How can we farm within planetary boundaries? This question is becoming increasingly important, and the answer lies not only with farmers, but with all of us who care about our food and living conditions.
This course welcomes both newcomers and people with agricultural experience who are ready to be part of the solution. Whether you're managing land or simply seeking to understand regenerative agriculture, you'll learn practical principles and techniques that contribute to meaningful climate action while building resilient food systems.
The workshop focuses on the Foundations of Syntropic Farming, a climate-adapted approach that works with natural processes rather than against them. The program begins with three days of comprehensive knowledge sessions covering core principles and techniques of syntropic agroforestry.
Following the theoretical foundation, you'll gain hands-on experience during two full days of guided fieldwork, where you'll plant and implement an syntropic system while applying the principles you've learned. This combination of theory and practice ensures you leave with both the understanding and confidence to begin your own syntropic journey.
🕔 Knowledge sessions: 27th , 28th February and 1st March (Friday - Sunday)
🍃Guided fieldwork: 12 & 13th of March
📍 Location: Goirle, Noord-Brabant
💬 Course will be held in English, with Dutch translation available
💶 €650 incl. VAT including warm lunch, coffee break and snacks 🪙 Solidarity pricing available, see below for more information
This course is suitable for any person with or without experience in agriculture.
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Syntropic Agroforestry restores water cycles, soil fertility, biodiversity and has the capacity to offer multiple sources of food, medicine, fiber, wood, and economic opportunities to farmers.
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For this workshop, we are honoured to host the syntropic agriculture expert Renke de Vries, who brings both extensive practical experience and direct mentorship from Ernst Götsch himself.
Renke studied International Forest Ecosystem Management at HNE Eberswalde and is a qualified arborist with deep expertise in agroforestry.
In 2019, he completed an internship at Ernst Götsch's farm in Bahia, Brazil, followed by work on Götsch's project at "Freixo do Meio" in Portugal.
From 2019 to 2023, Renke served as chief operator for agroforestry at Gut & Bösel, where he designed, implemented, and managed around 20 hectares of syntropic agroforestry in regular exchange with Ernst Götsch. He also executed an award-winning forest transformation project during this time.
Since 2021, Renke has been working as an independent consultant for syntropic agroforestry, supporting projects across Europe.
The immersive workshop takes place at Landgoed Gorp en Roovert, one of the Netherlands' largest estates near Goirle in North Brabant, encompassing 1,200 hectares of forests, agricultural lands, and heathland. The estate is developing a 10-hectare food forest system on this historic property, with a 1+ hectare syntropic vegatable production system.
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Day 1 – Foundations & Context
Forested environments and natural processes; syntropy and syntropic farming; large systems of colonization, accumulation, and abundance (long cycles), and the vector of consolidated life.
Day 2 – Succession & System Dynamics
Natural succession (short cycles); stratification and its components; application of succession and stratification in agriculture; the main goal of syntropic systems: creating a positive balance; understanding density, diversity, and disturbance as drivers of system health.
Day 3 – Practice & Application
Reinterpreting old agricultural concepts through syntropic farming; implementation fundamentals and key considerations; basic planting principles and techniques for applying syntropic systems in practice.
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After the first three days, participants are invited for 2 days of supervised field work to gain experience in system implementation.
Focus will be given in:
At the end of this 5-day immersive workshop, you will:
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