Traditions and Transitions of Hay
Last changed: 19 July 2017
In the summer of 2016, researchers from CBM contributed to a photo exhibition in Romania - Traditions and Transitions of Hay. The exhibition, and a conference in connection to that, was a result of research collaboration in Romania.
It was an exhibition organised by the Romanian Peasant Museum, the National School of Political and Administrative Sciences (Department of Sociology, Bucharest), and the Swedish Biodiversity Centre (University of Uppsala, Sweden).
Anna Westin and Tommy Lennartsson from CBM have contributed to the exhibition with material and also supported research and worked with the research behind the exhibition. The aim is to let a wider audience know about the magnificent hay-scapes of Romania, the values of it and the change that is going on - and share to the research in a popular scientific way.
- We have conducted field research in Romania trough different projects, all in the purpose of trying to understand the relation between biodiversity and traditional knowledge about land use, says Anna Westin.
During the last century, landscapes in Europe have changed dramatically, due to socio-political and economic developments that led to a decreasing number of areas managed in a traditional manner, such as the highly rich in biodiversity semi-natural hay-meadows.
The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) claims a commitment to the preservation of biodiversity and traditional landscapes and their custodians, peasants and farmers. Policies built around the concept of cultural landscape connect an increasing concern for the loss of biological diversity with a concern for the loss of local and traditional land management knowledge.
The exhibition took place in the Aquarium hall at the Romanian Peasant Museum in Bucharest, and opened with a round table talk conducted by moderator Vintilă Mihăilescu, on the themes of hay and biodiversity. The exhibition included the work of US photographer Kathleen Laraia McLaughlin.
As a follow-up to the exhibition and the conference, an article was published in the Romanian National Geographic, about the research
Results are also published in Environmental Conservation in 2013.
Hay is a central product in traditional farming. Large haystacks in Romania is sometimes placed under a roof that is vertically adjustable, so that it is always optimally protecting the hay from wind and rain.
The dry hay is left in the fields until there´s a need for a stack at the farm.
Hay rattle is both in Sweden and Romania a traditional indicator to when it is time to harvest the hay.