The Regenerative Viticulture Association, with the support of the Catalan Wine Cluster INNOVI, organizes the 4th Symposium on Regenerative Viticulture on Monday, June 3, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Vinseum in Vilafranca del Penedès. This event will be focused on analysing the impact of the drought and the strategies to make better use of scarce water resources and retain water in the soils of the vineyards. This event will be held in person and online and will feature the participation of Spanish academics and experts.
The impact of climate crisis on viticulture forces us to look for ways to make vineyards more resilient and to survive situations of extreme and persistent drought such as the one that has hit Catalonia, and especially the Penedès area, in the last three years. Regenerative viticulture, which aims to restore soil health, restoring carbon cycles and improving the overall ecosystem, is based on a series of practices that seek not only to make sustainable use of the land but also to actively improve natural resources. Some of these techniques focus on water management in order to maximize water infiltration and retention and minimize soil erosion.
In this new edition of the Regenerative Viticulture Symposium, entitled "Resilient vineyards: regenerative strategies to face drought", the impact of the lack of water, the evolution of the climate and adaptation to the climate crisis will be addressed through strategies such as respectful pruning, plant covers, agroforestry, keyline design or syntropic agriculture. These are strategies that regenerative viticulture often recover from the past to ensure the continuity of crops and guarantee the future of the vineyards.
The contest will combine the academic aspect with practical explanation by experts in regenerative viticulture. The academic presentations will be given by María del Carmen Llasat, Professor of Atmospheric Physics at the University of Barcelona; Laura Armengot, researcher in the Ecology of Agricultural Systems group at the University of Barcelona; Elena Baraza, Professor of Ecology at the University of the Balearic Islands. The different strategies to deal with drought will be outlined by three experts: Julián Palacios, founder of Viticultura Viva and specialist in the management of wine farms, will talk about respectful pruning to extend the life of the vines; Sergi Caballero, an expert in agroecology and permaculture, will explain the role of vegetation cover in water retention and keyline design for better use and distribution of water; and Ángel Perurena, an expert in syntropic agriculture, will talk about the water cycle and how to benefit from the effectiveness of plants in capturing and producing water.
The opening and closing of the symposium will be conducted by Miquel Medialdea, Councillor for Economic Promotion and Environment of the Vilafranca del Penedès City Council; Mireia Torres, founding member of the Regenerative Viticulture Association and president of INNOVI; Francesc Font, vice-president of the Association and co-founder of Agroasesor Consultores Técnicos, and Eloi Montcada, director of INNOVI. The event will be presented by the journalist and editor-in-chief of the magazine Arrels, Margalida Ripoll, and expects the attendance of more than a hundred people in person.
The 4th Symposium on Regenerative Viticulture will be streamed on the viticulturaregenerativa.org website.
