very positive, good balance between theory and experiential learning.”
“Lots of enthusiasm, loads of energy and positive outlook.”
“Enjoyable and relevant.”
“Great.”
“Amazing.”
“Good.”
“Very good and informative.”
“Exciting.”
Program Results are below:
A special thanks to RegenAg U.K. for making this event possible. To read more about Croome Court and this event, check out this recap from Megan Perry at Sustainable Food Trust.
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