Iceland review - 2014, Side 48

SoCietY
a single system. “We try to take a closed-
loop approach by, for example, not using
any synthetic fertilizers and trying to use
only organic produce. When we make
skyr, for example, we give the whey to the
chickens—nothing is wasted. We try to
think about everything as a part of a whole,”
guðfinnur describes.
as part of the farm’s philosophy, he feels
strongly about ensuring icelanders’ long
history with the land is not lost by opening
its doors to school children. “many words
in icelandic have their roots in the fishing
industry or in farming, but young people
today don’t know that. it’s important for
children to have a connection to the land.”
after sampling a buffet of delicious dish-
es using mostly farm-produced ingredients,
as well as fresh skyr for dessert, guðfinnur
takes us on a tour of the greenhouses. in
one, the sweet smell of peppermint over-
powers. Several varieties of tomatoes hang
from the vines, flowers paint the ground in
color and a few small bunches of grapes—
rarely grown in iceland—begin to ripen.
welcoMing the public
Forty-five kilometers down the road is
Sólheimar, a community running on similar
principles. With 100 residents, including 60
staff and an additional ten volunteers, it’s
much larger.
“You can ask them anything. People are
very honest here. they will always tell you
what they really think. comedians even
come here to test out their material because
they know they’ll get honest feedback,”
says social affairs officer Valgeir Fridolf
Backman when we arrive on the eve of the
village’s annual Lífræni dagurinn (‘organic
day’) festival.
there’s a frenzy of activity taking place
in preparation for the big day. Valgeir
has been cooking soup over the campfire.
others are busy packing vegetables, baking
cakes and breads and stocking the shelves
of the store with fresh produce and hand-
made beauty products. “the main aim of
the festival is to introduce the staff and the
community to the public. it’s a special day
for us, the highlight, really. Some of us get
dressed up in our scout uniforms. it’s also
harvest time, so we present our products
and hope to sell as many of the vegetables
as we can.”
While many visitors attend the festival
each year, Sólheimar’s location near pop-
ular summerhouse community grímsnes
means that it receives up to 35,000 visitors
each year. Like Skaftholt, school children
visit to learn about the environment and
life on the farm. “it’s good to get them
early,” Valgeir says, laughing. Sólheimar
also runs an eco-center hosting lectures and
other events on sustainability.
historical signiFicance
Founded in 1930 by Sesselja Hreindís
Sigmundsdóttir (1902-1974), Sólheimar
was one of the first farms in the nordic
region to implement permaculture and
organic horticulture successfully and is
cited as being the first community in the
world designed to have both disabled and
able-bodied people living together. “that’s
what people say and it’s really beautiful
to hear that. there are 43 disabled com-
munity members here and all of them are
equal. no one gives the orders. they don’t
live feeling like they are disabled,” Valgeir
explains. Sólheimar also works with the
prison authorities and probation system—
two to three prisoners live and work in the
community at a time—as well as the long-
term unemployed.
diversity in the workday is an essential
part of life at Sólheimar. there are six dif-
ferent workshops: weaving, ceramics, can-
dles, fine art atelier, paper-making and herb
and carpentry. “Sometimes someone can be
making candles in the morning and then
be in the woodwork shed in the afternoon.
there are more than 20 different possibili-
ties. our disabled and non-disabled work
together, which makes everyone feel that it
is their responsibility to get the job done. i
think that’s normal… but i work here.”
Few reasons to leave
Having moved to Sólheimar nine years ago,
Valgeir has certainly grown accustomed
to life here, he tells me the following day
as he prepares to welcome festival guests.
“[my wife and i] are so lucky that our three
children have spent part of their child-
hoods here in the community. i think they
have gained so much from the experience.
my youngest son wants to go to drama
school. Because of his age, we discussed
whether we would need to move the family
to Reykjavík. my wife said, ‘no, absolutely
not. We’re staying here!’ i was so happy
when she said that because things are really
good here and you can look around and see
that people are happy. and it’s genuine hap-
piness; people don’t want to leave.”
So intent are the village’s residents on
staying at Sólheimar that some have vowed
to never leave. “one man told me the other
day that he didn’t want to be taken away
in an ambulance and never come back. He
wants to be here until the end. We have
even prepared our own graveyard,” Valgeir
says solemnly.
an aging population is somewhat of a
problem, though. “We need more people
and we need more young people. We have
a lot to offer young people—creative jobs,
for example. there needs to be a better
balance in the community because we’re
quite old and unfortunately many people
are ill and need more attention and care,”
Valgeir states.
and there are few reasons to leave. the
village includes greenhouses for vegetable
and non-food plant cultivation, the only
organic forestry in iceland, a gallery, café,
guesthouses, swimming pool, church, sculp-
ture garden, sports hall and gym and con-
ference center, i.e. most things one needs in
day-to-day life. children, however, travel to
nearby villages to attend school.
Sólheimar classifies as an ‘eco-village’
because the community is socially sustain-
able (a village must be financially, envi-
ronmentally or socially sustainable to clas-
sify) through its provision of employment
opportunities, skills development programs,
social activities and therapy programs. the
community produces some of its own ener-
gy through renewable means. Sólheimar’s
financing comes mostly from a number
of funds, but its operations are also sup-
ported through the sale of its products, as
well as its guesthouses and the hosting of
workshops.