Martina Reinsch, Caroline Schumann, Dr. Andreas Butz
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Eco-competence in the southwest
Martina Reinsch (MR), Caroline Schumann (CS) and Andreas Butz (AB) studied in Witzenhausen at different times. Today, they work together in the Organic Farming Department at the Agricultural Technology Center Augustenberg (LTZ), a state institute that is also part of the Baden-Württemberg Competence Center for Organic Farming (KÖLBW).
The choice of study
MR: I studied in Witzenhausen from April 1985 to the end of 1987. I started my studies in Witzenhausen with the BPS II (Berufspraktische Studien) in the department "Methods of Alternative Agriculture" in the working group "Non-chemical Plant Protection". I had already completed my intermediate diploma at the University of Göttingen. From there, we - a few students - often cycled to Witzenhausen to listen to Hartmut Vogtmann, who had been a professor in the Department of Agriculture at the GhK (Gesamthochschule Kassel) since 1981 and held the world's first chair for organic farming at the time. I chose animal production as the focus of my studies (there was not yet a focus on organic farming).
AB: After an apprenticeship in vegetable growing on an organic farm near Ludwigsburg, I studied in Witzenhausen from the winter semester of 1999 to 2005 and chose organic farming as my major.
CS: I started the winter semester in 2001 slightly late because my flight back from Canada, where I had done the BPS I, was delayed due to the attacks in the USA. After that, everything went smoothly and I chose to specialize in organic farming.
The professional career
MR: My professional career was probably typical for students from Witzenhausen: after three summers in the Alps as a dairymaid in Graubünden, Switzerland, I worked in development cooperation for four years: With the German Development Service, I worked as a development worker in a resource conservation project (Projet Agro Ecologie) in Mali. After my stay abroad, I completed a postgraduate course (Environmental Protection and Spatial Planning) at the TU Dresden to improve my chances on the German job market. This enabled me to join the Baden-Württemberg agricultural administration via a cross-border project at the Institute for Environmentally Sound Land Management (IfuL) in Müllheim (South Baden). Today I am deputy head of the organic farming department at the LTZ/KÖLBW.
AB: I was a research assistant at the Department of Ecological Plant Protection. I did my doctorate there in 2010 and was still lecturing and researching as a post-doc. In 2012, I moved to the LTZ and did applied research in conventional crop production on legumes, arable farming systems, irrigation and agri-environmental measures, where I headed the crop production department. In October 2020, I went back to my roots and now head the Organic Farming department at LTZ/KÖLBW.
CS: In addition to my studies, I worked on farms, in the library and as a cheesemaker on the alp. After my studies, I was in New Zealand and got a job in the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Agriculture for orchard conservation. This was probably also because I planned and supervised the orchard plantations on the Frankenhausen estate for several years as a student assistant. At the ministry, I was offered a traineeship in agricultural administration, which I completed in 2011-2013. After that, I set up a technical school for organic farming at the then new KÖLBW near Freiburg and taught master students for a total of 6 years. From 2017, I joined the LTZ/KÖLBW in plant cultivation research and since 2020 I have also represented the German side of an institute for cross-border cooperation in environmentally friendly land management with Switzerland and France.
Memories of the student days
MR: My time as a student in Witzenhausen certainly set the course for my professional career: I was able to pursue my interest in organic farming and during my time in Witzenhausen I made contacts with the "alpine scene" and international agriculture, through which I found my way into professional life and was able to realize some of my dreams.
AB: I associate my time in Witzenhausen with exciting people and interesting conversations, a diversity of ideas, the "Witzenhausen eco-cosmos".
CS: Critical and constructive minds, the club, campfires, bite-sized panel discussions, dogs, children, horses, knitting and breastfeeding studies, thermos flasks falling over in the main auditorium, great cinema, tropical greenhouse, tegut, horsetail, market, conferences, WiTa, conversations on the Werrabrücke...
What was particularly important?
MR: I remember my time studying in the "familiar" Witzenhausen as very pleasant, as a field of experimentation and a source of inspiration in many respects. The time was important for my personal and professional development and I am delighted that I have come full circle in my current job and that I am once again working in the field of organic farming.
AB: I took with me the ability to think in networked systems, the necessary tools for applied research and the love of my life with my children, as well as many good contacts to this day.
CS: I have taken with me the courage to think critically and act constructively, to keep an eye on soil fertility and not to lose touch with the soil - and not to forget the joy of life and the enjoyment of good food despite all my commitment. And what has remained is a great network that I am happy to fall back on.