Idanha-à-Vida

Idanha-à-Vida is a long-term regeneration project on about 1,600 hectares of Herdade Marrocos, around the historic village of Idanha-a-Velha (ancient Egitânia) in Beira Baixa. A team of about nine professionals works on ecological restoration, organic farming, biodiversity monitoring, cultural memory work and hospitality. The project aims to create a lasting sanctuary for nature and community, and to restore the social and ecological resilience of the territory. Over the long term, it wants to join ecological restoration with social and economic wellbeing across the wider bioregion. The work starts from the idea of a biocultural landscape, in which nature and people belong to the same living system. Before undertaking any transformation, the team works to listen to the land: its ecology, its history and the people who bring it to life. Its methods combine regenerative agriculture, agroforestry, ecological restoration and cultural revitalisation, drawing on integrative, science-informed approaches. The project has hosted collaborative design gatherings, a stop on the Ecovillage Tour and the Re.Rural Caravan, connecting people, projects and territories across the Iberian Peninsula. Local partners include the Município de Idanha-a-Nova and neighbouring cultural and agricultural initiatives. Tobias Rihs founded Idanha-à-Vida, inspired by Ernst Götsch's regenerative agriculture work in Brazil. The project honours the memory of its late pioneer Peter Zin, known as the “shepherd of the trees”, whose dedication was foundational to the project's existence.