Written by Shannon Collins
To the uninitiated, the unassuming walls of El Campanario in Campeche would reveal little of the uniqueness of this beautiful little project. Here, the land is a tool used for education, growth and harvest, animal rescue, and the recycling of local waste. The verdancy of this secret garden owes much to the tropical climate of southern Mexico, and, year-round, El Campanario’s resident rescue animals of pigs, goats, chickens, dogs and horses enjoy the spoils of chemical-free food growth.
El Campanario’s fruits, both literal and figurative, are borne of a unique structure; it is rare to come across a project which successfully meshes groups from across different sectors of society in the way that happens here. Participating are an NGO, international volunteers, local families, civil associations such as the Patronato de la Ciudad de Campeche A.C., and even local businesses, such as the socially and environmentally responsible Provitec and El Surco S.A. de C.V., all contributing to the values, context and vision in which El Campanario exists.
@elcampanariocampeche
The organic waste from restaurants in Campeche, participating in the Empresa Verde scheme, is used to feed the chickens, or is composted to create fertile soil for future growth. In many ways, it is the perfect cyclical project which recognizes that only doing one thing well necessarily involves waste in the system, whereas circular economies work across different areas to make them all feed back into each other.
El Campanario is a magical space which uniquely demonstrates how sustainable change is possible, through the re-purposing and re-use of materials, and the utilization of the skills of local families. One of the key goals driving the project at El Campanario is the desire to create a self-sustaining, organically produced, chemical-free food is consumed by those who work on the land.
Meanwhile, locally-led environmental workshops held on the land guide the way for local community and business leaders in Campeche to implement changes – sensitive to their own individual needs – which pave the way for modes of production which eliminate waste and make full use of resources.
@elcampanariocampeche
Due to increasing demands on the landscape, and the subsequent need for sustainable solutions to production, education and conservation, it is more necessary than ever that projects exist to take into account the needs of the communities in which they exist. Often, environmental projects are unilaterally implemented with no real regard for how the idiosyncrasies of a community, particularly where economic and business interests are prized above sustained and sustainable change; the ability to adapt existing spaces as well as diverse segments of the community is essential in the implementation of environmentally beneficial goals.
In these constrained times, there is still plenty of beauty in the world. Behind a little wall on the outskirts of Campeche is one such place, weaving the threads together to generate a progressive space for human and animal wellness.
Shannon Collins is a freelance writer, contributing to a variety of publications. As well as working with environmental organizations, she is pursuing a MA in English Linguistics at University College London.
