Network to innovate: Agroforestry

In a nutshell, agroforestry means combining agriculture and trees. But what does it mean in practice - how can trees, shrubs, and hedges best be combined with crop farming or grazing? What are the benefits of agroforestry? How could it best be applied in the Baltic Sea region?

Welcome to getting inspired by agroforestry examples and discussing the topic further.

“Advancing agroforestry in Southern Finland: Lill-Nägels Agroforestry Pilot Site”

Joshua Finch, Project Manager (Agroforestry in Nyland) and Green Ecosystem Services Team Leader, RDI Team, Faculty of Bioeconomy, Novia University of Applied Sciences, Finland.

Joshua Finch is a self-taught agroecologist interested in practical projects to alleviate social challenges and support communities adapting to climate change. Together with the farm owner and Novia, he started the Lill-Nägels Agroforestry Pilot Site, a successional silvoarable agroforestry system, in Kirkkonummi, Finland, in 2022. The pilot site aims to remediate degraded agricultural land primarily through applied biodiversity while also producing quality food products with a community-supported agriculture model (CSA). Joshua Finch is active in the Finnish Agroforestry Network, a bottom-up initiative for advancing agroforestry in Finland and connections between people interested in agroforestry.

“Farmers’ bottom-up approach in development of agroforestry innovations, networks and business in the Netherlands”, Piet Rombouts, Agroforestry Netwerk Nederland, the Netherlands.

Piet Rombouts is an agroecologist with a special interest in soil and water management and agroforestry systems. He started working with regional agroforestry networks in the Agroforestry Netwerk Nederland in the Netherlands eight years ago. Currently, the whole of the Netherlands is covered with agroforestry networks developed with a bottom-up approach, led by farmers. Besides advancing agroforestry in the Netherlands, Piet Rombouts is a Dutch delegate to the European Agroforestry Federation (EURAF), which aims to promote the adoption of agroforestry practices throughout Europe.

The third speaker will be announced shortly.