Pierre Rabhi: portrait of a man who “plays his part”

His reputation as an exciting speaker went before him and the Tanzmatten room in Sélestat was all a flutter when we hosted Pierre Rabhi last October. Here is a short write-up about this pioneer of agroecology whose renown stretches far beyond our borders.

A farmer, writer and French thinker of Algerian origin, Pierre Rabhi is one of the pioneers of organic farming in France. He wants to see a society which is more respectful towards man and the earth and supports the development of agricultural practices which are accessible to all, especially the poor, while preserving the heritage of food growing.

Since 1981, he has been passing on his expertise in Africa, France and Europe and seeking to restore food autonomy to the people. He is now a recognised international expert on food security and participated in drafting the United Nations Convention on the fight against desertification.

Pierre Rabhi calls for an « insurrection of consciences » to unite what is best in humanity and stop making our beautiful planet a hell of suffering and destruction. Faced with the deterioration of the human condition and the considerable damage inflicted on Nature, he invites us to put an end to the myth of indefinite growth, realise the vital importance of Mother Earth and usher in a new ethic of « happy sobriety ».

Pierre Rabhi has been at the root of many organisations either set up by him or born out of his ideas: such as the Terre & Humanism association (initially called “Les Amis de Pierre Rabhi »), the Oasis in Any Place movement, the Amanins agroecology centre, the Children’s Farm in Hameau des Buis and more recently the Colibris Movement*. He is asked to speak at conferences worldwide, and has published more than 15 books including his latest title, “Vers la sobriété heureuse” (“Towards happy sobriety”) published by Actes Sud and « Pierre Rabhi, semeur d’espoirs – entretien avec Olivier Le Naire “. (Pierre Rabhi, sower of hope – an interview with Olivier Le Naire).

“With his own hands, Pierre Rabhi brought life to the desert sand… This man who is quite simply a saint, with a crisp, clear mind, whose poetic beauty with language reveals a fiery passion, made the dusty land fertile with his sweat, working to restore the chain of life that we are continually interrupting.”

Yehudi Menuhin

*One of the things we hoped to do in organising this conference was to support this magnificent project initiated by Pierre Rabhi (http://www.colibris-lemouvement.org/colibris/notre-mission).

During the evening a collection was made. Thank you for your support!