The Ithaka Journal started in 2008 to accompany our reflections and projects about climate farming and ecosystem restoration. It witnessed the first articles about biochar field trials, the first biochar production in Europe, the development of the European Biochar Certificate, and the spawn of the Kon-Tiki. It coined the 55 uses of biochar, presented the first biochar buildings, designed carbon futures and the certification of the C-sink economy. The Ithaka Journal is an archive and a legacy and navigates more than ever into unknown territories. Global cooling, carbon cycling, nanocarbon materials, and coffee from Nepal. 

 

Our latest articles

55 Uses of Biochar

by Hans-Peter Schmidt
Initially only used in agriculture, the range of uses for biochar now covers a wide range of different fields, giving this plant-based raw material the chance to make the most of its positive properties. Wherever biochar is specifically used even for industrial purposes, the carbon taken from the atmosphere in the...

Kon-Tiki - the democratization of biochar production

by Hans-Peter Schmidt & Paul Taylor
A simple but ingenious invention finally allows each farmer and gardener, everywhere in the world, to produce for themselves a sufficient quantity of high quality biochar. With reasonable investment and some know-how of the charmaker’s craft, farmers can produce in one afternoon a cubic meter of high quality biochar....

The use of biochar as building material - cities as carbon sinks

by Hans-Peter Schmidt
Biochar, a highly porous material produced from plant waste, is mostly used in agriculture as a soil conditioner, in livestock farming as a feed supplement, and in metalworking as a reducing agent. It can also be used for cleaning "grey water", as an absorber in sports clothing, in batteries and many other uses (see...

Vines take up yeasts from soil and transport them through the vine to the stem and skins of grapes

by Karin Mandl, Julia Schieck, Karin Silhavy-Richter, Volker Schneider, Hans-Peter Schmidt, Alexander Prange
In a vineyard field experiment it was demonstrated that Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast can be adsorbed from the soil by the roots of Vitis vinifera subs. vinifera and transported via vine to the stems and surface of the grapes. To exclude any extrinsic yeast contamination, the ripening grapes were sterilized and...

Biochar as Building Material for Optimal Indoor Climate

by Hans-Peter Schmidt
The effect a wine cellar's climate has on the quality and complexity of a wine has up to now been greatly underestimated. Only now are we beginning to realise that decisive factors for a good wine are not just temperature, but also humidity. As a result, the Delinat Institute has developed a new form of plaster made...

The use of biochar in cattle farming

by Achim Gerlach & Hans-Peter Schmidt
90% of the biochar produced in Europe is used in livestock farming. Whether mixed with feed, added to litter or used in the treatment of slurry, the positive effect of biochar very quickly becomes apparent. The health - and consequently the well-being - of the livestock improve within just a short space of time. As...

Building earthquake resistant clay houses

by Gernot Minke & Hans-Peter Schmidt
Many thousands of clay houses crumbled during the recent earthquakes in Nepal. But that did not happen because of insufficient strength of the clay as a building material, but rather because basic construction rules were disregarded. Gernot Minke, an international expert on clay building, explains in this interview...

Biochar Paper – elevating biochar from novelty to ubiquity

by Kathleen Draper & Hans-Peter Schmidt
Pack your fruits and vegetables in a biochar box, double their shelf life then compost the boxes with the leftovers and make Terra Preta in your backyard. Biochar paper and cardboard might become the most influential invention to mitigate climate change while reducing organic residues sent to landfills.

Justus von Liebig and the Birth of Modern Biochar

by Kelpie Wilson
Biochar is one of the oldest soil amendments in the history of agriculture. However, with the advent of modern agro-chemistry, the agronomic value of biochar got rapidly into oblivion. Only lately, when biochar got into focus as climate mitigation strategy, it’s function as soil amendment and nutrient carrier was...

Biochar in poultry farming

by Henning Gerlach & Hans-Peter Schmidt
The poultry industry is struggling more and more with livestock disease. Often this can be traced back to microbial pathogens and ammonia in the litter. The addition of highly porous biochar can serve to reduce toxic ammonia pollution in the coops and regulate the moisture level of the litter. The biting coop odour...

Terra Preta - Model of a Cultural Technique

by Hans-Peter Schmidt
The secret of Terra Preta lies not solely in its use of biochar, but rather in a societal system that has internalized the importance of closed nutrient cycles in nature. Only by means of conscious recycling of all accumulating waste matter could the otherwise nutrient poor tropical soils allow for population...

Biochar - a key technology for the planet

by Hans-Peter Schmidt
The current imbalance in the world's carbon and nitrogen cycle is not just the main cause of climate change, but also a direct threat to ecosystems through eutrophication, desertification and a decline in biodiversity. Re-balancing through regularly recycling organic material with its carbon, nitrogen and phosphor...