ABSTRACT
Overview ......................................................................................................... 151 Key Principles of the Holistic Management Framework ......................... 152
Holistic Principle 1: Addressing the Root Cause of Environmental Deterioration Is Essential .............................................. 152 Holistic Principle 2: Grazing Animals Are Essential for Maintaining Biological Decay ................................................................. 154 Holistic Principle 3: Timing, Not Numbers, Produces Overgrazing . 154 Holistic Principle 4: Assume You Are Wrong When a Decision Affects the Environment........................................................................... 154 Holistic Principle 5: Manage for the Health of the Whole Biological Community, Rather Than Individual Species ..................... 155 Holistic Principle 6: The Only Form of Wealth That Can Sustain a Community or Nation Is Derived from the Photosynthetic Process . 156
Development Principles ................................................................................ 156 Development Principle 1: Much of the Violence Communities Face Is Due to Burgeoning Human Populations and Diminishing Resources .................................................................................................... 156 Development Principle 2: Population Reduction Is Directly Dependent on the Education and Empowerment of Women ............. 156 Development Principle 3: The People in a Community Are the Only Experts on That Community ......................................................... 157 Development Principle 4: Handouts Result in a Loss of Dignity ...... 158
Strengths and Weaknesses ............................................................................ 158 Case Studies .................................................................................................... 159
Dimbangombe Ranch, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe ................................. 159 The Strategy ........................................................................................... 159
The Savory Institute works with land stewards on four continents to heal damaged land, improve biodiversity and food production, and reverse desertification. Thirty million acres worldwide are currently under Holistic Management. This chapter presents background about the process of Holistic Management and two case studies from Zimbabwe, Africa, where the basic concepts of the Holistic Management framework were initially formulated.
