The 1st Doñana-REGENERA Forum
On March 5, 2026, the first Doñana-REGENERA Participation Forum was successfully held in Almonte, Spain. The event brought together 75 participants to engage in a multi-actor, interdisciplinary dialogue regarding the region’s agricultural future.
With funding from the Fundacion Biodiversidad from MITECO, the Doñana-REGENERA project objective is to favor a shift toward regenerative agriculture, improving the resilience of agroecosystems while balancing agricultural activity with environmental conservation.
Forum Structure and Sectoral Focus
The event began with a collaborative plenary session where attendees mapped out the general challenges and strengths of agriculture and livestock in the Doñana area. Following this, participants split into five specialized working groups based on the region’s key sectors:
- Red Fruits
- Vineyards
- Olive and Citrus Groves
- Rice Fields
- Livestock
Shared Challenges Across Sectors
Through collaborative brainstorming, the working groups identified several critical hurdles facing the primary sector:
- Environmental Constraints: Water availability, scarcity, and salinization represent severe threats to crop viability and general soil health.
- Economic Pressures: Producers are struggling with low economic profitability driven by international market pressures and high production costs.
- Administrative Hurdles: Participants expressed frustration over excessive bureaucracy, strict regulatory compliance, and a lack of targeted institutional support or financial aid.
- Labor and Generational Renewal: A consistent challenge across multiple sectors is the shortage of available manual labor and the lack of a new generation stepping in to take over agricultural duties.
Regional Strengths and Opportunities
Despite these obstacles, the forum highlighted significant regional strengths to build upon:
- Ecological Value: The agricultural landscape provides crucial ecosystem services and acts as a refuge for biodiversity, especially for avian populations.
- Expertise and Innovation: There is a high degree of technical knowledge, professionalization, and a desire to remain at the forefront of agricultural innovation among local producers.
- Unique Identity: Doñana’s singular climate and deep-rooted historical legacy of traditional trades offer a unique foundation for high-quality products and the development of agrotourism.
- Current Sustainable Practices: Many farmers are already valuing and implementing regenerative practices, such as soil moisture monitoring, using cover crops to enhance soil fertility, and facilitating carbon sequestration.
Looking Ahead
To maintain momentum, the Doñana-REGENERA project will soon establish dedicated sectoral working tables to design practical regenerative solutions tailored to these identified needs. Additionally, the research team will continue targeted fieldwork and interviews to ensure that traditional knowledge is actively documented and integrated into future environmental strategies.