Social Farming at Doon social farm

Over the last decade or so, social farming has been gaining increasing global attention, and rightly so. Put simply, a social farm is a patch of land where members of the community can come together to connect with the earth and to connect with each other.
 
A place of connection, a place of teaching and learning, a place to gain skills and strength and knowledge, a place to grow in confidence, to meet like-minded people, to tentatively dip a toe into a new community, anyone is welcome on a social

farm, but they have seen particular success in providing a safe space for those who might be considered more vulnerable, those who historically have struggled to find care and opportunities in a world which has seemed to develop to celebrate a few but fail many more, a world where difference or struggle has often been, at best, hidden, ignored, not provided for; at worst, punished and actively discouraged.
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In 2019, in the small village of Doon, in County Limerick, a social farm with the hopes of providing all of the above and more brought a glimmer of hope to those following the potential of social farming to help heal both individuals and communities. It has been going from strength to strength. In Doon and the surrounding area, there is a sense of pride in the fact that such a place has been created on our own doorstep.
 
On Friday May 13th, this pride could not have had a more visual representation. Hordes descended upon the 33 acre organic farm for an exceptionally well-thought out and organised Open Day. Immediately upon arrival, the atmosphere was buzzing with conversation and enthusiasm at what was being achieved here, and this atmosphere did not wane as the day progressed. The excitement was palpable.
 
The land, whose setting, in a previous life, was home to the Sisters of Mercy convent and school, houses a number of stone buildings. One is now used as a farm shop where the home-grown produce is sold; another, a Men’s Shed where you might be lucky enough to come away with a repurposed piece of garden furniture.
 
Set further beyond the courtyard and these old buildings, and home to more fragile fruits and vegetables (salad varieties, tomatoes, spinach, chard), poly-tunnels rise up in the foreground of an expanse of well-utilised outdoor space - a verdant field home to hardier root veg. Raised beds teased us with the promise of strawberries to come as the summer meanders on. Seeing the well-loved hens roaming free was a personal highlight. From bee-keeping demonstrations and information about horticultural courses to come, there is a sense, not only that new life is constantly growing and nurtured here, but that thought is being put into providing education that will allow this to continue.
 
So much was going on, so much was being offered, so much hope hung in the air, that I realised I was finding myself (albeit pleasantly!) overwhelmed with the sense of occasion, the sense of possibility. It has been a number of years, I think, since many of us have gathered in large groups where the air fizzled with such optimism and intensity. I was lucky enough to take a quiet moment and gulp in a few breathfuls of clean, fresh air at the corner of the field. I felt nourished in a way that I struggled to put into words when describing the day to friends later.
 
Among those interested in the power of our planet, if we just allow it to be, if we can co-exist healthily and work with it, to heal many of the ills that seem to stem from the societies we now live in, and how we exist in them, social farming is an exciting piece of the puzzle. Doon Social Farm is undoubtedly making its mark within this territory.
 
I’ll end with this: I was recently introduced to the concept of biophilia. Let me rephrase that. I have recently been introduced to the fact that there is a word to describe an urge that I have long known exists within me, and, if we allow ourselves to acknowledge it, does exist within all of us. This is the innate and genetically determined affinity of human beings with the natural world. The instinct to connect with nature. I can pinpoint at least some of the collective excitement at the farm that day as this instinct finally finding an outlet, a space where we can shift our attention away from distractions that consume and drain us and towards what comes naturally to us: celebrating our connection with, and need for, nature and other living beings.
 
How lucky we are to have such places, such forward-thinking teams, providing these spaces for us to feel inspired at what the world could be.


Kelly Girardi