Commonland

At the heart of the world's biggest problems, landscape degradation affects up to a third of the global population. It is a major contributor to climate change, biodiversity loss, and food and water shortages.❤️🩹 At Commonland, we believe healthy landscapes are the cornerstone of a healthy planet. Nature's wellbeing is fundamental to our own wellbeing and prosperity - and that of all other species. This is why all of our efforts go to restoring landscapes AT SCALE!📏🏞️ Are you curious about what we do? Then dive into our 2023 #annualreport 🔗Find the download link here: https://lnkd.in/eYpVUqTp

Did you know that only 15 cm of healthy topsoil keeps you alive? ❓ The soil beneath our feet is more than just 'dirt'. It's a living, breathing mass of beings composed of different layers, each contributing to our ability to grow food, drink clean water, and enjoy healthy ecosystems. These are the layers of soil explained: 1. Organic Layer: Rich in decomposed plant material, such as leaves and organic matter. Also a habitat for beneficial soil organisms! 🪱 2. Topsoil: This is where most of the soil's nutrients and organic matter are found. It’s the most fertile layer, essential for plant growth. Without healthy topsoil, we can't grow healthy food. 🌾 4. Subsoil: Acts as a reservoir for minerals and nutrients that leach down from the topsoil, helping sustain plants by providing additional nutrients and aiding in water retention. 💧 5. Parent Material: Made up of larger, weathered rock fragments and minerals, this layer gradually breaks down to form soil. 6. Bedrock: It plays a crucial role in groundwater management and protection. It acts as a natural barrier, preventing groundwater from seeping into foundations and causing potential water damage. 🪨 The "dirt" beneath our feet is a wondrous thing and essential for all life on Earth. Let's protect and restore it! #soilhealth #soilscience #landscaperestoration #climateaction

We need your help to shape the future of holistic landscape restoration! 🌍 We’re on a mission to understand what matters most to you when it comes to landscape restoration and how Commonland resonates with your values. Share your honest thoughts in our quick, anonymous survey. Your insights help us create better resources and content that truly speak to your needs and interests 💚 🔗 Follow this link to find the survey: https://ow.ly/paSA50T1gFQ #ClimateAction #noplanetB #CommunitySurvey #HolisticLandscapeRestoration

🌍🚀 While this astronaut is blissfully enjoying his "nature" on the Moon, Earth is in dire need of our help! According to the Guardian, scientists are planning to build a lunar biorepository to safeguard Earth’s species. Is there anything more telling of how critical our biodiversity crisis has become!? ⚠️ 🌘 This project aims to cryopreserve biological samples of our planet’s most important and at-risk creatures located on the moon’s permanently shadowed craters, where natural cold spots can keep them frozen without effort. This ambitious idea underscores the severity of the threats to our planet's biodiversity and the lengths we (apparently) must go to protect it... At Commonland, we say: Yes, the moon’s cold craters might be ideal for preserving life, but nothing beats a thriving, healthy planet Earth! 🌱✨ Join us in advocating for immediate restoration efforts right here on Earth. Let’s act before we need a backup plan millions of miles away! 🌍💚 Interested in learning more? Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/ewGmK45W Image credit: we generated this image using Canva's AI Image Generator. #NoPlanetB #NatureRestoration #Biodiversity #ClimateAction #holisticlandscaperestoration

SUMMER'S NOT OVER YET - YOU'VE STILL GOT TIME TO READ SOME CRACKING SUSTAINABILITY BOOKS! 📚☀️ We’ve curated a list of books ideal for your end of summer beach days 🏖️ From exploring a new vocabulary to help you navigate your emotions around ecological crisis, to transforming trauma into caring for the Earth, these books will give you insights, inspiration, and a call to action! 🙌 Shoutout to the authors: Glenn Albrecht, James Bridle, Richard Powers, Ben Goldsmith, and Paul Hawken. Discover the other 2 recommendations here! 👉 https://lnkd.in/eUkGYQZP #regeneration #knowledge #readinglist #books #selfdevelopment

Is anyone else attending the Regenerative Agriculture Summit in Amsterdam?💡 We're excited to share that our new Landscape Partnerships Lead - Europe, Chantal van Ham will be moderating a fireside chat with Gijs Schilthuis, from the European Commission on 5th September, and our Content and Advocacy Lead, Lily M., will be facilitating the food track on 4th September. We are keen to connect with others attending – comment below or drop us a message at [email protected] if you’ll be there and would like to meet up! Regenerative Agriculture Summit Series

The Mulloon Institute is a not-for-profit research, education, and advocacy organisation on a mission to make sustainable agriculture and land regeneration a reality. They work magic in restoring the healthy movement, storage, and cycling of water in landscapes, whether on a single property or across entire catchments. They have created a series of animations to support public understanding of the principles of landscape rehydration and restoration. Each 2-minute video is packed with gorgeous illustrations and easy-to-understand explanations. They're perfect for anyone curious about how to keep our land and water thriving. The full series includes: 1. Solar Energy: How plants and cycling water manage the energy of the sun. ☀️ 2. The Small Water Cycle. 💦 3. Erosion and Deposition: How water, powered by gravity, shapes our landscapes. 4. Surface Roughness: Why vegetation is key to slowing water’s path. 5. Soil Infiltration: Managing the soil surface to retain soil moisture. Share with any friend seeking to understand more about why restoring our landscapes is important! 🔗 Link to their YouTube channel: https://lnkd.in/eQMB4_zb Shoutout to the creators: 🌈 Timothy Lee, David Lobb, Justin Hewitson, Peter Hazell, Laura Fisher, Tam Connor, Erin Healy, Bill McAlister, Sam Skeat, Kelly Thorburn & Tony Wells.

💥 Don't miss our upcoming #EUgreenweek webinar TOMORROW! As temperatures rise, urbanisation expands, and monoculture farming persists, our continent’s water resources face unprecedented strain. From droughts in Italy and Spain to floods in the North, we need comprehensive, collaborative solutions. No single entity can tackle these challenges alone. During this event, organised as part of EU Green Week with the European Commission, we’ll explore how multistakeholder partnerships can offer a holistic approach, involving the expertise and innovation of governments, NGOs, businesses, and communities, to safeguard water resilience in Europe for future generations. You will hear from experts Elvira Marín Irigaray and Sarah Prosser who are involved in landscape partnerships already making an impact in Spain and Ireland. Join our event to discover their innovative solutions and learn how we can collectively take action for Europe’s water security! 🔍 🇪🇺 🗓 Date: Wednesday 21 August 2024 🕒 Time: 14:00 - 15:30 (CEST) 🔗 Register now via: https://lnkd.in/e5u33W28 #WaterResilience #EUGreenWeek #LandscapePartnerships #4Returns

Do you work in nature or landscape restoration? Then we want to hear from you! 🌿📣 We're launching a VERY short survey to find out which topics and words resonate most with you, so we can create content that you enjoy more. We want to know: - What would you call yourself? A restoration practitioner, a changemaker, a weaver - or something else? - What land-based words do you normally use? Landscape? Ecosystem? Bioregion? Land - or another term? - And a few other bits and bobs! Give us 2 mins of your time - and we'll give you some cracking content that speaks your language! Thank you for being a crucial part of Commonland's content - we're excited to hear from you 🎉 🔗FILL IN the survey here: https://lnkd.in/egB9vgP6 #naturerestoration #sustainability #landscaperestoration #content #storytelling

Our weekly food for thought: Do you think how we define nature affects our relationship to it? 💭 “Nature,” the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) says, is “the phenomenon of the physical world collectively; esp plants, animals and other features and products of the earth itself, as opposed to humans and human creations”. What's striking about this definition to us here at Commonland is the clear distinction between nature and humans. According to the OED, nature is separate from humans. But, as a recent The Guardian piece explores, an increasing movement of organisations and people are campaigning to reshape our understanding to include humans as PART OF, rather than separate from, nature. The article highlights how environmental activist Frieda Gormley has teamed up with Lawyers for Nature to campaign for a more inclusive definition. She thinks redefining this single word could transform our relationship with the planet. Gormley notes: “If we want people to protect nature then they need to feel a connection to nature.” Gormley's fight reminds us of the ego > eco concept by Steffen Lehmann, a concept that underpins our work as we fight to restore landscapes, and shift human systems towards being more nature-inclusive. Others, like Kate Soper, add a different but complementary perspective. In her recent book "Post-Growth Living", Soper argues that acknowledging human exceptionalism - our unique human qualities - can, in fact, go hand in hand with caring for other species and the Earth. Soper highlights that human's (potentially) unique ability to feel empathy and compassion for other species is precisely what could help us to reconnect with nature and engage in more regenerative lifestyles. 🗯️ What do you think? Does how we define nature shape how we relate to it? Do we need to rethink our definition of nature to create a more regenerative future? Tell us in the comments below!⬇️ Check out the original article here: https://lnkd.in/eDScGWDX Oxford University Press University of Oxford