Learn to develop a regenerative response to degraded agricultural land.

Lesson Structure

There are 10 lessons in this course:

1. Scope and Nature of Regenerative Agriculture
   • Environmental impacts of traditional agriculture
   • Pollution - land and water
   • Greenhouse gas emissions
   • Decreased biodiversity
   • Why regenerative agriculture matters
   • Sustainable agriculture versus regenerative agriculture
   • Principles of Regenerative Agriculture
   • Corporate initiatives
2. Functional and Integrative Level Systems
   • Functional regenerative agriculture
   • Improving soil health
   • Soil microbiome and soil health
   • Regenerative practices
   • Cover crops
   • Zero tilling
   • Rotating crops
   • Organic composts
   • Synthetic inputs
   • Carbon sequestration
   • Organic carbon
   • Integrative regenerative agriculture
   • Design and redesign
   • Permaculture ideas embedded in a system of regeneration
   • Energy flow
   • Imbalances
   • Wildlife habitat considerations
   • Increasing biodiversity
   • Increase biodiversity below ground
   • Increase biodiversity above ground
3. Integrative and Evolutionary Level Systems
   • Introduction
   • Systemic level
   • Case study
   • Humans in the ecosystem
   • Social impact
   • Antifragility concept
   • Adaptive and agile
   • Creating a microclimate
   • Capital inputs
   • Evolutionary level
   • Storying land
   • Supply chains/ Supply webs
   • Supply webs and big agriculture
   • Defining a bioregion
   • Defining an agroecosystem
   • Connect the land to its larger agroecosystem and bioregion
4. System Inputs: Climate, Topography, Nutrients
   • Climate
   • Pressure, temperature, rainfall
   • Soils and climate
   • Topography - soils and slopes
   • Broad ranging topography
   • Soils and parent material
   • Soils and nutrition
   • Nitrogen
   • Nitrogen cycle
   • Nitrogen fixation
   • Ammonification
   • Nitrification
   • Phosphorus
   • Potassium
   • Fertilisers - synthetic, organic
   • Organic materials
   • Plant materia;
   • Dead animals
   • Manure
   • Garbage
   • Hay, straw, paper, sawdust
   • Carbon
   • Biochar
   • Mineralisation
   • Chemoautotrophic organisms
5. Soils and Soil Regeneration
   • Introduction
   • Soil types
   • Soil classification
   • Soil horizons
   • Organic matter
   • Soil absorption
   • Soil desorption
   • Introduction to soil health
   • Presence of organic matter
   • Facilitate water resilience
   • Permeability
   • Balance & Diversity in the microbiome
   • Life forms
   • Monocultures and threat to soil and crop health
   • Approaches to regenerate soil and improve soil health
   • Cover crops
   • Limited disturbance - no or low tillage
   • Controlled traffic farming
   • Carbon retention
6. Livestock and Grazing Management
   • Introduction
   • Integrating livestock
   • Habitat restoration
   • Assisting carbon sequestration through grazing and increasing photosynthesis
   • Pest control
   • Reducing impacts - soil compaction, tillage, animal control
   • Effects of regenerative grazing on biodiversity
   • Challenges
   • Compaction
   • Aquaculture
   • Regenerative grazing management
   • Rotational grazing
   • Orchard grazing
   • Holistic planned management
   • Organic livestock management
   • Complimentary Grazing
7. Agroforestry and Silvopasture
   • Introduction to agroforestry
   • Incorporating trees and perennials
   • Benefits of agroforestry
   • Silvopasture
   • Silvoarable
   • Value of trees in agriculture
   • Carbon sinks
   • Carbon credits
   • Agroforestry and regenerative agriculture
   • Erosion control
   • Lowering water tables
   • Windbreaks
   • Timber, firewood
   • Fodder
   • Honey production
   • Wildlife habitats
   • Firebreaks
   • Increased rainfall
   • Challenges of agroforestry in regenerative agriculture
   • Financial considerations
8. System Outputs: Social, Economic and Global Trends
   • Sustainability and maintenance
   • Potential outcomes of regenerative agriculture
   • Physical outcomes
   • Increase crop health and resilience
   • Improve soil health
   • Create circular system
   • Carbon sequestration
   • Improve social and economic wellbeing of communities
   • Improve food nutritional quality and human health
   • Food access and security
   • Improving food safety
   • Increasing farm profitability
   • Socio economic communities influencing adoption of agroforestry
   • Carbon economics
9. Implementation and Whole Farm Planning
   • Implementing a regenerative agriculture system
   • Assessing natural components
   • Analysis and planning
   • Topsoil
   • Water
   • Determining business opportunities
   • Developing a business case
   • Cash flow
   • High cash flow crops
   • Long term crops
   • Cash flow concerns
   • Marketing direct to the customer
   • Organic vs non organic
   • Support and funding
   • Goal setting and planningIntroducing and monitoring change & Project Management
   • Benefits of Sustainable change
   • What factors impact on sustainability goals
   • Project managing regenerative agriculture
10. Special Project (PBL) Regenerative Agricultural Enterprise Proposal