Herding Academy:Regenerative Agriculture

Herding Academy trains unemployed, rural individuals in southern Africa to implement a regenerative agriculture model in their own communities.

The Problem that Herding Academy solves: Unemployed, rural youth who do not practice regenerative agriculture or farming.

Solution Activities:

• Recruit youth for Herding Academy training
• Train youth at Herding Academy which includes a Train-the-Trainer module
• Professional Herders return to rural communities
• Herders convince community at large to implement regenerative model
• Regenerative model is implemented

Outputs: 

• Biodiversity in land increases and Livestock are healthier and in better condition
• Carbon in soil increases. Livestock condition yields higher price for resale
• Community benefit from increased income. Biodiversity benefits from carbon input into soil

Solution Outcome: Trained professional herders who reproduce the regenerative model in rural communities across southern Africa which results in increase in biodiversity.  Reproduction Scale: Establish satellite Herding Academy sites around southern Africa and then scale to other rural areas globally. 

With food insecurity recognised as a global challenge, a renewed focus on ecosystem regeneration as a driver for economic development and sustainable farming has emerged. Over the past four years, Herding Academy has equipped students with sustainable farming and food security practices through our three training courses.

Through the use of professionally trained herders, linked to management systems that enable improved rangeland management, and subsequently resulting in environmental improvements that are measurable, transparent and sustainable, significant change can be effected within local communities, previously exempted from this economy. The advantage of this approach is that it removes barriers to entry into the formal livestock economy in a sustainable and responsible manner based on a system that is respected and practiced by local people. 

There are thousands of small scale livestock owners that collectively contribute to a massive problem. We are in the process of creating a needs analysis, and have found that the numbers of livestock per community total thousands. In areas such as the Simalaha Community Conservancy, a total of approximately 40,000 head of cattle is unrealised wealth within communities. This wealthy asset of cattle is degrading the environment that should be sustaining it.

Herding Academy uses the ancient skill of herding livestock to mimic natural migrations. 

We do this by herding animals together and moving them to different grazing areas, based off of a grazing plan, which allows plants time to recover. Animals moving together in tight herds create animal impact on the ground, where hooves break hard soil crusts, animals put old moribund plant material back onto the ground, and dung and urine recycle nutrients back into the ground. 

Herders are equipped with the skills and knowledge to handle animals in a low stress manner.

The Herding Academy uses 4 main principles:

1.   Holism: nature functions as a whole. If we change or remove something in the environment it will have an impact elsewhere.

2.   Brittleness Scale: understanding that areas with more atmospheric humidity and rainfall will react differently to stressors than a brittle (arid) area. 

3.   Time Control: different areas need different lengths of time to recover after an event happens. 

4.   Role of animal impact: in brittle areas we need animals clustered together and continuously moving to heal the land. If animals are not clustered and plants are not given time to recover then the field can become over-grazed and under-utilised.

Herding Academy was formed in 2017 to provide professional herding training to unemployed youths from disadvantaged rural backgrounds in southern Africa. 

In the 12 week Professional Herder Training we train unemployed individuals who reside in rural areas around Trans Frontier Conservation Areas. The students learn herding, regenerative agriculture theory and practical skills. 

Upon graduation, the youth are equipped with agro-biodiversity skills for effective land use management in order to create resilient, sustainable food production systems for communal livestock farmers across the region. They go home to their rural communities to put this theoretical training into practice. Herding Academy staff mentor and support the graduates by guiding them on the practical implementation of the model. The staff keep in contact and mentor graduates in an ongoing mentorship programme through the student portal on the website, which will allow students to keep in constant communication with trainers. 

In order to build up their network and further support them, the graduates are introduced to other people practicing regenerative agriculture across southern Africa. 

The vast amount of livestock within rangelands is not used within the red meat industry, leading to both economic devaluation of livestock and environmental degradation as a result of overgrazing. Rural communities are therefore in a lose-lose situation. Through improved knowledge and skills regarding grazing and rangeland management, as well as market access, communities can unlock the value of their livestock and rangelands.

The professional herder course is aimed at training communal farmers as well as corporate herders and equips them with intensive land and animal care knowledge as part of their regenerative decision making framework. The mentorship program takes the knowledge home and assists students within their implementation strategies and challenges. The course is a three month programme, hosted three times annually, with 12 students per group. Therefore we will be able to have 36 direct beneficiaries per year. The indirect beneficiaries are the families and communities that the direct beneficiaries serve and support.

The Executive Land Management Course is aimed at decision and policy makers and is a 5 day corporate leadership experience in the Karoo. We can host 15 participants per group and will as needed. In 2021 we aimed at doing three courses during the year, however we are already marketing for our 4th course in July. Indirect beneficiaries include farmers’ families and farm staff. 

The Introductory course is aimed at farm staff and community members and is a practical introduction to the principles of holistic land management. The training is 6 days in total and is on-site.

Herding Academy’s problem and solution relate to the Resilient Ecosystems challenge because we train unemployed, rural individuals to implement a regenerative agriculture model in their communities. This protects the biodiversity of the community’s ecosystem, empowers community members to manage their land and herd with the animals and the ecosystem in mind. Most importantly this model restores the local ecosystem to a state in which the plants are regenerating, the animals are handled in the least stressful manner for livestock management and the humans are respecting the land they live off and the animals that provide them food and income.

Growth Stage: Since 2018, we have trained 34 people in the professional herder course. The course started off as an 11 month programme, but we soon realised that it is not viable to take a person, generally the main household income member, for an entire year out of his/her community for training. In 2021 the course was adjusted to a three month course on-site followed by a continual mentorship programme that allows students to go home and implement the principles they have learnt at the Herding Academy into their own community 

Students are equipped with the knowledge and applied competence to monitor rangelands after grazing has taken place, so that they can identify when it is best to graze the area again. Students are introduced to monitoring technology such as using GIS, drones and fixed-point photography, which they combine with ancestral technology of herding livestock to mimic natural migrations.

It is innovative to take the ancient skill of herding, threatened of being lost forever due to the perception that herding is primitive with little to no value, and make it a respected employment option with career path development. Shifting the perception of looking after livestock as an activity of old people or children to professionalisation of herders as managers of high value assets that enable wealth generation within communities is catalytic in approach. Herding must shift from being thought of as a “task” to the active management of assets for the livestock owners, no different to shares on the stock market.

Conventional farming believes that grouping large numbers of animals together will cause overgrazing but if it is done correctly, it is beneficial to the land since it mimics ancient migration effects. Furthermore, research shows that ploughing land depletes the soil of essential nutrients. Herding requires knowledge of livestock, and their condition, nutrient requirements and the grazing and feed value of rangeland. Spatial awareness regarding predators, stock theft and diseases are essential.  This elevates the role of tending livestock to managing assets. 

Combining GIS, drones and fixed-point photography technology of to identify erosion areas and water levels, with ancient, innovative herding technology means we are using both old and modern best practices. Not only is the asset growing in value, but the environment that supports this value addition is becoming more resilient. An improved environment for better results, all through an ancient skill, newly rediscovered.

2021: 72 off site and 12 on site
2022: 176 off site and 36 on site
2023; 176 off site and 36 on site
2024: 104 off site and 36 on site
2025: 36 on site

On-site training occurs at the Herding Academy in Graaff Reinet, South Africa. The Herding Academy is on St Olives farm, which uses both sheep and wildlife to regenerate the land, which aids in our practical sessions. The facilities can accommodate up to 12 students at a time and we aim to have three on-site trainings per year, for a total of 36 students annually. The Herding for Health programme intends to send 6 students to Herding Academy on-site trainings in 2021 and in 2022.

As part of being adaptive, we realise the need to offer off-site training.Herding Academy is in the process of developing and honing our model to become a Service Provider. Off-site, remote training sessions occur in rural communities around southern Africa. We have recently signed a contract with Meat Naturally to do off-site training for 176 students in Kwa-Zulu Natal over the next four years.

We have implemented a mentorship programme which allows us to visit the past students in their home communities, thereby allowing us to see their personal context and give guidance based on what is happening on their land. The 12 week Professional Herder training that The Herding Academy teaches is largely theory based. In order for the theory to become practical we must maintain close contact with our graduates. This allows Herding Academy to monitor and evaluate our programme to tailor it to current best practices as well as apply our expert knowledge to each individual graduate's specific land. 

Our website is currently developing a student portal which will allow us to be in regular communication with past students so that we can share maps and grazing plans with students. They will be able to upload images from their communities for photographic evidence.

On the farm where the Herding Academy is based, we use GIS, drones and photographic technology to measure the impact that our animals have had on the land so that we can readjust our grazing plans accordingly. This then gives us crucial information on our the impact that herding is having on our land.

12 people work on the team that runs Herding Academy: 

1 full time staff

10 part time staff 

1 contractor 

Johan Bouwer, head of the Herding Academy, has over 30 years of experience in both the corporate and agricultural industry. 

Consultant, Roland Kroon, has experience in holistic management for more than 40 years. He is a qualified Savory Institute Field Professional.

Assessor, Sarah Cromhout, is currently busy with her MSc in Nature Conservation where the topic looks at the impacts that high densities of sheep have on the soil, vegetation composition and landscape functioning in the Nama Karoo.

Assessor, Gavin Steyn, is a former graduate from the Tracker Academy, who has had over ten years of experience working with animals, including sheep and game, on the property where the Herding Academy is based.

Christopher Maartins started working as a herder in 2013. He attended the Professional herder course in 2015 and he now trains our introductory course and is used as an evidence collector in the training of the professional herder’s course.

Ryno Wagenaar- started working as a herder in 2013. He attended the Professional herder course in 2015 and he now trains our introductory course and is used as an evidence collector in the training of the professional herder’s course.

We have support from the South African College for Tourism:

Mariette Ferreira: Executive Director 

Suna Hall: Fundraising and Communications Coordinator 

Ruth Maya: Administrative Assistant 

Kerryn Ferreira: Alumni Relations Manager 

Eloise Botha: Financial Controller

Sylvia Jansen: Financial Manager

All past students (as well as future 3-month Professional Herder Course students) are trained in our train-the-trainer programme. This allows students to be able to go back into communities to train the next lot of herders/ to educate the communities on the importance of holistically managing their livestock. 

Two of our own herders, Christopher Maartins and Ryno Wagenaar, attended the Professional Herder course and are now used as evidence gatherers for our Professional herder course. They are also trainers for the introductory course, where they are able to share their herding skills and knowledge to others. 

Herding Academy's biggest barrier to success is getting our name and regenerative agriculture training model recognised and replicated to scale across southern Africa.

Applying to Solve means that we increase our recognition efficiently and effectively by joining the SOLVE network of powerful, game-changing leaders. It is beneficial for people to read our application and familiarise themselves with how Herding Academy's regenerative agriculture model has the power to change ecosystems in even the most rural, hard to reach areas.

Through the use of professionally trained herders, linked to management systems that enable improved rangeland management. This subsequently results in environmental improvements that are measurable, transparent, sustainable and significant change can be effected within local communities, previously exempted from the economy. The advantage of this approach is that it removes barriers to enter into the formal livestock economy in a sustainable and responsible manner based on a system that is respected and practiced by local people.

This model is not rocket science, it is simple and has been practiced for thousands of years. The technology involved is ancient and mimics the migratory patterns wild animals use without human intervention. Herding Academy simply teaches herders to practice this model and to get buy-in from the community so that it is successful. That is why it is crucial to scale it to have a lasting and meaningful impact.

Through the needs analysis that is currently being conducted, a sound business model development is required to address the needs in a sustainable manner.  Strategic partnerships is required in order to train to scale and have a large impact.

The Herding Academy aims to develop a research hub at its campus and sound data analysis would be required to feed back into the system to conduct monitoring and evaluation in various landscapes across southern Africa.  This will provide measurable data to evaluate impact, change strategy where and when required and inform future practices and improvements.

Since the Herding Academy is still in the growing phase, there is an urgency to market its services to a wider client base to ensure that its training services can be widely used.

1) In Uganda, TruTrade helps communities earn a fair price for their crops. The Herding Academy would like to potentially partner with TruTrade to educate communities on earning fair prices for livestock and crops whilst regenerating  the landscapes that they live in. 

2) Inga Alley Croppingwork work in Congo, Honduras, Madagascar and are headquartered is in Lostwithiel, UK. They aim at reducing slash and burn techniques by using an agro-forestry technique that is beneficial to soil and communities. The Herding Academy could certainly learn more about farming in forested areas, whilst we could teach them principles of regenerative agriculture.

3) Bambara Milk, based in Ghana and Singapore and headquartered in Singapore, is a NamZ initiative that works with small-holder farmers who could benefit from using regenerative agriculture and holistic principles. One of NamZ's challenges they focus on is that crops are producing less nutritious food. Using animals in their system could increase soil nutrients and therefore directly increase crop nutrients. Herding Academy would be interested in partnering with Bambara Milk. 

Herding Academy connects communities to develop, share, and replicate best practices for carbon absorption and decarbonization by training rural, unskilled, unemployed individuals in southern Africa to implement regenerative livestock herding techniques that mimic wild animal migratory patterns and infuse carbon back into the soil.