Acceso usuarios
María Sánchez Elena, Lorena Peña Ortega
Algaba de Ronda es una iniciativa empresarial cooperativa que inició su actividad el año 2002, al sur de la ciudad de Ronda (Málaga) España, en plena Serranía de Ronda, promovida y llevada a cabo por un grupo de personas de formación multidisciplinar, con el objetivo de trabajar por la conservación, investigación y difusión del patrimonio natural, cultural e histórico de la Serranía de Ronda. Se trata de una iniciativa de carácter social, cultural y económico, definida principalmente a partir de tres disciplinas: agroecología, educación ambiental y arqueología experimental. Algaba de Ronda ha definido y materializado un modelo de gestión integral del patrimonio, desarrollado y aplicado en la finca Algaba como modelo de emprendimiento ecológico que crea empleo y evita la fuga de capital intelectual de los espacios rurales, afianza el valor de los conocimientos de los hombres y las mujeres del campo en materia de soberanía alimentaria, dinamiza la función socioeconómica del patrimonio, fomenta la cultura de la sostenibilidad a partir de experiencias educativas significativas y aboga por la conservación de la biodiversidad, especialmente de los espacios forestales. En este sentido, el modelo de gestión del patrimonio del mundo rural definido por Algaba de Ronda ha logrado ofertar un lugar para la difusión y sensibilización de la riqueza patrimonial de la Serranía de Ronda; promover un acercamiento vivencial a la prehistoria a partir de la recreación de un poblado neolítico y ampliar los conocimientos sobre el pasado prehistórico a partir de la arqueología experimental; mantener y fomentar la producción agroforestal tradicional y ecológica; llevar a cabo un programa de recuperación de razas ganaderas en peligro de extinción; crear un observatorio de la realidad cultural del mundo rural y de su patrimonio natural e histórico colaborando en investigaciones y velando siempre por su conservación; acercar las ciencias y las artes a las áreas de montaña como elemento enriquecedor de su calidad de vida; facilitar un equipamiento cultural y de ocio para todas aquellas personas que demanden un lugar en plena naturaleza; trabajar como centro dinamizador del territorio mediante la organización y acogida de encuentros, cursos, jornadas y seminarios y en definitiva, revitalizar el papel del mundo rural en la sociedad de hoy.
Algaba de Ronda is a cooperative business initiative which started its activity in the 2002, in the south of the town of Ronda (Malaga province), in Spain, in the midst of the area known as the Serranía de Ronda. The initiative was promoted and carried out by a group of people with multidisciplinary education and with the goal to work on the conservation, study and disseminating information on the natural, cultural and historic heritage of the Serranía de Ronda. It is an initiative which is social, cultural and economic in nature and is mainly stemming from the three fields: agro-ecology, environmental education and experimental archaeology. Algaba de Ronda has defined and created a model of integrated heritage management. This was carried out and applied at Finca Algaba as a model of an ecological venture which creates employment, prevents the rural areas from losing their intellectual assets, strengthens the value of the knowledge of country men and women on the matter of food sovereignty, boosts the socio-economical function of the heritage, encourages the culture of sustainability through meaningful educational experiences and advocates conservation of biodiversity, in particular of the forested areas. In this sense, the model of management of the world of rural heritage defined by Algaba de Ronda has succeeded in offering a place to share information and raise awareness about the richness of the Serranía de Ronda heritage; to promote existential closeness to prehistory through a reconstruction of a Neolithic settlement and to broaden the knowledge of prehistoric past through experimental archaeology; to maintain and promote traditional and organic production of agroforestry; to carry out a program of recovering those livestock breeds which are in danger of extinction; to create an observation point of the cultural reality of the rural world and its natural and historic patrimony by collaborating in research always with conservation in mind; to bring art and science to the mountain areas as a an element which enriches the quality of life; provide cultural and entertainment tools for all of those who require a place in the midst of nature; to work as a centre energizing the area through organising and hosting meetings, courses, conferences and seminars, and, finally, reviving the role of the rural world in today´s society. The main aim is to share the experience of the Algaba de Ronda and facilitate cooperation. In order to do this, different lines of work are presented which have in common the socialisation of the knowledge (education, dissemination and research). The many include a zoological “nucleus” for the livestock in danger of extinction, Prehistoric Science Park and an Environmental Observatory of the Serrania de Ronda. In order to carry out Algaba´s different actions, a social economy network has been put together which guarantees the quality of product and services offered, such as its educational programmes carried out by the school community, cultural visits for tourist groups, families and professionals connected to the various interpretation areas, research programmes with the collaboration of Universities and Research Centres, organizing and hosting training programmes, creating mobile exhibitions and issuing didactic materials and publications. Moreover, the agroforestry use of the traditional estate is being continued, and in an organic manner, with its meat, honey and cork products. During the last five years of work, Algaba de Ronda has attended to more than 15 000 people at its different educational and cultural programmes, hosted training events on the subject of environmental education, agroforestry, the rural world and archaeology, which were aimed at professionals, business people, administration technicians, teachers, etc. The total of all the carried out jobs have led to various publications, university papers, acknowledgements, and awards. Amongst the awards we can highlight the Premio Arco Iris a la Mejor Iniciativa Cooperativa (The Rainbow Award for the Best Cooperative Initiative), Europa Nostra award for educational work and popularising heritage, or the Excelencia a la Innovación para Mujeres Rurales del Ministerio de Medio Ambiente, Rural y Marino (Innovation Excellence for Country Women by the Ministry of Natural, Rural and Marine Environment).
