The 2nd Patmos Ecology Festival concluded with a series of successful activities.
Twenty-five enthusiastic runners took part in the race from Skala square to the heart of Koumas and back. As they returned to the square, they carried a cluster of seeds, a symbol of the battle that must be fought to stop soil erosion on our mountains and hills and to stop and reverse the advance of the desert.
Seeding continued, and the planting of 150 saplings was completed. The irrigation system was also arranged on the fenced part of the hill, which covers 12 acres. All the saplings received their first thorough watering.
In the afternoon, a vegan cooking workshop took place in the garden of Pernera Vegan. We learned to make seed cheese from sunflower seeds and almonds and soutzoukakia from minced black beans. We also discussed the need for immediate change in the way we eat if we want to stop reinforcing the main driver of desertification and other environmental and socio-political problems on our planet: livestock farming.
A collective lunch followed in the garden. We tasted what we had prepared and much more, celebrating the successful conclusion of the work and activities of the 2nd Patmos Ecology Festival in a spirit of unity and solidarity.
This year’s festival was entitled “Desertification”. It sought to raise awareness among Patmos residents and visitors about the global phenomenon of land desertification, which is visible on our island, and its transformation into barren desert, mainly through overgrazing.
Last week, using seed-ball production, myriads of plant seeds were sown on Koumas hill. They will contribute to soil cover, stabilisation, and enrichment. Hundreds of new and healthy trees of different local species were also planted, including oaks, carob trees, myrtles, oleanders, pines, cypresses, and olive trees. This time, we ensured that they were adequately watered.
We learned to collect wild seasonal seeds and then used them for seed-ball sowing.
In a few hours, the festival volunteers also collected dozens of kilos of plastic and other rubbish from the Skala–Sapsila coastline.
For the trees, we thank the Rhodes Regional Nursery and its manager, Nikos Renesis; the South Aegean Region; and the prefect of Kalymnos, Manolis Mouselis. We also thank the local nurseries of Alexis Moschos and Alexandros Alexandris for providing seedlings free of charge.
All the schools of Patmos participated in sowing and planting saplings. We thank the teachers who responded so warmly to our call. We hope that the educational community and the education system will take responsibility for helping children understand the seriousness of desertification and for contributing to the rescue of Koumas and the re-greening of Patmos before it becomes a landscape of bare stones.
The participation of the islanders was generally limited, but the work was completed efficiently through the participants’ dedication.
The Municipality of Patmos took responsibility for filling the water tanks we secured on the hill, which we intend to increase in the coming period. The Municipality cooperated very well to transfer water quickly when it was needed.
We hope to see more active participation from the island’s political leaders. If they do not understand the scale of the problem of desertification on the island and the need to save our soil through collective action, the future looks bleak. In the meantime, we will do our best to help them understand. Koumas is a small-scale model of what needs to be done on every hill and mountain on the island, in the country, and on the planet.
For another year, we thank Nikos Tsombanoglou, a dedicated ecologist and farmer specialising in natural and organic farming. In addition to his hard work and guidance, he again led the educational seminars at the schools.
We also praise the hard work and dedication of the Pernera team: Nicolas Nikolopoulos, Gozde Oguz, and Eva-Anna Roboti, who were present throughout the week’s activities, events, and field work.
We thank the members of the Patmos Hippocampus Environmental Protection Association for their useful help. Finally, we thank Eva Nikolopoulou for her communication support.
See you in a year for the 3rd Festival.
If you would like to join the Koumas reforestation and desertification team, please email us at info@trees.life or koinoniatispatmou@protonmail.com, or call 6986361422 or 6974389713. We need people with a similar outlook and a willingness to serve the common good. Together we can accomplish even more!
