Given the practice-oriented and farmer-centred AFaktive approach, the collaboration with the project farms encompasses different steps to ensure a water efficient and farm-adapted agroforestry system.
Typically, in a first “scoping meeting”, the AFaktive team discusses with the famers the characteristics of the farm and its water vulnerabilities (e.g. field prone to erosion, drought, flooding, etc.). With a so-called “dreams and choices meeting”, the farmers express their wishes for the coming agroforestry system. This concerns the relief of the water vulnerabilities previously identified, but also the value chains and therefore the profitability of the agroforestry system to be installed. A “water meeting” focuses on the agroforestry system as a tool for water management and might involve local (water) authorities or municipality representatives. In fact, settlements in rural areas are often influenced by the agricultural fields surrounding them and by their land use practices, especially concerning water balance for instance during extreme weather events.
On the basis of the discussion with the farmers, the AFaktive team develops a so-called “Agroforestry and Water Management plan” (AWM plan). For the Dutch farm of Diessens Broek, this process took place last year. In December, AFaktive partners FSG and Waterschap de Dommel officially handed over the finished AWM plan to farm managers Anouk and Lucien (s. photo).
During a special winter meeting, the project team discussed the final plan with Anouk and Lucien one more time, went through the coming planting season and continued the planning for the integration of water management on the farm. This last part is in fact a long-term process because it is also influenced by outside factors.
In order to measure the actual impact of the agroforestry system on the water balance of the farm, last week, sensors were installed (s. article). Stay tuned to see the results at the Diessens Broek farm!