Paula Serrano, agroecological farmer at AMAP Quinta Maravilha – Algeruz, Palmela, Setúbal
Quinta Maravilha was born seven and a half years ago out of Paula’s desire to change her life and give her son “the chance to live in the countryside”. Inspired by her childhood memories of her grandmother Lucinda, a farmer, and her desire to “do something concrete for the world, “Paula dedicated herself to agroecology. From the start, however, she always knew this project wouldn’t just be for her family: “It always made sense to me to have more people involved,” she says.
This community vision came to fruition with the creation of AMAP – the Association for the Maintenance of Proximity Agriculture – a process built up gradually and in a shared way. In AMAP, consumers are called co-producers because, as Paula explains, “they share the responsibilities of agricultural production with us”. They take part in seasonal assemblies (autumn/winter and spring/summer) and monthly “ajudadas” (collective work), events that combine work and socialising. For Paula, this model transforms her relationship with food: “It’s completely different to understand where the food comes from, the processes and the work that goes into producing it.”
Quinta Maravilha currently has three women farmers: Paula, Ana and Maggie, two of whom work part-time. In the beginning, Henrique also took part, but he is now more dedicated to construction. The Quinta includes spaces such as a collective kitchen and small houses for volunteers and other visitors, as well as plans to open a community kitchen, which will allow products to be processed and involve other producers and the local community.
The journey, however, has not been without its challenges. Despite the initial intention to divide the tasks equally, the workload ended up being distributed according to each person’s skills. “In the beginning, we did the weeding and he worked with the machines. I’m not proud of that,” Paula admits. What’s more, farm work is continuous and demanding, which has led to the need to set limits. Learning to manage time, and balancing work, family and rest became essential for the sustainability of the project. Making work more collective, diversifying income and carefully planning activities are some of the solutions found to deal with these demands. Being in a collective is great for thinking about strategies and ways of acting, “so that we can all overcome our needs,” she comments.
As a woman, Paula feels particularly responsible for managing the farm, especially when it comes to planning, a role she takes on to ensure economic stability and a time balance between work and family life. Motherhood has reinforced her concern for creating a sustainable project: “I wasn’t like that before,” she confides. At AMAP, female protagonism is evident, among the farmers but also the co-producers, with many women leading the organisation of the “ajudadas” and task coordination.
More than a vegetable production field, the Quinta is a space that combines functionality and beauty. “Our field is not just a field, we also want it to be almost like a garden,” Paula shares, emphasising that this has to do also with care and them being women.
As for agricultural support, Paula regrets that “the funding is not for the scale of farming we are doing,” as it favours monocultures and large farms. Without funding, the project has found strength in the collective, the neighbourhood and the family. “If it weren’t for that, we wouldn’t be where we are,” she recognises.
“I’m proud of the AMAP and feel that we’re doing a great job as a collective,” Paula says. For her, mutual support, collective learning and connection to the land are the essence of the project. “We’re making a little bubble that can spread,” she concludes, showing that Quinta Maravilha is more than just an agricultural project .