Worldfield House for the Worldfield in Rothenklempenow
2000m² of soil! That is what each one of us on would have at disposal, if we would distribute the available arable Land evenly on the worlds' population. The Worldfield in Rothenklempenow takes this figure as starting point for a living open-air exhibition that presents the interlinks between our food, agriculture and the soil. The recently inaugurated "Worldfield House" - a multi functional construction made of straw balls, wood and clay - will extend the educational scope of our project.
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
No
No
Yes
As a representative of an organization, in partnership with other organisations
Name of the organisation(s): RCE Stettiner Haff - Regional Center of Education on Sustainability Stettiner Haff Type of organisation: registered association First name of representative: Tobias Last name of representative: Till Keye Gender: Male Nationality: Germany Function: Chairman Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Schlossstr. 2 Town: Rothenkempenow Postal code: 17321 Country: Germany Direct Tel:+49 1516 5650798 E-mail:weltacker@rce-stettinerhaff.eu Website:https://www.rce-stettinerhaff.eu
Name of the organisation(s): Höfegemeinschaft Pommern GmbH Type of organisation: For-profit company First name of representative: Heike Last name of representative: Kühner Gender: Female Nationality: Germany Function: Manager Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Dorfstraße 58 Town: Rothenklempenow Postal code: 17321 Country: Germany Direct Tel:+49 39744 559000 E-mail:info@hoefegemeinschaft-pommern.de Website:https://hoefegemeinschaft-pommern.de/startseite/
Name of the organisation(s): Bio Boden Genossenschaft Type of organisation: Cooperative First name of representative: Claudia Last name of representative: Alvino Gender: Female Nationality: Italy Function: Architect and Head of Construction Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: BioBoden Genossenschaft eG Town: Bochum Postal code: 44774 Country: Germany Direct Tel:+49 234 41470200 E-mail:claudia.alvino@bioboden.de Website:https://bioboden.de
The RCE Stettiner Haff is an association that wants to promote education on sustainability in the area of Mecklenburg Vorpommern. One of our projects is the "Globalfield (Weltacker) Rothenklempenow 2000m²" which started out in 2017. The Globalfield is an open-air exhibition that illustrates how the global farmland is currently used and how our individual consumption choices have an effect on the overall use of resources here and elsewhere in the world. Visitors gain a comprehensive understanding of our agricultural system by walking through the exhibition and participating in guided tours and workshops. Thanks to our partnership with the ecological agricultural enterprise of the Höfegemeinschaft Pommern and local food start-ups, we can translate the given information into real life examples. The aim is to also critically question at what point a conversion to organic farming alone might not be sufficient to overcome current challenges.
The newly inaugurated "Globalfield House" is the latest addition to our location. The RCE Stettiner Haff initiated the research and scholarship program "ResidenZ - Time for the Future," which lead, among other things, to the construction of the Globalfield House. This program, designed to support the launch of the UN Decade for Ecosystem Restoration, was awarded as an outstanding flagship project 2021 by the RCE Network. The goal of one of the three participants was to design and built an ecological construction with a high proportion of regionally sourced building materials. The building consists of a seminar room and a kitchen area, both meant to be used for educational purposes (workshops, talks, and meetings) as well as social gatherings.
Currently, our association is seeking funding for the project period 2023–2024. The financial support is to be utilized both for the running operation of the Globalfield as well as for the development and hosting of the Globalfield House as an event location for exchange and dialogue.
education for sustainable development
climate change
land use in agriculture
ecological building
regional and rural development
As part of the RCE network, our association is committed to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the UN. Accordingly, we aim to consider concepts of sustainability in all areas of our work. As a project centered around environmental education, the Globalfield Rothenklempenow wants to enable visitors to reflect on the effects of their own actions in the context of global production cycles. Through communication at eye level, young people and adults are equipped with the necessary knowledge to actively engage in the transformation of food production and agricultural systems.
But our efforts are not only limited to educational work and the care of the Globalfield according to ecological principles, they are also reflected in the infrastructure that we are building on site, with the new Globalfield House being a central point of reference. This house was built following principles of ecological construction and can be seen as an example of how traditional building techniques like the wooden truss can be combined with rather new approaches such as the use of straw bales. Clay and glass are other main components used in the construction. The wood was felled on site on the property of the Hofgemeinschaft Pommern and cut to size at the construction site itself. The straw bales used for the insulation were also harvested directly from the fields of the agricultural enterprise. As a result, a large portion of the required building materials were obtained locally, avoiding long transportation routes. In addition, many recycled elements were used and the entire project was designed with energy efficiency in mind.
We like to see this project as an example of how research, practice and benefit can successfully be combined. The result should also serve as a reference and inspiration for the public regarding alternative, environmentally-friendly construction methods. The construction experiences are includet within the exhibition.
The Globalfield House, in addition to its actual function as a kitchen and event space, was also intended to serve as a model for a specific construction method. As such, it was considered important to illustrate that ecological buildings can be modern, sophisticated, and aesthetically pleasing. People who have not studied the subject in detail may think of buildings made of clay and straw as primitive huts from ancient times. Yet by combining old methods with modern possibilities, one can create buildings that combine the best of both worlds without losing out in terms of visual appeal. On the contrary, we believe that our construction illustrates that precisely the combination of large modern elements, like a big window facade, and the "warm" and "natural" feeling of building materials such as wood and clay, convey an aesthetically pleasing overall impression. The building should also arouse positive emotions in the users, which at best translate into constructive approaches for a more sustainable use of our resources. The seminar room was designed to be bright and to provide a direct view of the Globalfield. This way, even during workshops or meetings, participants are always aware that they are in an educational environment. Products from the Globalfield will be used in the kitchen during workshops on healthy, ecological nutrition. In this way, agriculture can not only be discussed theoretically, but also tasted in the flesh. Furthermore, the building itself represents a story that can be told and linked to the theme of sustainability. It was amazing to see how often people approached us during the construction phase and wanted to know what was being built there. When one sees the beams of a half-timbered framework being installed, a roof made of logs being laid or a wall being plastered with slimy clay, this represents for many a departure from common practice and perhaps one would like to learn more about it.
We want our educational programs to reach as many people as possible, regardless of their social status and financial means. The exhibition itself is open to everyone free of charge and we try to cover most of the expenses for our educational offers through the subsidies we receive. Since the aspect of accessibility is a big issue in the countryside of east Germany we also cover the transportation costs for school groups that come to visit on school trips as part of their enviromental class programm.
Through recurring events such as the Mexico-Vorpommern Festival (A harvesting celebration connecting mexican and german cultural heritage) and other cultural happenings, we aim to promote diversity and exchange between cultures and people. Especially in economically isolated rural areas like ours, it seems important to us to promote a cosmopolitan view at the world. Being close to the polish border, to further promote cross-border exchange, the entire exhibition will be equipped with an audio guide that translates the content into Polish and English so that people who do not speak German can experience the exhibition. We have also observed that our project has not only brought together people from different social classes and cultural backgrounds, but has also proved to be a strong link between urban and rural areas. Since they usually have little insight into the production processes of their food, people from urban areas are showing an increasing interest in agriculture and visit projects like ours to reconnect with nature. Conversely, the encounter between urban and rural people creates chances for exchange and can influence the way they see each other respectively. In the course of this application, further examples will be given on how this kind of exchange can help to meet social challenges in a constructive way.
We believe that our effort and that of our partners in Rotheklempenow have revitalized the locality. Like many regions in eastern Germany, the community had to deal with many drastic changes after the German reunification. Demographic change, the disappearance of local structures and businesses are just some of the common phenomena. The RCE Stettiner Haff, together with the Höfegemeinschaft, have decisively influenced the town as a business and educational location - a development from which the local population has also benefited. Among other things, the RCE organized movie nights, theater performances, workshops and many other free events. The Globalfield itself, together with the farm store of the Höfegemeinschat, has become a social meeting place for people from the village.
With regard to the construction of the Globalfield House, the idea of citizen participation was an aspiration from the beginning. During the crucial construction phase of the exterior walls, a 2 week participatory construction site was organized. People who were interested in ecological clay construction could come forward, help with the construction and thus gain valuable knowledge and skills for their own projects. A close interaction with the public is essential for the continuity of our project, not only in terms of visitors, but also with regards to the volunteers who help every year with the horticultural maintenance of the exhibition. Through our inclusive attitude, we have been able to win over new people for our cause and empower individuals to become active as replicators in the sense of sustainability. Something as simple as conducting a workshop on old tobacco cultivation methods and their importance in the GDR, can lead to the realization that you possess knowledge that is relevant and in which people are genuinely interested. We like to think of education for sustainable development as an exchange of knowledge, where everyone can act both as a receiver and transmitter.
Globalfield as an educational Projekt:
Local
RCE Stettiner Haff: Implemented the Globalfield and is responsible for the educational communication.
Höfegemeinschaf Pommern: supported the initiative from early on providing land, seeds and equipment.
Comunity of Rothenklempenow: Provided political and public support for the Globalfield.
Uta Zahn: organic farmer who is responsible for the planning and cultivation of the exhibition.
Tlaxkalli GmbH: local food start-up which sponsors the corn plot on the Globalfield and with which the annual Mexico-Vorpommern festival and other educational events are realized.
Local Volunteers: help every year with the maintenance of the area as well as with the running of events
And many more...
National
Globalfield Network: Knowledge exchange.
RCE Network of the UN: The "Association of Regional Centers of Education (RCE) of the UN University in Germany" initiates and supports exchange, learning and transfer processes between the regions and other ESD networks.
Globalfield House -
Local
RCE Stettiner Haff: through the ResidenZ program, has had a decisive influence on the design of the building and has created its added value as an educational venue.
Malte von Viehbahn: Malte von Viehbahn: Participant of the ResidenZ Program. Formulated the research question that led to the construction of the building and carried out most of the structural work.
Höfegemeinschaft Pommern: provided equipment, maschines and materials.
National
Bioboden Genossenschaft: have provided the bulk of the funding for the construction. Claudia Alvino, the Bioboden architect responsible for the design of the properties, took charge of the site management.
Arcana construction company Gmbh: Used their community outreach to draw people's attention to the participatory building site. The managing director, Otto Rogge, also served as a mentor and advisor.
Since a listing of all representatives who are involved in the Globalfield project and the educational efforts of the RCE Stettiner Haff would exceed the available number of characters, we will limit ourselves to answering the question in relation to the construction of the Globalfield House. For a more complete insight into this matter, please refer to the attached documents. The realization of the project involved an interesting confluence of stakeholders who, in a more conventional context, would have had few overlaps between their respective fields of work. People from the construction business (Malte von Viehbahnen) worked closely with the agricultural branch (Heike Kühner) to obtain the raw materials that serve as building materials; professional architects (Claudia Alvino) had to get involved with new methods when planning with ecological building materials (Malte von Viehbahnen); the craftsmen responsible for the structural execution acted at the same time as educational referees (Pablo Melotta) who lectured about the ecological advantages of the construction method. Just to name a few examples of how representatives of different fields interacted with each other. The added value of this interaction on the final result can be seen in a variety of ways:
-Without the RCE Stettiner Haff and the impulse of Malte von Viehbahnen as a participant in the ResidenZ program, the building would have been constructed in a conventional way.
-Without the support of the Höfegemeinschaft Pommern, it would not have been possible to obtain the necessary building materials regionally on site, which in turn would have increased the overall CO2 emissions of the construction.
-The Bioboden Genossenschaft aidet the financial support.
-The collaboration of different stakeholders led to a house that is ment to be used collectively.
-The project further strengthened the cooperation between all the stakeholders.
As an out-of-school learning space, the Globalfield aims to take teaching from the classroom to the outdoors, a practice that childhood researchers believe would benefit young people's learning in many ways. The understanding of natural cycles cannot only be taught theoretically; it should also be felt and observed. In order to awaken an interest in the production circumstances of our vegetables, our milk or our meat, it is indispensable to see these things in real life. Our exhibition offers ideal conditions for this as it represents a multi-sensory experience with which one can interact.
We opted for an ecological construction approach for the Globalfield House, because mainstream construction methods usually do not take their ecological impact into account. The concrete industry alone is responsible for up to 8% of the world's CO2 emissions. By using regrown regional raw materials, we shortened the transport routes and reduced the ecological footprint of the building. The insulation with straw bales, the planted roof and the orientation of the windows, had the goal of making the house as energy-efficient as possible.
The concept of the Globalfield as a space for learning is freely transferable, as it only requires an appropriate area and enthusiastic people to implement it. The Globalfield Network, consisting of all current Globalfield sites, is constantly welcoming new locations and supporting them with knowledge and material. The signboards and educational stations that form the exhibition are shared by the members, as are the educational methods and concepts. Over the years, this has created partner fields in many countries within Europe and beyond.
The educational program "Residency - Time for Future", which was decisive for the realization of the Globalfield House, will be applied this year to a partner project in Portugal, the "Jardim do Mira". The main idea behind the program was to link young people with innovative ideas to the countryside, a proposal that is also coherent for communities in rural Portugal and elsewhere.
With regard to the building itself, it is difficult to say whether such a project can be replicated in the same way, since we were dealing with a specific interplay of different actors involved in the construction. The participatory construction site, mentioned earlier in this application, was primarily attended by people interested in learning skills to apply to their own construction projects. One could therefore argue that the construction of the building itself was meant to encourage individuals to replicate the corresponding methods.
Our answer to this question will be limited again to the methods that had a direct impact on the realization of the Globalfield House. Complementary processes which were only indirectly connected with the construction, are not mentioned here. First, the approach of the ResidenZ Program is to be outlined, as this influenced decisively the building project in its final form. The goal of this innovative scholarship program was to enable the urgently needed transformation through local solutions. Companies, communities or initiatives were provided with a 'residenZ', scholarship holder. This residenZ was filled in advance through a call for applications. The applicants applied for topics like regenerative agriculture or education for sustainable development. One of the participants, Malte von Viehbahn, explored how a new building could be constructed on site in a consistently ecollogical manner at low cost. The question was open-ended, as it was not possible to predict whether the project could succesfully be realized. The development can be divided into 3 phases:
1. research & planning: establishing the focus of the residency, linking stakeholders, funding and authorization procedures.
2. construction: practical execution of all the measures needed for the construction including the participatory construction site and accompanying public talks and events.
3. Completion of construction, final report and start of concept implementation for the new building. This is the phase we are currently in. The aim is now to collectively drive forward the vision of Rothenklempenow as a flagship on topics of sustainability together with relevant stakeholders. More on this can be read in the final question of this application.
-Food and agriculture/climate change:
The degradation of our soils; the loss of biodiversity in our fields; water scarcity in the wake of the climate crisis; the challenges facing our agriculture and therefore our food system are numerous and complex. There are no simple solutions in this interwoven system; these issues can only be addressed through the interplay of different resolute responses. Access to education that teaches people how their consumption choices affect the global status quo appears to us to be a critical component in addressing these challenges.
-The Resurgence of Authoritarian and Populist Movements:
In recent decades, anti-democratic tendencies have been on the rise in many of the "old" western democracies. In the course of social change, a growing part of society feels economically marginalized and excluded from the political discourse. Under this impression, many are becoming increasingly receptive to populist attitudes that place the blame on the state, democratic organs and parts of pluralistic society, a tendency that can unfortunately also be observed in our region. In our work, we want to advocate for a strong civil society that does not exclude anyone on the basis of discrimination and upholds basic democratic values. This approach is to be reflected and recognized in the events we organize. Just to give an example, on one of our cinema evenings, we screened a documentary about the journey of a young person who fled from Syria to Germany. Since the protagonist and other former refugees took part in the event, it offered a great opportunity for an open dialogue with the residents of the community of Rothenklempenow, where different experiences could be respectfully shared. We believe that this immediate exchange is the best way to counter prejudices and fears.
On August 27, 2022, during the Mexico-Vorpommern festivities, the Globalfield House was presented to a wider public for the first time. Roughly two years after the initiation of the project, the final touches were added in September of last year and it can now finally be used for our educational purposes in the upcoming season. Now the main task is to successfully integrate the building into the overall concept of Rothenklempenow as a center of education and exchange dedicated to the sustainability movement. In order to achieve this, the various stakeholders who have established themselves in the area in recent years must launch a campaign in which their respective focal points are summarized in a common vision for the region. The RCE Stettiner Haff, as an educational association, assumes the role of mediator, who collects the respective offers of our partners and assists them on site. Our partners are, among others: the Höfegemeinschaft Pommern, which would like to establish their farms as experiential places of agriculture; Rewilding Oder Delta, with whom joint events on the topic of nature conservation are to be organized; Arbeit und Leben e.V., which promotes events with cultural and civic value. Furthermore, we want to cooperate with external educational speakers and a variaty of additional initiatives and people who can convey ecological ideas.
The Globalfield remains the connecting link between all these ventures. In the 2023 season, we would like to once again offer our visitors a wide range of educational opportunities and implement new projects in conjunction with tried-and-tested concepts. In addition to school classes, we would also like to reach more tourists who are interested in nature with our exhibition. We attach to our submission the project description and financial plan of the Globalfield for 2023 aswel as the report for 2022. These have been translated from german via translation app.
As an environmental education project, the RCE Stettiner Haff and the Globalfield Rothenklempenow are committed to the goals and principles of education for Sustainable Development. We provide our visitors with the knowledge and skills they need to reflect on their own consumtion behaviour and develop individual, environmentally conscious lifestyles. This is particularly valuable for young people, as teachers in schools often lack the necessary expertise to credibly communicate the need for a more sustainable society and economy within the classroom.
