In Kars region, as in most other regions of Anatolia, several heirloom grains which have extreme importance for the villagers are now planted at very small amounts because they cannot reach the market, and as a result finding them nowadays is considered as a miracle. Among these, one of the most important is ?Kavılca? (emmer wheat -Triticum dicococcum), the ancestor of wheat cultivated over 10,000 years.
As part of their sustainable rural projects, Heaven and Earth Anatolia Association, has started working in cooperation together with villagers to increase the cultivation of heirloom varieties and their marketing. One of the first places where the project supported by SGP will be applied is the area of Kuyucuk Lake in the Akyaka district of Kars. The project aims the continuation of the cultivation of heirloom grains via ensuring a good valued market for the certified and brandnamed organic products by two years.

The project is implemented by Heaven and Earth Anatolia Association (YEGA), a non-profit organization established in December 2006 in Kars. It is shaped by the conclusions of pilot projects funded by The Christensen Fund (TCF) and conducted in the Kars region since May 2005.

The main purpose of the TCF study was to survey the rich cultural bio-diversity of the region in order to establish the most appropriate means to support it. The team visited almost forty villages and recorded the cultural heritage of different ethnic groups. At the same time, soil and flora devastation due to erroneous agricultural and animal husbandry practices, the endangering of traditional grains due to the introduction of hybrids and the negative impact of migration were observed.

Beti Minkin, a YEGA founder, who has been marketing artisan products from sustainable Anatolian village projects for years, will lead the program. At the same time, complementary ecological studies will be conducted with Dr. Cagan Sekercioglu, another YEGA Founder and a Stanford University Senior Research Scientist, around the Kuyucuk Lake. The Lake is a globally recognized bird sanctuary. Heirloom grains such as emmer, flaxseed, red wheat and barley are still farmed in the region by local farmers, but are in decline.

Project strategy:
The project?s goal is the conservation, propagation and marketing of endangered traditional grains, which were cultivated in rural Kars Region for millennia. Organic farming methods will be introduced to villages located in environmentally sensitive regions, aiming to protect agricultural and environmental bio-diversity, help repair soil damage due to the use of intensive farming technology, and counterbalance the effects of massive migration by providing new income possibilities to locals.

During the first year, environmentally sound organic farming techniques will be implemented in ten villages for the protection of agricultural biodiversity by the propagation of heirloom grains. During the second year, importance will be given mostly to marketing. Farmers will attend educational workshops on the techniques and benefits of organic farming during the whole project. Funding from SGP will be used in conjunction with TCF support for the benefit of above activities.