Fernando Funes: Finca Marta

Located to the west of Havana, the twenty-hectare farm was created by Fernando Funes Monzote in 2011, and named Finca Marta in honor of Funes's late mother, a renowned Cuban researcher and lover of nature who also dedicated herself to the pursuit of agroecology in Cuba. Fernando earned a BA in Agronomy from the Universidad Agraria de La Habana, MSc en Agroecología de Andalucía, Spain and PhD in ecological resource conservation from the Universidad de Wageningen in Holanda. But the decided to return to his roots and focused on putting to practice his own farm using the agroecological methods he shared with so many. Funes faced a daunting challenge starting from scratch on a plot of land that showed little opportunity, as it had no access to water, its soils were shallow and rocky, and it was plagued with an abundance of invasive plants. His vision was to develop a healthy, harmonious agricultural environment without the use of any agricultural chemicals. Beyond this, he aimed to create a sustainable, interdependent relationship between nature, humankind, and surrounding communities. Finca Marta has 720 hives of honeybees, which produce 10 tons of honey each year. Video produced by Cuba Platform and Care Lab, now being re-released in collaboration with Maestra Productions. Project made Possible by Atlantic Philanthropies.