Buy to Protect

Its never easy to explain in a few words something that it means so much to us, right? In the next hours I will be here, in my computer, trying to transform emotions in letters. I will try my best!

I have this calling to help in someway and I can't take out of my heart the question, “What can I do? How can I find a way to help that could be possible for me?" or "How is it possible that this country is not doing  anything really meaningful and big to protect people, houses and forests? How it is possible that people die trying to escape from a fire or any other predicteble natural disorder, in the first place? There must be something we could do to prevent fires, desertification, intensive agriculture, exploitation of people, animals and natural resources!! For me to regenerate the land, and do something that could stop the Industrial eucalyptus and pine plantations are the first steps of so many others! There must be something very simple we could do to protect all the big and virgin lands that the heirs of the old people are selling, and make them see that its not only eucalyptus that could generate profits, and that there is an alternative way to that! There must be a way, somehow, that could be an example and also an opportunity so the farmers can saw that there is another and much better way! That there is possible to respect nature, people and take all the  income they need from their properties. 

All these questions keep living on me for so much time! They are always in me in this very moment, wile I am doing daily activities.

I decided to move from the big city (Lisbon) and try a community living in the country side, not only to live the experience of sharing a life with other mind-liked people, and because I desire this for about all my life, but mainly because I wish to take care of the earth and people, plant my food, and learn the language of trees, and plants, and animals. I wanted to learn how to live not only In Nature, but within Nature!

So, one day, about 3 or 4 months after I arrived to the country side, I couldn't sleep, and woke up earlier than I used to. I came to the kitchen to make some tee and I notest that the sun was about to rise, and I couldn't miss some minutes of this powerful energy to meditate. Has I was just about to sit and start to meditate, suddenly came to me this idea, and it was so clearly, so incredibly simple and with so many details of all the things that I should do! All these in just a few seconds! I immediately start to write this idea in my note book. I knew that I couldn't buy land or seeds, or materials. Even so, I try to arrange some piece of land with the local people. But everyone wants to sell, not rent or to lend their properties! So after another 3 months looking for land to plant and make some money for the start up of the project, I felt I was not choosing the right path. I was start losing my faith in the idea, and also thinking on giving up. Then one day, a friend reminds me that there was this possibility to asking for a crowdfunding! I already knew about these but never occur me that this could be the type of project that people want to give money for! Then for a moment, I thought: "of course! If I believe in this, and if I care, and if I want to help, maybe someone in the planet would also want to help! And I know that a lot of people want to help, because I saw every day so many people on site , doing so much for the earth, and the people, and the forests, and animals!

"Why won't you try Catarina? Let's try to invite people and unite them all!"

And here I am, asking you for help, asking you to invite other people, and organismos, and enterprises, asking you to give/do what you can, and contribute to preserve the land, the forest, the animals, so we can give some other ideas and be an example to other people and communities, in a litlle scale, if you believe in it also!

So here is the thing:

First phase

a) gathering all the people, institutions, enterprises, investors, etc to invite them  to participate and unite on the form PF a foudation. A foudation that will be form all of this people!

b) Buy "aboandoned land"  and startup to regenerate the soil and all the biodiversity.

b) call up all heart-motivated people as much as possible, enterprises, etc,  to participate In the project, and start design and to plant the first seeds for creating a food forest, based on the permaculture principles, biodynamic agriculture ans sintropic agriculture.

c) With the first income generated by fruit trees, and other food plant in this first piece of land, and buy another piece of land, with the same characteristics, and do the same process, again and again, so we could protect the maximum of land. 

Second fase

a) Start to gathering all the people who really wants to continue this work and taking part of this mission, and then With the belo of voluntiers start making social work, like for example start to giving the food to the local people in need

b) Design and organize free permaculture courses to the local farmers,  workshops, events and open discussions to share our experience, talk about the environment and all the pertinent questions around this theme.

The amount of money that I am asking here It's just to buy the first piece of land and some materials!

All the other phases and proceedings will be possible with the remaining work.. Its a self-sufficient solution, and it can protect and more land!

The mission of the project is trying to be an example to local people and change mentalities, so that in a near future we could all live with more respect and compassion to our Home: Earth !