Regenerative Vanua is a Not-for-Profit organisation registered in 2021 as Charitable Organisation under the Charitable Associations (Incorporations) Act [Cap 140] in Vanuatu.
Regenerative Vanua Aims to
Support resilient and climate smart rural communities through regenerative agritourism & food tourism, regenerative farming and food systems and regenerative landscapes.
Regenerative Vanua in collaboration with many partners have developed the first Regenerative Agritourism Standards globally to be recognised by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) to ensure the development of agritourism is resilient in the face of climate change and protects and promotes Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS). We are now working with regional partners and donors to apply these standards globally and it is such a significant achievement for Vanuatu to develop the first ever regenerative agritourism standards.
What is Regenerative?
Enhancing wellbeing through adaptation to climate changes is key to the regenerative movement. If the wellbeing of the people, communities and the land are improving then it is regenerative.
Everyone is familiar with sustainable tourism and sustainable agriculture or organic agriculture etc. which aims to minimise the damage caused from tourism or agriculture to the environment and people. But this is not enough, we are now in a climate crisis and its vital that we make sure that all activities we carry out on our land are adapted to climate change and support wellbeing. Regenerative goes further than sustainable because it ensures the diversity, quality of production, vitality and health of the soil, plants, animals and people improve together, it’s not about minimising damage of income earning activities it’s about building on our traditional Indigenous knowledge Systems (IKS) to improve the wellbeing of our people, communities, the land and ecosystems.
Regenerative goes further than sustainable because
- it has a clear focus on the fight against climate change
- a respect, recognition and acknowledgement of traditional Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS)
- a return to more localised and fair farming and food systems
- a respect for the land over just focusing on profit
- stands up against land alienation and supports land sovereignty
- seeks for soils, water cycles, vegetation and productivity to continuously improve instead of just maintaining the status
A regenerative approach ensures the diversity, quality, vitality and health of the soil, plants, animals and people also improve together.
Regenerative Agritourism
Until now, the main focus of sustainable tourism has been on minimising the negative effects of tourism.
Regenerative tourism goes further because it:
- focuses on the primary needs of the community
- contributes to the quality of life of local people
- helps communities and tourism sites continuously renew themselves.
Regenerative Agritourism is defined as having a primary focus on the storytelling of agro-ecosystems (and the products derived from them) that are regenerative and exhibit traditional cultural and heritage significance based on Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS).
A regenerative agritourism ambassador protects and promotes this knowledge to support in building the regenerative movement.
Award
Food Tourism and Agritourism Initiative wins an island innovation award for most transformational government sustainability initiative.
More details:
https://islandinnovation.co/