Ananda Fitzsimmons
About
Ananda Fitzsimmons
Ananda Fitzsimmons is an author, speaker and advocate for soil and water, regenerative agriculture and ecosystem restoration. She is passionate about building a world that truly supports life on earth through social change and grassroots movements. She is the president of the Board of Regeneration Canada, a non profit organization advancing regenerative agriculture and the Vice President of the Board of the EcoRestoration Alliance, promoting worldwide restoration of ecosystems as climate mitigation.
Ananda founded Concentric Agriculture, a company which manufactures soil amendments from beneficial microorganisms.
My Journey
How I ended up as an author writing about soil, water and ecosystem restoration in the face of climate change is a story that unfolded gradually over many chapters in my life.
Chapter one: I discovered soil
Growing up in urban and suburban environments, I had always loved a walk in the woods but never had much interest in gardening. In my early 20’s, a friend of mine brought me to the countryside where I spent an afternoon helping to open up a patch of land for a new garden. Perhaps it was because I had lived more in my head than in my body for most of my life, I felt a kind of elation doing this simple work. It was almost a mystical experience. I had an aha moment and I realized I needed to touch soil in my life.
I moved to the country after that and learned about organic gardening. It’s become a pillar of my life ever since. I have been growing a large portion of my family’s food for over 40 years now.
Chapter two: I discovered microbiology
In my newly found rural life, I was always drawn to microbial fermentation processes, making lacto fermented foods, like sauerkraut, making sourdough bread, compost tea to stimulate the growth of plants. I learned how to extract naturally occurring beneficial microbes from soils, compost, vegetables and air to make natural products to improve soil and plant growth.
When I moved to a new property that was surrounded by apple orchards. My original feeling that being surrounded by apple trees and the bucolic beauty of apple blossoms and abundant fruit, was quickly spoiled with the reality of tractors driving by my house spraying toxic products onto the apple trees. This inspired me to try to transfer my artisanal knowledge of fermented microbial brews and try to make a non toxic commercial product that could be sold to large scale farmers.
That inspiration sent me on a life changing journey for over a decade. I knew nothing about business but I set out and ended up inspiring a great many people who had more experience than I did to help me. I got to know business people and financiers, microbiologists and other scientists and lots of farmers all across North America.
During that time there was a paradigm changing revolution brewing alongside my vats of microbial potions. The knowledge was emerging that most microbes are not germs, but in fact we need our healthy bacterial communities to digest our food and protect ourselves from disease. People started to talk about gut health and probiotics. People were learning that soil plays the same role for plants as our guts play for us. Big agro chemical companies were becoming interested in acquiring small companies with microbial technologies. The category of bio stimulants became a recognized category for agricultural products.
Beyond this new recognition of living soil, I found myself at the centre of an emerging awareness that all life is made up of complex, interconnected systems of living beings. We were moving from looking at what each microbe does by itself to understanding that there is a chain reaction to health, involving hundreds of species working together. Ecology entered the fields of medicine and agriculture.
Chapter three: I discovered the link between life and climate
In 2015 while I was still working with my microbial biotech company, at the COP 21 meeting in Paris, the group 4/1000 brought forward the idea that storing carbon in soil would draw carbon from the atmosphere and offset global warming. Agricultural practices are depleting soil carbon, which ends up in the atmosphere. 4/1000 proposed that if all the world's agricultural soils could increase their carbon content by just 4 parts per 1000, we could offset our carbon budget.
A light went on for me! Not only was soil critical for health, it could play a big part in resolving the climate crisis. Skipping forward to 2017, my company raised a lot of money and bought out the founders. I participated in the first Living Soils Symposium, all about raising awareness that soil and agriculture can be a climate solution. Many who were there, including me, felt galvanized into building this movement for regenerative agriculture. It made me feel that there is something within my skill set that can contribute to healing our planet. I became part of a team that established the Canadian non profit, Regeneration Canada. I am still on the Board today and we are working to help Canadian farmers transition from conventional farming to regenerative farming.
Chapter four: I discovered water
In 2019 and 2020, Regeneration Canada organized a Living Soils Symposium on the topic of Soil and Water. We were inspired by the work of Walter Jehne of Regenerate Earth and Zach Weiss of Water Stories, who were saying that climate temperature dynamics are actually controlled more by water than by carbon. I wanted to know more about that and organizing that Symposium brought me into contact with many amazing people who had expertise in soil/ water dynamics and the water cycle.
The COVID pandemic hit in 2020, forcing our Symposium and just about everything else to go online. It was a perfect time for focused solitary work. I was contacted by François Barnaud on LinkedIn. He and Audrey Charpentier were starting a publishing house, Éditions La Butineuse and they wanted to publish books about regeneration and climate change. François asked if I had any ideas and I suggested the link between soil and water, because it was central in my mind. Then he asked me to write the book. That was how I came to write Hydrate the Earth: The forgotten role of water in the climate crisis.
Taking that position of advocating for the water cycle and the centrality of those natural ecosystems in climate regulation, brought me to the attention of an alliance that was forming. I was invited to join a group of dynamic people from around the globe who were all working to advocate for the importance of nature and living ecosystems as an essential part of our strategy to avoid catastrophic climate change.
Through the EcoRestoration Alliance I was able to connect and exchange with impressive people from countries all around the world, deepening my knowledge of how ecology works and the incredible feedback systems that control the balance of life on earth. These connections were the inspiration for my second book, Restoring the Pillars of Life as I was able to reach out and interview the many inspiring people whose stories I share in the book. I now sit on the Board of the EcoRestoration Alliance as well.
My journey continues and I can only imagine where it will take me next.
QUOTE
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful , committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has"
- Margaret Mead
My Mission
To restore Earth’s living systems by regenerating soil, healing water cycles, and empowering communities to rebuild resilient, life-supporting ecosystems.
QUOTE
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful , committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has"
- Margaret Mead
My Mission
To restore Earth’s living systems by regenerating soil, healing water cycles, and empowering communities to rebuild resilient, life-supporting ecosystems.
Milestones
2018 -2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Elected as President of the Board, Regeneration Canada, Living Soils Symposiums
Published Hydrate the Earth 2021
Joined the EcoRestoration Alliance
elected as Vice President of the Board ERA
Published Restoring the Pillars of Life