Kapitaloceen

Post-capitalistic experiment
Neither Dido nor David originates from a farming family: their path towards becoming farmers wandered past climate studies, nautical college, earth sciences, science philosophy and the biodynamic agriculture school Warmonderhof. In the Warmonderhof they mainly learned about plants, but not how you get yourself a piece of land to grow them. Then they found out that for decades, small Dutch farmers have been struggling with the agricultural upscaling and the land prices -one of the highest in the world-, and decides to take action. They stopped their studies at the agriculture school and plunged into their own new project, called Kapitaloceen. Stichting Kapitaloceen is a post-capitalistic experiment with the goal to buy off land for two marginalized groups, namely the idealistic, small-scale and agro-ecological farmer and the non-human life.

Kapitaloceen is a post-capitalistic experiment with the goal to buy off land for two marginalized groups, namely the idealistic, small-scale and agro-ecological farmer and the non-human life.

Capitalocene
The name is derived from the geological timescale that’s been in use to subdivide history on earth. These periods of time are defined by the consequences of climate changes, the layers in rock formations, and the development of landscapes, rivers and seas. Currently, we live in the Holocene, which followed the Pleistocene, around 11.700 years ago.
In the geological world talks about the Antropocene have been growing more popular. This timeframe would be characterized by a significant influence of human actions on the climate and atmosphere. For example, deforestation, burning fossil fuels and large scale farming have rapidly changed the concentration of greenhouse gasses, contributing to the warming of the earth’s atmosphere. In turn, this leads to melting ice caps, rising sea levels and increased erosion. In the academic world, including fields such as sociology, art, philosophy and anthropology, there is critique on the word Anthropocene. It insinuates that all the people are responsible for the climate changes we are facing today. However, that may not be entirely true. Somebody flying up down between Amsterdam and Brussels (175 km) contributes equally to CO2 emissions as the average Malinese person living for a year. Let alone people flying fifty times a year, owning a luxurious yacht, three villa’s and multiple cars. No, it’s not all the people who have a negative impact on the climate, but the people who have access to big capital. For this reason, some people believe Capitalocene would make for a more appropriate title for the time frame than Anthropocene.

From Matsutake to the garden of the hedgerow
Right after the start of Stichting Kapitaloceen they gathered money in the form of interest-free loans and donations. A few months later they had collected roughly €380.000 and bought off 4,5 acres of land in Gorsel (between Zutphen and Deventer). Initially, they named this first project Matsutake, after one of the most expensive mushrooms on earth. The Matsutake grows around different Japanese cities, on the ruins of capitalism. Here, two hundred years ago, forests had been cut down to make room for houses. Now, one can find production pine-forests on these so-called ruins and it is exactly in these forests that the Matsutake flourishes. This mushroom likes it here and has even outgrown the truffle in value.

With their first piece of land Stichting Kapitaloceen wanted to be a Matsutake and flourish on the ruins of Dutch capitalism. Speaking Japanese, however, turned out be an awkward matter in the local context, and so the more easily applicable Tuinen van de Egel was eventually chosen as the definitive name. The ground on which de Stichting set off had been used by a company that cultivated prunes ad strawberries with infusorial water and fertilizers in a steel construction. The remains of this company and its construction will make place for new trees, vegetables and fruits within the years to come.   

Division of the land
An important condition of Stichting Kapitaloceen is that all the lands they buy are divided between the farmer, the community and non-human life. That means that a Kapitaloceen project will always reserve at least 50% of the land as a natural area. Of the remaining 50%, a maximum of 10% is for the farmer who manages the land, for example to create an ecological CSA garden (Community Supported Agriculture) to generate some income. On the other 40% one lives and shares in harmony, think about keeping a communal food forest.

Collective non-ownership
For Stichting Kapitaloceen it is of major importance to neutralize ownership as much as possible. Or, as they use to say it themselves: ont-eigendommen (expropriate). They think ownership as a human construction has unfairly excluded non-human life. For Stichting Kapitaloceen, however, non-human life is of great importance, which is why they rather refuse to speak about collective ownership, preferring collective non-ownership instead. Stichting Kapitaloceen is the party collecting the money. It then wraps up that money a interest-free mortgage, under strict conditions. For example, the land association Tuinen van de Egel buys the land and will thus be -in the papers- the owner. This association then leases the land for free to the farmers that work it, the VOF de Boktor.

Important detail in this structure is Stichting Kapitaloceen always being member of the land association buying the land. A special member, claiming a veto whenever decisions are to be made about buying or selling land, taking on new loans, changing covenants, et cetera. The Stichting takes care of the capital and establishes a new land association for every new project. Lands are thus purchased decentrally, preventing Stichting Kapitaloceen from growing into a big landowner. The question who owns the land becomes irrelevant and the farmer working the land will never ever sell the land.

Financing
The manner in which Stichting Kapitaloceen finances the purchase of land is based on interest-free loans. That means that, as soon as a piece of land has been found, de Stichting will start looking for people lending money to zero interest rates. The loan will initially be for two and a half years, with Kapitaloceen then asking the lenders for an extended period. There are thus no dischargements, unless donations are in the place of loans. The choice for interest-free loans is a conscious one, preventing deposit money to grow in value and thereby disposing the idea of earning money from lending money. No compromises will be made, even if that means having less people interested in lending money to Kapitaloceen.

Although a fine post-capitalistic system by its ways, this system is also the Achilles’ heel of the organization. Land may have to be sold if financing becomes a problem. If it unexpectedly brings in less than the amount it was bought, for example through falling land prices, people will not be repaid with their whole deposit. That is in the books. Eventual profits will never be individually monetized, but used for the finance of new Kapitaloceen projects, or, in case Kapitaloceen ceases to exist, donated to similar organizations. Dido and David are optimistic. They firmly believe that this model is going to work, because there are enough people with capital they could lend without too much trouble. They are even willing to make people aware of their responsibilities owning capital. Next to that, they think that the example and experience of De Tuinen van de Egel can work well to excite people. An important detail which ought be shared is that lending money to Kapitaloceen will not come with a voting right. The autonomy of the farmer takes precedence, as long the rules are obliged, with the land being divided in the 50-40-10 way as prescribed.

Solidary payments
Currently there are three farmers working three days a week each at De Tuinen van de Egel. There are several CSA subscriptions from people paying per month or season for products they get delivered through De Tuinen van de Egel or come and harvest themselves. It doesn’t run wild yet, which is why a little shop has been created. A simple stand with vegetables and fruit from the garden for people in the neighborhood. The sale of these products is handled through a solidary pricing policy, in which production time is more important than market rates. Compensation is based on one’s hourly wages. On the stand hangs a scheme indicating the logical prices. Somebody living on social welfare should get a kilo of prunes for €2, while somebody earning above average contributes €8. Not everybody gets this concept, but many people like the way people with a small income could afford healthy, unpolluted food.

Farmer protests
The problems around agriculture and farmers in The Netherlands have not passed by Dido and David, of course. Like nobody else, they understand how the farmer is stuck between Rabobank, high land prices, supermarkets and their unfair expectations and the lobby for fertilizers and chemicals. There is hypocrisy in the way that agribusiness has been a part of the protest, they think, as the farmers act out of self-interest and earn lots to the current system. They find the large share of attention for the twisted flags unnecessary, mainly because of the nationalistic edge clinging to it. Kapitaloceen supports the protests, but they will not advocate radical conventionalism. Radical changes will have to be made in agriculture, so much is clear for them.  

Government
The situation with the nitrogen crises, ecological crises and the climate crises has been self-inflicted. Since the 50’s and 60’s the governmental policy has been geared in this direction. Small farmers were outplayed, crushed and could no longer save themselves. Today’s farmers need to work most efficiently, converting as large as possible volumes for the lowest prices. A policy which has resulted in monocultures with lost of pesticides and fertilizers. Farmers refusing to join the rat race are excluded from bank loans and therefore from buying land.  
The average farmer in The Netherlands has over a 30 acres of land. There are even farmers owning more then a thousand acres. Assuming an average land price of €70.000 per acre will get you at €2.100.0000 for just buying an average amount of land. That is absurd and impossible to carry for the small scale ecological farmer. It is a tragedy that The Netherlands have handed over the agriculture to the market. In France, this €70.000 is only €5.000: land is not understood as a market product. There is regulations, a maximum price and a situation has been created in which small, starting, biological farmers receive priority when land is for sale.

Future
Land is scarce and increasingly under pressure. Not only by the wicked agricultural system, but also the housing market, fields full of solar panels and the industry. If we want a fair, healthy future without crises situations, we need to apply land politics operating out of the market atmospheres.
Farmers are essential. We need more of them to be idealistic. Stichting Kapitaloceen has been founded to share knowledge, experiences and built lawful structures. Open source! Dido and David are farmers themselves and hope to help other farmers by buying off land through their Stichting. Momentarily, an important part of their work lies in raising political awareness among small farmers. And to make clear to everybody that farmers should have access to at least five acres of land for a long term, under fair conditions.