Le monastère de Solan. Une aventure agroécologique

This beautifully illustrated book has been written using texts, testimonies and conversations with members and friends of the monastic community. It aims to describe the story of the nuns of the Orthodox monastery of Solan in the French department of Gard over the last 20 years. It describes the transformation of the monastery’s lands and the lessons that can be learnt that will inspire other such experiences. When the nuns at Solan decided to change their way of growing food in their estate, they looked to ensure that there would be coherence between their spiritual values and environmentally friendly practices. Thus began the transformation towards a more respectful agro-ecological model of the former agro-forest estate that had once been cultivated intensely using conventional techniques. A meeting with Pierre Rabhi, the eloquent pioneer of French ecological agriculture, was crucial in encouraging the nuns to launch their adventure in managing harmoniously their forests and mosaic of vineyards, orchards and market gardens in accordance with their beliefs and values. The book ends with a text by the higoumen Hypandia that summarizes the Orthodox vision of the Creation.