Korean Natural Farming

This project of the GEF Agroecology Program is adopted from prior work of Isis Morrison. During 2011 Isis independently prepared and delivered training seminars on Korean Natural Farming. Each presentation was attended to full capacity of the facility, indicating a need for more seminars in the future.

Activity in this project is focused on continuing the education and training of Korean Natural Farming techniques initiated by Isis, but expands its scope to include proven methodologies from Pacific Islands and Pacific Rim countries with a long history of sustainable agriculture. The objective is to isolate proven social and agricultural practices applied in other regions for hundreds or thousands of years, and transfer applicable aspects of this technology back to the US and its territories and make it available to all who can benefit from it.

A primary project thrust is transferring information on different agroecology growing technologies from world-wide sources to small landowners in Hawaii and across the nation, and do so as quickly as possible. Its activities include outreach by utilizing the Internet where feasible, but also by creating video films for farmers and gardeners who do not have web access but have availability of receiving local broadcast television or other means to view video recordings. This project is primarily comprised of three activities:

• Undertaking research comparing the growing of specific basic food crops in the context of different cultures and environments to establish the differences that affect growth, nutrition and hardiness of that food crop and the relative contribution a culture might make to specific growth parameters. In Hawaii, studies also look at natural soil supplements such as biochar to determine how charcoal from different kinds of wood affect crop production, how much is needed to create healthy and vigorous plant growth, and the existence of other enabling natural supplements.

• Identifying, collecting and directly comparing organic and natural farming techniques from around the world. These techniques are analyzed, combined and adapted for applicability to local growing conditions. In example, we envision comparing Organic Composting with Korean Natural Farming, Biodynamic Farming (Rudolph Steiner), and Permaculture Design, each already a proven method but with basic differences in approach and applicability to specific environments. From these comparisons we hope to glean the common elements that make these different systems successful, perhaps coming up with a superior method that can be universally applied across any culture or geography.

• Developing video films comparing culturally specific methods of rearing different types of food (e.g. cassava in Africa, potatoes in the Andes, maize in the Yucatan, rice in Vietnam) within specific cultural contexts, concentrating on methodology and results. These different methods are collected and then disseminated cross-culturally for each to adapt and employ according to their specific requirements.

Results are documented in writing and in audio and video recordings for dissemination through a wide variety of methods, including the internet. Small landholders everywhere are invited to become involved by participating in testing new farming techniques, in developing hardy breeds of plants, and in training others within their locality to help build a core of knowledgeable growers.