Investing in Regenerative Agriculture and Food

342 Ali Bin Shahid, one of the few who can model and calculate water cycle restoration

Dec 17, 2024

Ali Bin Shahid, an engineer and permaculture expert, discusses groundbreaking methods for water cycle restoration using mathematical models. He delves into the significance of quantifying abstract concepts like water flow and regeneration needs at landscape scales. Ali explains how integrated scientific insights can enhance rainfall and moisture retention strategies. He also highlights the urgent need for data-driven approaches to tackle ecological challenges, emphasizing the potential for financial and environmental benefits through sustainable practices.

01:02:06

Creator website

Episode guests

Ali Bin Shahid

AI Summary

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Understanding the concept of slowing down water movement requires quantifiable metrics, emphasizing the need for precise data in water cycle restoration.

Integrating engineering principles with permaculture offers a critical approach for quantifying ecological processes, allowing for a practical application of restoration strategies.

Targeted modeling of water cycles can identify effective areas for regeneration, demonstrating the potential for ecological projects to enhance local rainfall and restore ecosystems.

Deep dives

Understanding Slow Water Management

The concept of slowing down water movement in the landscape is explored as a crucial part of water cycle restoration. It emphasizes that while the idea of slowing water is commonly discussed, the specifics of what 'slow' means—whether it's quantified in kilometers per hour or in terms of hydrological processes—remain ambiguous. Practical measures to determine the degree of water flow in specific landscapes require quantitative methods, especially when addressing regeneration at a larger scale. Current approaches suggest that understanding and modeling these water flows can be achieved through numerical calculations, yet this practice is surprisingly underutilized in the domain of land management.

Intro

4min

From Engineering to Permaculture

5min

Understanding Land and Regenerative Practices

2min

Restoring the Water Cycle: A Holistic Approach

9min

Quantifying Water Needs for Ecological Restoration

3min

Enhancing Rainfall through Topography and Forestry

9min

Navigating Substack: Balancing Personal Growth and Public Engagement

3min

Innovative Solutions for Environmental Resilience

10min

Restoring Water Cycles for Sustainable Futures

18min

A conversation with Ali Bin Shahid, an engineer with a deep background in permaculture (and a military one too), a passion for modelling and one of the very few people using data and engineering approaches to tackle critical questions about regeneration. We explore how to put numbers to abstract ideas like slowing water down, spreading it, and soaking it. What does "slow" actually mean? How do we measure it—by kilometres per hour, or some other metric? How much regeneration is required to restore rivers or trigger rains in a given landscape? And, for example, where globally do we have the biggest potential? Where is the biggest gap between the forest and water potential and the current situation on the ground?

It's definitely possible to manage a few acres or a few hectares through observation, if you're there for many decades or even through different generations. But as soon as we start talking about regeneration at the landscape level, we need numbers. We need numbers and models. Surprisingly, a lot is already possible: we can calculate to a relatively detailed degree, what certain flows of air, water, and moisture will look like in a landscape. This means you can start to calculate and imagine, almost at a parcel level, where we need to regenerate in order to restore, for instance, summer rains and year-round rivers.

But the surprising part is how few people are doing this work. Ali is at the forefront, bridging the gap between philosophical principles of water cycle restoration and practical, data-driven solutions. Together, we delve into early but exciting efforts to quantify these ideas: how much water to slow, where the global potential lies, and the vast gaps between current conditions and what’s achievable.

---------------------------------------------------

Join our Gumroad community, discover the tiers and benefits on www.gumroad.com/investinginregenag.

Support our work:

Share it
Give a 5-star rating
Buy us a coffee… or a meal! www.Ko-fi.com/regenerativeagriculture

----------------------------------------------------

More about this episode on https://investinginregenerativeagriculture.com/ali-bin-shahid.

Find our video course on https://investinginregenerativeagriculture.com/course.

----------------------------------------------------

The above references an opinion and is for information and educational purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

Thoughts? Ideas? Questions? Send us a message!

https://regenerativo.org/en/laris/

KOEN10 for 10% off
https://rfsi-forum.com/2025-rfsi-europe/

Find out more about our Generation-Re investment syndicate:
https://gen-re.land/

Support the show

Feedback, ideas, suggestions?
- Twitter @KoenvanSeijen
- Get in touch www.investinginregenerativeagriculture.com

Join our newsletter on www.eepurl.com/cxU33P!

Support the show

Thanks for listening and sharing!

Get the Snipd
podcast app

Unlock the knowledge in podcasts with the podcast player of the future.

AI-powered
podcast player

Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features

Discover
highlights

Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode

Save any
moment

Hear something you like? Tap your headphones to save it with AI-generated key takeaways

Share
& Export

Send highlights to Twitter, WhatsApp or export them to Notion, Readwise & more