Bodenleben

The workshop explored soil as an omnipresent yet difficult-to-grasp medium and as a fundamental basis for life. As a dynamic space of circulation, soil connects decomposition and regeneration and shapes both everyday experiences and agricultural production systems. At the same time, technological developments are fundamentally transforming the way we relate to soil. In hydroponic and substrate-based cultivation systems, soil is increasingly being replaced by artificial nutrient media. While these approaches offer new forms of efficiency, they also disconnect plant production from natural soil cycles.

Against this background, the workshop addressed the tension between the finiteness of fertile soil, increasing production demands, and differing societal perspectives on what soil actually is. It raised the question of how we envision the future of soil and which forms of soil we want to cultivate and preserve.