Purpose
Project Wadi Attir, an initiative of a Bedouin community in the Negev, seeks to develop and demonstrate a model for sustainable, community-based organic farming enterprise, adapted to a desert environment. It is designed to combine Bedouin aspirations, values and experience, with sustainability principles and cutting edge approaches to renewable energy production, resource recycling and arid land stewardship. The project was initiated in order to showcase a breakthrough approach to environmentally sound sustainable development which could impact the Middle East region as well as other parts of the world.
Who is involved
The project is a joint initiative of the Hura Municipal Council, the governing body of Hura, one of seven Bedouin towns in the Negev, and the Sustainability Laboratory, a US-based non-profit whose purpose is to spearhead the development of breakthrough sustainability practices. Since its inception in early 2008, the project has attracted a significant group of partners, representing key sectors of Israeli society, making it a unique, exciting and diverse undertaking. Participating partners include the Blaustein Institute for Desert Research of the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU); the Jewish National Fund (JNF); and the Negev Institute for Peace and Development Strategies, (NISPED). Other supporting organizations include Kibbutz Kramim; AMAL Educational Network; ZenithSolar and NETAFIM, the world leader in micro irrigation systems. About 40 people, mostly Bedouin, from a diversity of backgrounds, are currently working on various aspects of the project.
Unique Aspects
Project Wadi Attir is unique on a number of fronts. First, it has brought together a new generation of visionary, entrepreneurial Bedouins from different communities who have emerged as strong local leaders. Second, these leaders include Bedouin women that have been involved in the project from the outset, some of whom have joined as founding members of the cooperative. Third, significant time and effort were invested in establishing and maintaining an inclusive community-based approach to conceiving and designing the project, involving in the process a diverse group of individuals and resources from within and outside the community. Fourth, the project represents a creative, whole system approach to process design and project development which addresses multiple goals, conditions, requirements, and issues comprehensively and simultaneously. Finally, the entire process is guided by a set of sustainability principles developed by the Sustainability Laboratory. These are reflected in a formal declaration of principles developed by the participants in the project.
The combination of these important dimensions has enabled project Wadi Attir to catalyze an unprecedented level of collaboration, cooperation, and commitment. As a result, the project has been moving ahead faster than thought possible.
Site and Functions
The Project site is located on 150 acres of land near the Town of Hura about 10 miles northeast of Beer Sheva. The core of the enterprise will involve raising several hundred goats and sheep, and the production of organic meat and dairy products. In addition, a significant portion of the farm will be dedicated to the cultivation of a wide variety of medicinal plants that have been valued by generations of Bedouins for their health benefits. The medicinal plant operation will showcase and preserve Bedouin knowledge of natural remedies and will produce a line of healing and body care products.
Project Wadi Attir is also re-introducing the production of highly nutritious, desert hardy, indigenous vegetables which once formed an important part of the Bedouin diet. In addition to growing such native vegetables on the site, a seed bank will be created and a women-led program will be launched to help spread the cultivation of vegetable gardens on family managed plots.
Integrated Systems and Implementation of Sustainability Principles
Project Wadi Attir is designed to realize essential sustainability principles in its approach to natural, human, social, manufactured and financial resources. This means that the project is committed to producing positive economic results, enriching the life and well being of the community, ensuring the highest resource productivity, enhancing local biodiversity, and preventing adverse impacts on the environment.
To minimize its ecological footprint and to ensure the most efficient use of resources, a basic concept of Project Wadi Attir is that byproducts of one activity will be available as resources for another activity through an integrated, closed loop system of use, reuse, and recycling. The project will aim for carbon neutrality by minimizing harmful emissions and through a program of extensive planting which will also be designed to increase the nitrogen content of the soil.
All of the structures in Project Wadi Attir will incorporate the principles and technologies appropriate to arid zone green building design. These include energy conservation and material conservation, passive cooling and heating, natural lighting, and highly efficient electrical systems.
State-of-the-art methods of agro-forestry and soil enrichment will be employed to provide high yield pastures and enhance biodiversity. The herd will feed on locally grown organic fodder and humane treatment will be central to the livestock operation. Animal manure will be part of a composting program that will produce fertilizer for grazing, plant and tree growing areas and sheep’s wool will be processed for use in woven craft items. Recycled waste water will be the primary source of water to the site. It will be supplied through a new water treatment facility in the vicinity. Electrical power will be produced by concentrated photovoltaic solar collectors. Bio-gas will be produced onsite by decomposing manure and food waste in digesters and capturing methane for use as fuel. Advanced drip irrigation systems will be employed throughout the farm. Waste water generated onsite will be purified for reuse utilizing constructed wetlands. Electricity generated by solar energy will also be a source of revenue. All of the electricity produced on the site will be fed into the national energy grid and will be purchased by the state utility company at a premium rate. This revenue will offset a large amount of the project’s ongoing energy costs.
Community
Project Wadi Attir has recently been established as the first ever Bedouin agricultural cooperative. The not-for-profit cooperative, which will own and operate Project Wadi Attir, is expected to initially employ approximately 30 people. Employment for women and local capacity building is a primary goal of the project. The site will also function as a research and learning center and as an ongoing source of empowerment and training for surrounding communities. A visitor’s center will include an exhibition area, a restaurant and gift shop to promote Bedouin hospitality, culture, local crafts, and the farm’s agricultural products. Project Wadi Attir will also host educational programs for students from throughout the region.
Expected Outcomes
Expected outcomes of project Wadi Attir:
- A successful, transferable, and scalable, operating model for sustainable desert agricultural enterprise.
- A thriving, economically sound, expanding cooperative.
- A means of local job creation including significant occupation for women.
- An active training center for empowerment and capacity building of neighboring Bedouin communities and sustainability education for students from throughout the region.
- A lively visitor center and attractive tourist destination.
Status and Timeline
The project is in an advanced stage of the planning, design and early implementation phase. Business plans for each of the revenue centers are underway and are expected to be completed by year end 2009. The statutory process is proceeding intensively and the project plan has already been accepted for filing by the regional planning authority. Final approval is expected by year end 2009. Full implementation is expected to commence in 2010 and will continue in a series of planned stages over the next three to four years.
Measures of Success and Evaluation Process
The project team is currently working with a group of researchers at Ben-Gurion University to develop a long term, post-implementation, evaluation research proposal. This research effort will examine and monitor all key aspects of the project: the approach; the technologies; the community dimensions; the capacity building and educational programs; as well as environmental and economic performance. The evaluation process will be carried out over a number of years, in collaboration with the Regional Center for research and Development of the Bedouins.
PARTNERS
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Project Wadi Attir is a joint initiative of the Hura Municipal Council
and the Sustainability Laboratory
Participating partners include the Blaustein Institute for Desert Research of the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, (BGU); the Jewish National Fund (JNF); and the Negev Institute for Peace and Development Strategies, (NISPED). Other supporting organizations include the Arab-Jewish Center for Equality, Empowerment and Cooperation (AJEEC); Kibbutz Kramim; AMAL educational Network; and NETAFIM.
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