As we reflect on 2023, we would like to share a few words of gratitude for you all, our community.
It was a strange way to decide to become a farmer, but as I have learned, the process of becoming a farmer can take many different forms. It is something that I have seen firsthand through my work with the Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) called Managing Pasture for Healthy Farms and Soils Across Vermont on which Bio-Logical Capital is one of several partners.
I love to ask what books people are reading and what they are learning. I always come away from these conversation with new ideas and exciting book titles. It also means that I have books piled on tables all around my house.
Over one hundred thousand years ago, during the last ice age, clothing was arguably introduced as a form of survival and protection from the elements. For millennia, and up only until recently, our garments have been solely produced from animal or plant material- many of which are grown or harvested from farm and agricultural processes. Since their origin, textiles have been transformed by cultures and individuals into a representation of status, wealth, personal expression, gender, and ingenuity. To tell a story of the history of textiles, there is a lot of ground to cover.
The Bio-Logical Capital team had the chance to visit one of the country’s fastest growing indoor farming projects earlier this year on a team trip to New York. Square Roots is a dual urban farming and entrepreneurship program. The early-stage venture uses re-purposed shipping containers to grow leafy greens and other vegetables throughout the year via a 13-month incubator program for individuals interested in learning about urban agriculture.
For more than 100 years, Larimer Square has been Denver's "main street" by offering a mix of cultivated retail, restaurants, office space and entertainment. Now it is poised to be a local destination for the next 100 years with a focus on being the first district to highlight urban agriculture at this scale and create a diverse and inclusive mix of retail and housing options.
When we hold powerful connections to place, the typical boundary between environment and self begins to blur, resulting in an acute feeling of wholeness, community and vitality. Establishing a primal connection to an outdoor landscape tends to make one feel small, inspired and alive. This raw connection has a name coined by the architectural philosophy Biophilic Design: ‘Spirit of Place’.
Bio-Logical Capital’s approach to agriculture relies heavily on integrated rotational management of animals and crops using principals from agroecology and other "beyond organic" practices. Bees are an often overlooked but essential part of this model. They are the connectors, the pollinators, and the silent workers on our farms.
Our farm management goals are long-term diversity, health, and productivity. This approach results in a transformative impact on how people grow food and understand their relationship with the land. In the second part of this blog series, we will discuss how our approach ensures reliable returns and offers multiple benefits to people and the land.
Bio-Logical Capital’s agriculture business is a strong anchor for our projects and generates meaningful profits for our company and the farmers who work the land. We believe that for agriculture to be sustainable, it must be designed to build soil productivity and to produce a variety of nutrient-rich crops that produce strong revenues and sustain communities.
