Rural development: tricks in eternal adverse wind

Varga, Géza

Keywords: sustainability, area-specific agriculture, food production public good, ecovillage

The idea of an ecological project in Galgahévíz was born in the second half of the eighties, and was realised gradually, starting in 1989. The very first step was organising an open college in the village, whereby local inhabitants were introduced to the concept of a sustainable future. The Galgafarm First Organic Agricultural Cooperative was then established. Since 1998, the cooperative has been a profitable venture and has enabled 40-45 families to make their living. Galgafarm is engaged in area-specific agriculture. Its food processing plants allow 50-60 families to feed themselves, while both unprocessed and processed products being also commercially sold. The ecovillage being built in Galgahévíz is an important living and community space. All activities in the life of the ecovillage are designed to be environmentally compatible, especially through the utilisation of solar energy to the highest possible degree and through the reduction of energy consumption, in order to reduce the inhabitants’ ecological footprint. All this is being done in a setting where conditions are not favourable for realising sustainability on a local level.

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