Ithaka Institut

Ithaka Journal

The Ithaka-Journal is the Ithaka Institute’s most important communication medium, the place where we publish our findings, visions and observations and where we discuss new ideas on different ways of using biochar, on carbon cycling, ecosystem remediation, fostering biodiversity, winegrowing, natural winemaking and much more. Below are our latest articles in English. You can find many more in German on the Ithaka Journal.


Dead rat in char

A dead rat, nicely buried in a cigar box so as to be surrounded at all points by an inch of charcoal powder, decays to bone and fur without manifesting any odor of putrefaction, so that it might stand on a parlor table and not reveal its contents to the most sensitive nostrils (Unknown Author, The Garden, 1873) Related Posts

Building earthquake resistant clay houses

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 how to build clay houses that resist earthquakes even better ...

Nepal Climate Farming Fund

One week after the earthquake in Nepal and thanks to the generous support of the European Biochar Community, the Nepali Climate Farming Fund was launched and has already brought relief to many Nepali biochar farmers that suffered the collapse or damage to their homes. In exchange for an advance of 5000 NRP (US$50) for future carbon credits, each farmer family signed a ...