Terrabiom was invited by Soil to Soul to represent soil health at the Soil Food market from 16-17.09.2022 on the inviting Kalanderplatz at Sihlcity, Zürich. As part of our market stand installation, we conducted an action research project, collecting voices on soil by the people from Zürich over the two days.
This post is (3/3) of a blog series on Terrabiom@Soil to soul 2022:
Gourmet Food & the Soil Sommelier (a keynote speech on soil life)
From soil health to tasty food (A soil market stand experience)
Voices on soil by people from Zürich (A soil-based action research project)
The opportunity to engage around soil health with a wide group of people from the urban context of Zürich is something rare. This is why we wanted to make sure we would give the visitors to our stand the opportunity to add in their voices, thoughts and feelings about soil in the widest sense. The motivation was to capture a glimpse into how the people based in Switzerland's "concrete city" resonate with soil, a precious element they do not automatically come in touch with in their everyday.
As part of our market stand installation, we performed an action research project, collecting voices on soil by the people from Zürich over the two days. Everyone visiting our market stand was invited to add in whatever resonated with them over three main calling questions. These questions were pinned on a board below our market, only visible to those consciously lowering their view to the level of the soil. This placement alone triggered a smile in those who had only engaged with us directly at eye level, not having noticed the questions before.
Since we were in Zürich, we asked our questions in german. For those who did not speak german, we translated the questions into a language they understood.
9-year-old Felix had the courage to pin the very first answers on Friday morning. Following this, participation largely exceeded our expectations, with over 50 people sharing their voices and some even coming back with friends they had mobilized to participate, too, throughout the two days. Our visitors covered a wide range of people and bridged generations, from babies to seniors 80+. We shared inspiring conversations in Schwiizerdütsch, English, French, Spanish, Hebrew, Portuguese, an indigenous language of Peru with people originating from all continents. It was an indicative representation of the diverse people of Zürich, which we are truly grateful for.
What we were allowed to capture in this way touch us deeply. We let these voices speak for themselves, in the language they were shared with us.
Wo bist du verwurzelt? / Where are you rooted?
Whether this was a place, people, a theme or anything else was up to the interpretation of those who answered.
CH / Schweiz
In Italien, und zu Hause mit Familie und Freunden
Zu Hause
I minere Familie und i dä obersaxer Natur
Wald Haus
Züri
Auf der Erde :) <3
Italien!
Zürich & my family back home
bi liebä Mensche, woni überall triff
Bei meiner Familie, meinen Freunden und in meinem Garten!
Andorra. Our grandparents were farmers, but we lost the knowledge ... What a pity !
I feel rooted in nature and "poor" planet EARTH
Bi minere Familie & Fründe
Bei der Freundin, Freunden, Familie
Verwurzelt mit dem "Feld" / verwurzelt mit Herz
Immer mehr in der Permakultur
Bei Familien & Freunden
Auf dem Eyboden im Emmental <3
Was möchtest du der Erde sagen?
Danke, dass du eus Lebe schenksch !
Danke und läb DU wiiter
Hola! moltes grâcies per donar-nos un lloc per vivre, per alimentar-nos i per coneixer-nos. Esperem que per muito mais tiempo.
Danke, dass du uns ernährst und uns Leben schenkst.
Danke, dass du (no) üs ushaltisch! Heb dure!
Sorry! Dass es eus git!
Poor animals
Werde gesund und werde ganz stark
Sorry you are suffering! Hope it gets better soon <3
Ich hoffe es git Dich no lang ...
How are you today?
Danke für das feini Ässa
How do you feel today? איך אתה מרגיש היום
Mir chönd nöd ohni dich, und das muän eus bewusst werde !
Danke! Ich liebe dich! Wir werden uns verbessern!
Danke, dass du uns unser Leben schenkst und wir dank dir hier verweilen dürfen!
I would like to tell the Earth to keep it up a little longer so we can make it to better the situation which too few people are recognizing.
Hab Geduld mit uns Menschen. Wir lernen (langsam) mit dir gut umzugehen
Wir lassen dich in Ruhe, und alles wird gut
Du bisch Gold wert :)
Der Garten ist meine Ausflucht aus dem Alltag.
DANKE !!!
I want to learn more about how you live/work! --> complex system
Was kommt dir als erstes in de Sinn, wenn du an Erde / Boden denkst?
Mutter Erde
Kreislauf
Les mains brotes! Una disfrutada de fer pastetetes quando era petita
Geschenk für unsere Arbeit
Leben. Geruch.
Biodiversität. Lebensgrundlage
Smell of everything
Garten. Lebewesen. Pflanzen. Wachsen
unbeachtetes Potenzial
Nährstoff
Pflanzen wachsen darauf. Tiere wohnen darin (Regenwurm, Maulwurf, ...)
Mineralie. Spielraum. Lebensraum. Bodeschätze. Nahrung.
Fussball-Rasen
Mikroben
Life. Home
Gesundheit. Pflanzen. Kraft. Natur.
Leben
Leben
Gmües. Läbe. Fruchtbarkeit.
I feel sad. I try to do more, but it's never enough. Let's get to work more together!
Leben. Mikrobiom. Kreislauf
Erholung
Ich lebe von und auf ihr
Heimat
To finish, we invite you to take a moment to appreciate the depth of these voices, thoughts, feelings, wishes and dreams.
We recognise that this is is a biased representation of people passing by our stand out of interest in Soil to Soul in general, or by Sihlcity for other reasons. Even more so, we appreciate the underlying message which emerges from these voices, sharing a deep connection to the Earth and recognising that our current behaviour is harming her.
THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR VOICES WITH US, AND WITH THE EARTH.
Read more.
This post is (3/3) of a blog series on Terrabiom@Soil to soul 2022:
Gourmet Food & the Soil Sommelier (a keynote speech on soil life)
From soil health to tasty food (A soil market stand experience)
Voices on soil by people from Zürich (A soil-based action research project)
Engaging opportunities like this one are an important part of our mission to re:connect humans with the value of nature, starting from the soil up. Curious how this might fit into your world? Please reach out to explore how Terrabiom could support you in putting soil health on your organization and your people’s radar. We love to get creative.
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