The mission of Applied Aquaponics

(More photos from the missions trip to India)

The mission of Applied Aquaponics is simple.

Our intention is to empower people through the education of food production, nutrition, and cultural integration. The demographic that we would like to impact first would be the communities residing in regions on our Earth that are suffering from famine, disease, and malnutrition. We are hoping that through the employment of different aspects of permaculture, crop diversification, conservation, and various forms of biodigestion, we could revolutionize the way that these societies fortify themselves against both economic and ecological adversity.

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I believe this type of relief work to be comprised of these three distinct areas of focus:

Observation:

The first phase of this agricultural project would be to observe the location of the  prospected facility, and see if there are any geographical advantages to capitalize on. All terrain exhibits inherently different topographical attributes – climate, proximity to water, positioning in relation to the path of the sun, etc. Understanding the makeup of the soil could lend itself to a good blend of traditional farming, aquaponics, as well as various composting strategies and biodigestion. Understanding the climate dynamic over the course of a year would tell us what types of crops we have to select from, and what type of augmentation we’ll need to create in order to extend seasons, manipulate microclimates, etc. Availability of water, and awareness of the water table would dictate to us the basis of our irrigation strategy. Also, knowing what pests are indigenous to the area might change our construction a bit as well. And lastly, knowing what the needs of the community you will be serving, and how often, and in how much volume will most definitely indicate the overall size of the operation. These are all things that should be considered at this discovery phase.

Assimilation:
In order to effectively apply our process to a specified location, we need to consider our previous assessments and find efficient and advantageous ways to address them in our agricultural stratagem. Utilizing slopes, grades, swales, trees, basins, structure, shade, rainfall, streams, crop-diversity – we should be able to customize our process so that it maximizes the geographical assets that are available.  Sunlight, water, and temperature are probably the most important variables to interact with, and solidifying a consistent supply of these assets is paramount.

Application:
It is crucial to examine the ultimate outcome of these concerted efforts, and the impact it will make on the community in which it will be deployed. With variables like initial build costs, maintenance, staffing, training, and education; there are investments that are to be considered – both the financial as well as the behavioral learning curve. If the long term dividend of this endeavor outweighs the initial costs of labor, construction, adaption, and education – and I feel strongly that it does – then it is worth the undertaking of teaching that community all of the parameters involved in bringing forth both nutritional and financial stability. With that in mind, I think it is important to establish a consistent form of income into the project – as basic as selling the fish and vegetables in the local village markets – or as developed as targeting specific types of crops and fulfilling niche orders for various restaurants, established market chains, etc. My vision is for this tool to not only to supply the nutritional needs of the orphanage, shelter, community that maintains it, but to also bring financial income and hopefully further access to medicine, healthcare, and other practical resources to the community.

Thank you for taking the time to read this overview of our project. I appreciate your thoughtful feedback, and I look forward to partnering with you in any way to further this ongoing work.

Please feel free to contact me at JH@appliedaquaponics.com

Jacob Harman

Applied Aquaponics

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 7th, 2010 at 3:40 pm. It is filed under mission field, vision. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.