Vegetable farming

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The GemüseAckerdemie is an award-winning education program. It shows children where food comes from and how to grow it. The program is run by the Ackerdemia association in Potsdam .

The aim of the GemüseAckerdemie is to increase the appreciation for food. The program is aimed at schools and kindergartens as well as other educational institutions in the child and youth sector.

aims

In addition to the appreciation of the food, the educational program has various other concerns:

  • Imparting agricultural knowledge
  • Practical skills training
  • Further development of social skills
  • Support for children with learning difficulties
  • Making fresh vegetables tasty
  • Raising awareness for sustainable action in everyday life

procedure

The educational institutions can integrate the GemüseAckerdemie into their range of courses, for example as a working group or as part of regular lessons. During the one-year program, the children acquire both agricultural and social skills. Together with the participating institutions, Ackerdemia eV is looking for a suitable area to plant a field. The first planting is done by an employee of the Ackerdemia eV in cooperation with the children and the teachers. Throughout the year, the children have to independently water their plants, remove weeds and harvest the vegetables. Finally, the aim is to market the vegetables in order to finance the seeds for the following vintage.

concept

The Vegetable Farming Concept consists of an agricultural and an educational concept.

Cultivation method

In the fields of the GemüseAckerdemie, the vegetables are grown according to ecological guidelines. More than 25 species of plants are grown in the program. These include old local varieties such as the stubble (Brassica rapa var. Rapa) and exotic varieties such as the Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa var. Pekinensis) and lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus). The smallest crop rotation is designed for nine years. Participants are free to harvest and use seeds.

Education concept

The teachers receive at least three training courses on the subject of horticulture and agriculture as part of the Vegetable Farming Demie. The program includes extensive teaching material for children and teachers that has been developed according to ESD criteria. Divided into individual topics, it is used by the teachers to prepare for the lesson. The student material is devoted to the same topics from a creative side. There are two priorities. The first part of the teaching material explains the basics of agriculture. The second part conveys the sustainability aspect . In addition, the teaching material contains tips and suggestions on learning games, group tasks and processing vegetables. The VegetAckerdemie concept aims to make the school garden environmentally friendly, contemporary and exemplary, and to optimize its public perception. The school garden is intended to serve as a place of learning for the whole school.

Ackerdemia eV

Ackerdemia eV is a non-profit association that advocates a greater awareness of food production. One of the goals of the association is to create a basic understanding of healthy and respectful nutrition. The association was founded in Potsdam in 2014. Since then, his area of ​​action has expanded to all of Germany. Ackerdemia eV also realizes projects in Austria and Switzerland. The association is a member of the Social Entrepreneurship Network Germany .

The idea of ​​the association is based on the recognition that society is increasingly alienating itself from agriculture. Through scientific studies and in cooperation with various universities and research institutions, Ackerdemia eV analyzes how to reduce food destruction and increase the appreciation for agricultural products.

history

The Vegetable Farming Demie was founded in 2014 by the agricultural scientist and economist Christoph Schmitz . After founding a social enterprise in Ghana, he came up with the idea of ​​a program in Germany that promotes the appreciation of food. Together with his sister, the teacher Ulrike Päffgen, he tested a prototype of the educational program with a school class in North Rhine-Westphalia in 2013. The project was then professionalized and tested again with five other classes in Berlin, Brandenburg and North Rhine-Westphalia. In the spring of 2014, the school garden program was given its name “GemüseAckerdemie” and the associated carrot “Orangela” with the distinctive nerd glasses as a trademark. Other school classes, daycare centers and other educational institutions followed.

To open up new locations in Germany, the GemüseAckerdemie carried out a crowdfunding campaign on the Startnext platform in 2015 . She was supported by the organic supermarket chain Bio Company . Educational institutions from all over Germany are now taking part in the educational program. In Baden-Württemberg, among other things, a welcome class takes part in the Vegetable Farming Demie; In Potsdam, pupils at a special school for deaf and dumb children plant their vegetables in cooperation with the Vegetable Farming Department.

Awards

2013

  • startsocial - national winner in the education category

2014

2015

2016

  • Winner - Google Impact Challenge
  • Werkstatt-N-Siegel - Sustainability Council of the Federal Government
  • Excellent place - UNESCO World Action Program Education for Sustainable Development

2017

2018

  • Project - UN Decade of Biodiversity
  • Project Sustainability Seal - Sustainability Council of the Federal Government
  • 2nd place - digitally committed

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b The Vegetable Farming Demie. In: in-form.de. Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture, accessed on May 23, 2019 .
  2. ↑ a b Svenja Morgener: Royal vegetable field. In: Potsdam's latest news. April 18, 2015, accessed May 23, 2019 .
  3. ↑ Monika Skolimowska: Primary school becomes vegetable cultivation. In: Saxon newspaper. May 17, 2019, accessed May 23, 2019 .
  4. ↑ SEND: network. In: Social Entrepreneurship Network Germany eV Accessed on May 22, 2019 .
  5. ↑ Alexander Buchmann: Lessons bear fruit. In: Saxon newspaper. May 22, 2019, accessed May 23, 2019 .
  6. ↑ Nicole Peters: Schoolchildren have fun in the fields. In: Rheinische Post Erkelenz. June 20, 2015, accessed May 23, 2019 .
  7. ↑ Crowdfunding: Vegetable farming demy - farming creates knowledge. In: startnext.com. March 2015, accessed May 23, 2019 .
  8. ↑ Vegetable agriculture. In: startsocial.de. Retrieved May 23, 2019 .
  9. ↑ Social Impact Start Scholarships: Vegetable Farming Demie. In: socialimpactstart.eu. May 16, 2014, accessed May 23, 2019 .
  10. ↑ Winner in April 2014: Vegetable farming. In: Foundation for Education and Society. 2014, accessed May 23, 2019 .
  11. ↑ VegetablesAckerdemie becomes "Excellent Place in the Land of Ideas". In: Potsdam Institute for Climate Research. October 15, 2014, accessed May 23, 2019 .
  12. ↑ Christoph Schmitz - Vegetable Farming Demie. In: Ashoka.org. 2015, accessed May 23, 2019 .
  13. ↑ Google Impact Challenge: € 10,000 for our AckerClips. In: GemüseAckerdemie.de. 2016, accessed May 23, 2019 .
  14. ↑ Vegetable agriculture - impact profile. In: Phineo.org. Retrieved May 23, 2019 .
  15. ↑ The Vegetable Farming Demie is “digitally committed”. Retrieved October 15, 2019 .