What if farmers were paid to adopt farming methods that ensured that the carbon that is causing trouble in our atmosphere was sequestered in their soils?
Lucas Ihlein's collaborative project 'Baking Earth: Soil and the Carbon Economy' explores this possibility, which is being debated around the world at the moment as a strategy to mitigate climate change. This project is currently part of the exhibition Shapes of Knowledge, curated by Hannah Mathews at Monash University Museum of Art, February 9 – April 13, 2019. For the exhibition, Lucas and Allan are presenting a fully operational demonstration model of the Yeomans Carbon Still, which will be used to test the carbon content of soils of various farms throughout regional Victoria. Excursions to collect the soil samples may involve Monash University students, scholars and members of the wider community and will double as opportunities for learning about regenerative farming processes more broadly.
Baking Earth: Soil and the Carbon Economy is part of the exhibition Shapes of Knowledge at Monash University Museum of Art (MUMA).
Find out more about the exhibition here. Public programs associated with the exhibition are listed below.
Exhibition Dates:
9 Feb – 13 April
Exhibition Hours:
Tues-Fri 10am-5pm
Sat 12-5pm
MUMA Address:
Ground Floor, Building F
Monash University,
Caulfield Campus
900 Dandenong Road
Caulfield East
(Melbourne) VIC 3145
Public Programs:
Live demonstrations of the Yeomans Carbon Still with Allan Yeomans (free, no bookings required):
Tuesday 12 February, 10am-3pm
Wednesday 13 February, 10am-3pm
Thursday 7 March, 10am-3pm
Friday 8 March, 10am-3pm
Thursday 21 March, 10am-3pm
Friday 22 March, 10am-3pm
Field Trip to Niels Olsen’s Farm to gather soil samples (limited seats, book online here):
Saturday 9 March, 10am-4pm
Departing from MUMA
Ground Floor, Building F, Monash University, Caulfield Campus
900 Dandenong Rd, Caulfield East
Details about this field trip here.
Round table discussion: Soil and the Carbon Economy (free, all welcome):
A round table discussion about soil carbon sequestration, its opportunities and challenges. How to do it, how to measure it, and how to legislate for it. With Allan Yeomans (inventor of the Yeomans Carbon Still), Louisa Kiely (Carbon Farmers of Australia), Dru Marsh (Victorian Government Environment Dept), Lucas Ihlein (artist), farmers and engineers.
Full details here.
