Food production and self-sustainability in Serbia
Serbia and the so-called “Western Balkans” region are agrarian areas of various sizes and formats. The current interest in food self-sufficiency is tied to a historical tradition that has been revitalised in recent years and enhanced by scientific processes embraced by the younger generation, which have made these principles visually more appealing and accessible. Current socio-political events have also new confrontations with the reality of our future food supply, and revealed that efforts at so-called greenwashing are becoming increasingly transparent.
Hodanje po zemlji (Walking by the Earth)
Walking by the Earth is an organisation based in Serbia that was founded in 2018. The founders are Filip Milinković and Marija Babić, partners and the parents of three daughters. They are passionate about sharing and developing their knowledge of sustainable living culture, regenerative practices, community living, and activism.
The organisation is living a sustainable way of life in a village on the foothills of Stara Gora in Serbia. They aspire to create new possibilities and inspire people to experience a different way of life through various projects that create sustainably, using seminars, workshops, events for activists who would like to volunteer in their community or on their clean-ups, planting trees, and the reforestation of devastated areas in natural surroundings. They create experiences and offer activities for educating and raising awareness about climate change and regenerative ways of life, transitioning from an urban to a rural lifestyle, sustainable housing, a low-waste lifestyle, gardening, pruning, food processing, organising events, and hosting.
Mamin Gaj (Mom’s Grove)
https://mamingaj.com/
The Mamin Gaj association aims to connect and promote regenerative practices in sustainable agriculture while providing a haven for creatives to find inspiration while working with nature. Rooted in concerns about global unsustainability, its founder Jelena Božić turned to permaculture as a solution, recognising it as an ethically driven design system that prioritises care for the Earth, people, and fair distribution. After completing the permaculture programme of the renowned Geoff Lawton in 2022, she began building a permaculture community in Serbia through online courses, workshops, and local initiatives like the “Mythical Tour for Women”. In 2023, Jelena’s project expanded significantly, registering Mamin Gaj as an association and participating in empowering seminars and online workshops. Throughout the year, she conducted various workshops and initiated land design efforts on the property. Notably, she secured funding to organise a successful biointensive gardening workshop and started designing permaculture projects for clients. The journey of Mamin Gaj embodies a commitment to community, sustainability, and the practical application of permaculture principles, with a vision of establishing an artist residency space and implementing impactful permaculture projects in the future.
Zeleno Doba
(The Green Age Association)
The Green Age Association – Centre for Sustainable Growth and Development was established in 2018 after a wonderful experience at the Veles permaculture farm in Slovenia, where the project leaders participated in a youth exchange within the “Yes to Sustainability” network. They are a group of people from different backgrounds and ages, with a shared desire and needs that encouraged them to create a space for exploring, empowering, and connecting individuals and communities striving for a sustainable way of life. Their mission is to live in harmony with the laws of nature.
Their activities and collaborations are based on three ethics: personal development, community care, and care for the Earth. Personal development means that every participant enhances their skills in areas of interest, they learn from each other, exchange roles, and grow together by supporting each other. Community care means respecting each others’ opinions and listening to each other. It also means involving everyone according to their abilities and believing in the common good. Care for the Earth manifests itself in preserving seeds and heirloom varieties by promoting and learning about regenerative practices through permaculture.
They passionately share and are further developing their knowledge of permaculture, regenerative agriculture, natural building, community living, various personal development methods, arts, theatre, dance, yoga, and so on. They nurture an interdisciplinary approach and through non-formal education tools reach people who are on a similar path.
They are active members of the “Yes to Sustainability” network (https://yestosustainability.org/), the ECOLISE network (https://www.ecolise.eu/), and the regional network “Zemljanke 2.0” (https://www.perforum.info/zemljanke-2-0/). They are building regional cooperation with groups in other Balkan countries, drawing from the traditions and ways in which people used to come together, enriching them with new knowledge about individual well-being, and aiming to create harmonious and balanced interpersonal relationships in natural surroundings.
Members: Nevena Savić, Eva Vitorović, Marina Ristić, Katarina Knežević-Nikolić, Ružica Janjić, Vanja Đorđević, Irena Radovanović, Jelena Danilović, Milan Dimoski
