Alan Rosenberg: thinking beyond our generation

Tell us a little about yourself!

I was given the name Alan Martin Rosenberg back in June of 1953 when I was born. I was born here in Johannesburg with an older brother and a younger sister. I grew up in Johannesburg and loved the social side of school but learned nothing. I was not inspired or motivated. I lived the life of a privileged kid, got a school leaving certificate in 1970 and did my compulsory military service ’71.

I thought I would study electronics to break into the sound recording sector. That was a failure! I did some odd jobs but had no direction or sense of purpose. 1972 saw me going on holiday through Swaziland and Mozambique. While driving through the landscape an inner voice came to me and said, “Alan if you want to form a relationship with the world and with people you can do that by understanding Nature.” 

Within a month I enrolled in Glen Landbou College just outside Bloemfontein. That was 52 years ago.

I currently live in Rivonia North Johannesburg in a grandpa flat behind the home of my son, his wife and my two grandchildren. It’s the longest I have lived anywhere. I have a wendy-house as my corporation headquarters behind my flatlet!

How did you start doing what you are doing now? 

I started at Glen College but now that story is 52 years old. I knew at the time that you could not plough the soil in your head so I went to Israel for practical experience. Agriculture is not so much about an intellectual approach but rather and experiential relationship with Nature. It's about observing, adapting, and working in harmony with the rhythms and processes of the natural world.

Returning to SA I joined a mixed commercial farm of 1200ha in Mpumalanga, again furthering my experience. In 1976 I was asked if I would like to fight in the war in Angola. Yes of course, I said “No”! I married and left once again to Israel joining an agricultural community. When my wife became pregnant we decided we wanted our child to be born in Africa, so we went to Swaziland. To get a work permit I had to become a teacher in an upper school in the capital Mbabane. I was in the right place at the right time, and was asked by the senior inspector of schools’ agriculture to start a training centre for teachers of primary schools who were teaching agriculture but with no training.

I spent three years building two houses, a classroom, an office, a storeroom, and an animal housing unit. We developed the 4-ha of land as the practical teaching aid, and I structured the course and wrote the curriculum. The venue still exists as the centre for schools’ agriculture.

While in the field one day the voice came back to me and said “Alan this is fine what you are doing but what will you think about as an older man?”  This inspired me to look into the world to find a form of agriculture that honours the spirit. The following year I enrolled into Emerson College, Sussex England to do the Biodynamic course with professor H Koepf. 

I stayed in England farming for 6 years both on the college farm and I grew vegetables and fruit for  student at the Tobias Art school. I returned to SA in 1988 joining the land based Camphill Village where I was the farmer and house father with 8 men and woman in need of special care in our home. We developed a biodynamic small holding on 13-ha. Regenerating and building fertile soils and feeding the 73 souls that lived in the village. 

I left the village and worked in informal settlements helping people grow seasonal vegetables through the formation of cooperatives. I went on to initiate a biodynamic farm on 2000-ha in Mpumalanga focusing on fruit trees and Nguni cattle.

From this I started Lindros Whole Earth consultants in 2000 with a colleague from the Camphill village. I was growing fruit and veg small scale in Kyalami and consulting. We initiated the first organic agricultural course with the department of labour and published the curriculum in a book entitled Organic Agriculture voted by Farmers Weekly as the best on organic farming in SA at the time. That lead me to write and publish “Global Health in Crisis, The Answer Lies in the Soil”. Next followed the book entitled “Biodynamic Agriculture A Conscious Choice”. I was asked to wite the lead chapter in a book entitled “Agroecology, Ecosystems and Sustainability in the Tropics” edited by prof G. Poyyamoli in India. The book is dedicated to the unsung torch bearers of sustainable traditional peasantry and altruistic scientific workers/media specialists who have decided to focus on Agroecology against all obstacles. Next followed the “Agroecology, The Promise of Future Flourish” book. The most recent book “Agroecology a Training Manual Resource”.

What are you most proud of in this process? 

Through the long journey there is not one thing to be most proud of and if there need be one then perhaps that the journey has been 52 years and continues should be it. Other real marking points have been, that I was asked to present a module at Sustainability Institute (University of Stellenbosch) entitled “Systems and Technologies for Sustainable Agriculture” to students doing their master’s degrees. I have never been to university having only got a school leaving certificate. Another was that I was one of three signatories who appealed to Department of Trade an Industry for the conduction of the FRIDGE Study 2008. This lead to the formation of the South African Organic Sector Organization (SAOSO) mandated by four government departments. I am the chairperson of SAOSO. The FRIDGE Study is the cornerstone to the work SAOSO is doing. I am once again a director of the Biodynamic Agricultural Association of Southern Africa (BDAASA). I am also the chairperson on the technical committee advising SABS for the Sans 1369 Organic Standard. I am currently engaged with the Regenerative Organic Agroecology and Mindfulness, ROAM Mindfulness - Based Learning™ program.

What is the most helpful piece of advice you received when you were just starting out? 

The most helpful advice came on both occasions from an inner voice alluded to above. Other great advise came from prof Koepf who said “Alan I think you have been educated to be stupid”. This prompted me to really form a relationship with what I came to know. It has very little to with the intellect and ideally must be owned experientially through the will.

It is not just about dumping mineral NPK into the soil; it's about creating an environment where the soil itself becomes a dynamic, process driven nutrient-releasing system. This perspective emphasises the interconnectedness of the chemical and mineral nature of soil linked to the biological activity in maintaining soil fertility manifesting minerals through decomposition, humification and mineralization.

What advice would you like to give to others who are younger/earlier on their journey? 

I think it is paramount to acknowledge two aspects of change, one is the skills and knowledge acquired, and the other critical factor linked to change is the soul, the individuality who you are becoming while you are broadening your experience. Man Know Thyself comes to mind. Another point of advise is for the individual to study the Allegory of Plato’s cave. Education is not about passively receiving knowledge but actively turning the soul towards understanding. The teacher's role is to guide, but the desire for knowledge must come from within the student linked to his/her passion.

Where do you see growing going in South Africa? 

We are in the process of the evolution of agriculture. Yes, we had at some point an agri – culture and this evolved into agri – business after the second world war. The task of the farmer was to make money. This evolved into agri – power where about five multinational corporations own the food sector.

The way forward is through agro – ecology. We cannot compromise on the environment. The agronomic aspect of growing either food crops or animal feeds remains consistently linked to soil practices. Machinery, irrigation etc might have become more sophisticated but the farmer still had to prepare land , sow seeds, cultivate, nurture crops and harvest. There has been a certain consistency in how this has been addressed. There is a shift in global consciousness (as well as locally) that the current industrial system needs to change, we have to transform this current model in to one that acknowledges that we have to work with Nature and each other collectively. We are all in this together. It transitions from a solely production-focused approach to one that incorporates ecological principles, promotes social equity, and prioritizes environmental stewardship.