{"id":327,"date":"2021-11-01T15:20:04","date_gmt":"2021-11-01T15:20:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wp.lancs.ac.uk\/restoringafricangrazing\/?page_id=327"},"modified":"2021-12-01T10:48:42","modified_gmt":"2021-12-01T10:48:42","slug":"blogs","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/wp.lancs.ac.uk\/restoringafricangrazing\/blogs\/","title":{"rendered":"Blogs"},"content":{"rendered":"

1st December 2021<\/strong><\/p>\n

A ReDEAL Film Showing: The power of African soils to determine our shared future<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

On the 16th November 2021 Team ReDEAL had the privileged opportunity to premier their film, showcasing work that has taken place over the last three years under the BBSRC funded project. The film showing took place at Lancaster University on a cold autumn evening and the event held a spot in the Economic and Social Research Council\u2019s Festival of Social Science. Open to all, the evening was eagerly anticipated by both attendees and participants.<\/p>\n

The event was run brilliantly by local students from Lancaster secondary schools. These students were eager to learn more about Africa and the inter-relationships between soils and climate change but also to express their opinions on Project ReDEAL and what it means for their future.\u00a0<\/span>The evening began with an introduction from Robin Kalis who talked through Project ReDEAL\u2019s aims and objectives, providing a background to the project for those who were unfamiliar with it. This included an overview of the project\u2019s main aim to help farming communities reverse the degradation of grasslands in the highlands of Kenya. Additionally, Robin alluded to the benefits of restoring degraded grasslands including improving livestock productivity, food security and ecosystem conservation. This was followed up with a brief outline of the evening\u2019s activities by Daniel Raymond who proceeded to introduce the rest of his colleagues.<\/p>\n

All was quiet in the Lancaster Environment Centre Biology Lecture Theatre when the captivating film was showcased. Insights were gained from Kenyan farmers local to the project sites on their perception of soil degradation, potential solutions and how their land has changed over time. Some of the project researchers were also present in the film depicting the finer project details and emphasising the necessity of bottom up restoration solutions.<\/p>\n

Following the film, the students interrogated the researchers. Questions were raised covering a diversity of topics including: the wider implementation of the restoration solutions; logistical challenges relating to the COVID-19 Pandemic and cultural barriers to the solutions. The students held the attention of the audience through careful and considered questioning which proved to be very interesting to watch.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The event was wrapped up with a selection of canap\u00e9s and the opportunity to chat with the researchers over tea and coffee. At Team ReDEAL we were incredibly impressed with the enthusiasm and passion of the students who critically questioned the researchers. The interviews and remarks from the students provided an eye-opening opportunity to understand the thoughts and opinions of the younger generation but also the opportunity to assess the future of Project ReDEAL.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Following on from the success of the ReDEAL film showing, we’d like to gather more opinions on our project and ideas on how we can reach out to the younger generation who will largely be responsible for continuing with the work encapsulated in Project ReDEAL. We welcome ideas on what we could do differently, how we can engage future generations in positive environmental action and how we can address some of the challenges raised by our students.<\/p>\n

Take at the film we showed at our event here:<\/p>\n