MADRID, Spain — In a discussion with Mohammed, a Young Climate Visionary belonging to cycle 02 of The World Around’s International Summit, he describes his experimental garden and his engineered sustenance amid international aid restrictions and political turmoil.
The Saharan Desert
In between Morocco and Tunisia lies Algeria, the 10th largest country in the world and the largest in Africa. Bordering the Mediterranean sea, most of the country’s 47 million center around The Tell heartland – an area of valleys and hills close to the Atlas Mountains. Westward, plains such as Bejaia plain are rich agricultural sources, composed of fertile land and housing vineyards. Southward lies the Sahara desert.
Ninety percent of Algeria is in this region, where gale force winds, drought and severe heat are common. The country receives less than 400mm of rainfall each year, and in summer temperatures reach up to 120 degrees fahrenheit. Sand, not soil, forms the base of the land here, meaning traditional farming techniques are unavailable. While virtually uninhabitable, natural resources such as phosphates, fisheries and oil are abundant. It is also in this region that political unrest unfolds.
Mohammed Salem Mohammed Ali was born in a Sawhali refugee camp in Algeria, where he continues to work today. His mission is simple: provide fresh, organic food for the Sawhali refugees living on the land – and waste nothing. This is where he built his “Garden Against All Odds.” He belongs to cycle 02 of Young Climate Visionaries, and uses architectural design, agriculture, and art at the frontiers of survival.
A People Displaced
Since 1963, the United Nations has claimed the area of Western Sahara a “Non Self Governing Territory.” After Spanish colonial powers retreated from the region in 1975, the land was contested and competing governing powers sought to claim control. Now, pro-independence groups such as the Sahwali Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) consider Western Sahara occupied territory, three quarters of which Moroccan forces control since 1976.
After the conflict began, more than half of the indigenous populations in the Western Sahara fled – the Sahwali people included: a displaced nomadic society with a population of around 165,000. Mohammed speaks of his lineage as those “forced to displace and [ending]up in refugee camps in Algeria.”
In these camps, survival is uncertain, good health even more so. With arid conditions traditional farming techniques do not work, and once without livestock and the means to support themselves, Mohammed discusses how “they became dependent on international aid.” The occupation of land is a direct cause of conflict and the number one contributing factor leading to poverty – and this starts with agricultural depletion.
A ceasefire deal was abandoned in 2020: now, six years later Sahwali people are still almost entirely reliant on foreign aid – aid which is “steadily decreasing.” Medical problems such as anemia became evident in the camps as a result of poor nutrition and inadequate access to varied food sources. This was what Mohammed sought to change.
The Nomad Garden
Design is synergy, as well as structure. Mohammed describes this as a “system,” consisting of “the water cycle, the animals’ houses, the raised beds, and the walls—to work together as the Nomad Garden.”
Moreover, water is scarce. Working in the camps, where people receive less than the global average of water per day (12-16 litres compared to 20), recycling is a necessity.
Creating the Nomad Garden came from a place of need: “I built it using only available materials. We had this little space next to our house where the old house had collapsed, and that’s where I made the small garden. It was a small space turned into rows with vegetables and herbs. I made some small squares of mint and coriander.”
This is also an ecological and environmental concern for Mohammed, who works outside of the kind of infrastructure used in industrial agriculture. The latter, he says, have “many consequences… Like the chemicals that are being used such as chemical pesticides and chemical herbicides are affecting the diversity as well as the human health: those chemicals go into the underground water that we will have to drink later.”
After the techniques of Taleb Brahim Kalil, Mohammed uses sanduponic systems to tackle the problem of scarcity and uses completely natural methods: he replaces soil with sand, and through a complex network of troughs and pipes, it goes through the process of draining, circulating with barely a drop going to waste.
The World Around
Most people will know Mohammed and his work through the international summit, The World Around. Every two years, 25 young people put their design innovations forward and are carefully selected and mentored by leading architects and designers. This is a partnership that promises to bring forward the next generation of climate leaders – those at the forefront of environmental and political change, and those wishing to project their “visions for a more resilient future.”
After Mohammed began his gardening work in 2018, he put forward his idea for The World Around’s summit: once being shortlisted, travelling 47 kilometers to the nearest town to access WiFi for the meetings, navigating the extreme heat, and meeting and collaborating with his mentor, Brendon McGetrick, he was inspired scientifically and artistically.
“Design is everything,” Brendon told him. This includes survival and resistance. Mohammed notes “For me, art is a powerful tool to share what I do with my community, like one meter of art.”
Seasons to Come
As well-documented, the state of international aid in 2026 is as low as 2015 levels. The European Commission has given a detailed breakdown of the funding and reserves; however, communities still feel the effects of this cut.
From a refugee’s perspective, Mohammed recalls that “as a kid I remember the products that we received from international aid, that include tomatoes, tuna, camel meat, cheese Etc. But now all of those products are no longer on the list of international aid, it has decreased not just their diversity but also quantity.”
The UNU finds that while in the 1960s, food aid made up 20% of international overseas aid, today this figure has fallen to 5%.
Acknowledging that aid can only solve part of the problem, he wishes “to discover what could actually grow in this harsh desert environment,” noting that “for now, our goal is to supplement the international aid we receive with fresh, nutritious food, viewing total self-sufficiency as our long-term destination.”
“Natural resources are a big problem in the world, especially for the indigenous people. I see my community as one example of many stories of the indigenous communities around the world.” The future of the garden is uncertain, but Mohammed’s work will continue. “The garden is in constant development; we are building our knowledge with every experiment we run. We hope to teach, inspire, and motivate.”
“When I started with just a two-square-meter plot of plants, I never imagined achieving what I have today. So, all I can say is that I will keep dreaming and making.”
– Grace Sandall
Grace is based in Madrid, Spain and focuses on Technology and Solutions for The Borgen Project.
Photo: Flickr