DO-NOTHING FARMING
SOILSOUL PROJECT
Regeneration begins with citizens’ hands, hearts, and imagination.
Working across Italy, Spain, and Portugal, SOILSOUL combines soil-literacy education, natural farming practice, and artistic methodology.
WHAT SOILSOUL IS
Soil is not merely a resource but a living system that sustains food production, biodiversity, climate balance, and cultural heritage. Across Europe, however, soil is increasingly threatened by erosion, pollution, and disconnection from everyday life.
SOILSOUL responds to this challenge by reconnecting people with living soil through creativity, education, and regenerative action — combining art, natural farming practices, and civic participation to strengthen soil literacy and community resilience across Italy, Spain, and Portugal.
The project seeks to empower local communities — especially young people and rural communities — to understand, value, and regenerate the land beneath their feet, through interdisciplinary learning, replicable tools, and transnational collaboration.
SOIL STORIES
From February through October 2026, three interconnected strands engage communities across Italy, Spain, and Portugal:
Soil Stories workshops
Exploring memories, emotions, and knowledge linked to soil and land through storytelling, drawing, and hands-on observation. These workshops blend soil-literacy education with artistic expression, fostering emotional connection alongside ecological understanding.
Living Soil Actions
Translate learning into practice through small, replicable ecological interventions such as seed-ball reforestation, community gardens, and humus creation. Experience how simple nature-based actions can restore degraded soils and contribute to climate resilience.
The Soilsoul guide
Art and Ecology for Living Soil, a practical publication gathering methods, tools, and stories to support replication across Europe.
WHO IT’S FOR AND WHAT CHANGES
SOILSOUL is inclusive and intergenerational, with particular attention to young people, rural communities, and groups with fewer opportunities. Workshops and public events create accessible spaces where art, ecology, and civic action intersect.
By the project’s end, three pilot communities will have implemented visible soil-regeneration actions, while hundreds more will be engaged online through shared stories and creative campaigns. By bridging soil science and creative culture, SOILSOUL contributes to the EU Soil Mission by turning awareness into collective care.
THE CONSORTIUM
SOILSOUL is led by three organisations who each bring a distinct practice to the collaboration.
Natural Farming Center APS (Italy)
NGO dedicated to natural farming, soil regeneration and community learning, with practical farming hub in central Italy at Natural Farm Shizen.
ARTE.M (Portugal)
Cultural association promoting artistic and cultural practices rooted in place:
artistic education, creative collaboration, and community.
FOCO (Spain)
https://www.focoeuropa.com/nos/
NGO specialized in EU-funded cultural projects, theatrical methodologies, and sustainable edu: storytelling and social communication.
EVENTS
May 2, 2026
Open Day alla fattoria naturale Shizen
PROGRMMA
10:00 incontro in fattoria
10:30 visita approfondita della fattoria con Kutluhan
12:30 pranzo condiviso (ognuno porta qualcosa)
14:30 l'importanza della rigenerazione del suolo
Dalle 17:00 in poi, per un numero ristretto di persone, sarà inoltre possibile partecipare al primo degli incontri evolutivi che si terranno a Shizen nell'arco del 2026. Si tratta di uno spazio di condivisione di esperienze personali, basato sull’ascolto e il rispetto reciproco, in cui il gruppo diventa strumento per esplorare e supportare l’evoluzione spirituale dell’individuo.
February 13-15, 2026
The Entrudanças gathering, held in Beja and Castro Verde (Portugal), brought together the SoilTribes consortium and the SoilSoul partners in our first in-person exchange, which served as the starting point of the project. Luca and Kutluhan from NFC, Anna from ARTE.M, and María from FOCO represented the Soil Soul project, took part in various presentations and meetings, and laid the foundations for the work ahead in the coming months.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Executive Agency (REA). Neither the European Union nor the European Research Executive Agency (REA) can be held responsible for them.
