International Mountain Day
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MEMOLA project participated in the International Mountain Day celebrations.
On 11 December it carried out an activity related to the recovery of the memory of water in a town called Cáñar in the Alpujarra (Granada-Spain). For them, 11 December served to collaborate with the Community of Irrigators of the town of Cáñar, in recovering the traditional distribution system of irrigation. This system of water management has been key to the proper functioning of the irrigation system of Cáñar for centuries, however, it has been falling into oblivion and disuse since a few decades.
This activity, of an intangible heritage and great importance, is vital for the maintenance of cultural landscape of Alpujarra and for the recovery of traditional mountain agriculture. During the activity the older farmers explained to the younger ones how the distribution of water worked, known locally as the "Office". Every night a distribution was made, during the driest months, and allowed the existing water to be shared in a controlled and fair way. This type of traditional knowledge is at the basis for a sustained dialogue that local communities have established with the mountains for centuries. The disappearance of mountains would have disastrous ecological and anthropological consequences.