Since a year and a half I spend about 1/3 of my time in the South of Madagascar where I am creating a small farm with my new partner Claudio by and for local people.

We have called our enterprise ‘LABIRINTO’.

We aim to develop a periwinkle plantation, self-sufficient by 2030 led by Malagasy people. We also aim to create a small plantation based on the principles of permaculture, generating direct benefits for those who live on and around the land.

When looking for a name, we came up with LABIRINTO, linked to my own fascination with labyrinths. During my many years at Qlick I witnessessed several times the impact that walking a labyrinth could have. 

Here in Madagascar, the labryinth has received a whole new extra meaning for me.

When you look at a labyrinth, it looks chaotic. The pattern is not immediately visible and you think you can get lost in it. However, a labyrinth is not a maze.  There is only 1 path to the center. Seemingly chaotic and yet unambiguous, with a path that leads to the core, to what the essentials of life really are… It is with this in mind that we started this project. We want to bring different worlds together and transcend differences. We want to invest in people’s potential. We want to listen to real needs. We want to learn from systems that seem chaotic but are not. We want to give a little help, without being too much in the foreground.

In short, we want to continue to believe that joining forces gives wings to humanity…

It is really exciting to see that, with relatively small means, so much can be accomplished if the will and the enthusiasm are present. To be continued…