THE GRACE OF DOING — COOPERATIVA EL TAMISO — OCTOBER 12, 2014
09.10.14
“The creation in Burkina of a Ministry of Water, linked to that of the environment and tourism, is a sign of our desire to put problems clearly on the table, to find solutions.”
Thomas Sankara was the first free president of the former High Volta (between 1983 and 1987), an example of morality and hope for all of Africa, he built schools and hospitals in a few years, distributed vaccines, planted trees to stop desertification, redistributed land to farmers, banned infibulation and polygamy. He was killed under the current president Blaise Compaorè, with the complicity of France and the United States on October 15, 1987.
His famous (and perhaps fatal) speech on the immorality of having to pay public debt contracted in post-colonial times.
Under his leadership, Burkina, a very poor country, designed its development model based on organic agriculture, to the point that one of the most significant IFOAM (International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements) congresses was held there in those years.
We, from the El Tamiso Cooperative, can easily recognize ourselves in the attitude of those who, although starting from the most disparate situations, and from alternative and minority ideological positions, have “the will to pose problems clearly, to find solutions”.
Our roots lie in the Italian, Venetian and Paduan events of the 70s of the last century. Where you could dream and believe that the dream was followed by reality.
The tiring and exciting civil achievements of those years deserved to be translated into practice, starting precisely from agriculture and food, hitherto considered at best earthly forms of speculation and social control.
After 30 years, we can say that this was the case: today we talk more and more about agriculture, food, the environment and sustainability.
“El Tamiso”, our name and symbol, in the Venetian language, but also in Provençal and Catalan, is the sieve used in the kitchen to select the components of the flours, choosing what you need and what you want. And in fact, proposing and practicing new ways of understanding agriculture, food, work and social relations has been a lucid and convinced commitment every day.
A commitment that has received growing consensus (social and economic) and that, perhaps, in the current context of profound crisis in society represents a credible and not episodic response.
Certainly, we believe it, by now the entire Humanity, and each of us, is called to choose our future on a basis different from those of the past, credible and sustainable.
For all this reason, we decided to celebrate our 30th anniversary by offering the Community to which we belong an opportunity to analyze and reflect on these issues, calling an exceptional guest like Vandana Shiva, known worldwide for her commitment to Food Sovereignty, the contrast to the transgenic option (GMO) of multinational food companies, the logic of patenting and ownership of seeds and international “free” trade agreements.
Sunday morning in Bagnoli, as witnessed by Vanda Shiva, the “Bagnoli Charter” will be presented, which, in ideal continuity with the “Arcevia Charter 2013”, is intended to be an example of good practice for all local Venetian administrations that want to act concretely for a new model of development that places man, the environment and the landscape at the center.
Thomas Sankara was the first free president of the former High Volta (between 1983 and 1987), an example of morality and hope for all of Africa, he built schools and hospitals in a few years, distributed vaccines, planted trees to stop desertification, redistributed land to farmers, banned infibulation and polygamy. He was killed under the current president Blaise Compaorè, with the complicity of France and the United States on October 15, 1987.
His famous (and perhaps fatal) speech on the immorality of having to pay public debt contracted in post-colonial times.
Under his leadership, Burkina, a very poor country, designed its development model based on organic agriculture, to the point that one of the most significant IFOAM (International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements) congresses was held there in those years.
We, from the El Tamiso Cooperative, can easily recognize ourselves in the attitude of those who, although starting from the most disparate situations, and from alternative and minority ideological positions, have “the will to pose problems clearly, to find solutions”.
Our roots lie in the Italian, Venetian and Paduan events of the 70s of the last century. Where you could dream and believe that the dream was followed by reality.
The tiring and exciting civil achievements of those years deserved to be translated into practice, starting precisely from agriculture and food, hitherto considered at best earthly forms of speculation and social control.
After 30 years, we can say that this was the case: today we talk more and more about agriculture, food, the environment and sustainability.
“El Tamiso”, our name and symbol, in the Venetian language, but also in Provençal and Catalan, is the sieve used in the kitchen to select the components of the flours, choosing what you need and what you want. And in fact, proposing and practicing new ways of understanding agriculture, food, work and social relations has been a lucid and convinced commitment every day.
A commitment that has received growing consensus (social and economic) and that, perhaps, in the current context of profound crisis in society represents a credible and not episodic response.
Certainly, we believe it, by now the entire Humanity, and each of us, is called to choose our future on a basis different from those of the past, credible and sustainable.
For all this reason, we decided to celebrate our 30th anniversary by offering the Community to which we belong an opportunity to analyze and reflect on these issues, calling an exceptional guest like Vandana Shiva, known worldwide for her commitment to Food Sovereignty, the contrast to the transgenic option (GMO) of multinational food companies, the logic of patenting and ownership of seeds and international “free” trade agreements.
Sunday morning in Bagnoli, as witnessed by Vanda Shiva, the “Bagnoli Charter” will be presented, which, in ideal continuity with the “Arcevia Charter 2013”, is intended to be an example of good practice for all local Venetian administrations that want to act concretely for a new model of development that places man, the environment and the landscape at the center.
Programs, resources and documents related to Sunday can be found on this page.
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