In this episode of Ruminations, we explore what it means to be in relationship with place—even while living a nomadic lifestyle. Our guest is Leon Bucher: Holistic Management educator, EOV Verifier, and one of five members of Savory’s Global Quality Assurance team for Ecological Outcome Verification (EOV).

Together, we unpack how EOV works—not just the mechanics, but the deeper meaning. Leon shares insights from years of walking land with producers across Europe, explaining how ecological indicators serve as feedback loops for better management. From baseline monitoring to five-year trend analysis, we look at what getting EOV actually involves for a farmer or rancher—and why, in Leon’s words, regeneration is ultimately about relationship.

+++

ALL EPISODES:

JOIN THE COMMUNITY + GET MEMBERS-ONLY PERKS:

GET INVOLVED WITH SAVORY INSTITUTE:

+++

00:00 Intro

02:13 A German nomad lands in northern Sweden

09:54 Career shifts

26:28 Learn everything or just get started?

31:31 Why do ecological monitoring?

34:01 TAKE MORE PHOTOS!

39:37 Monitoring for marketplace differentiation

41:18 Regenerating Members

45:20 What is EOV?

50:41 Calibrating data by eco-region

57:07 How indicators correlate to ecosystem processes

01:00:08 Leon’s favorite ecological indicators

01:01:34 Engaging your senses in monitoring

01:08:35 Setting up EOV on your farm or ranch

01:17:34 Trendlines & comparing to reference sites

01:20:27 Walking through an EOV report

01:23:37 Quality Assurance review

01:34:29 “Regeneration is relationships”

01:39:51 Final Thoughts

+++

MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:

– https://landregeneration.eu/en/

+++

This episode is brought to you by Savory’s Regenerating Members, a global community restoring over 100 million acres through Holistic Management. For less than $1 per day, you can help regenerate 400+ acres every year:

Want to sponsor an episode? 👉 https://savory.global/podcast

+++

+++

We’d love to hear your thoughts:

+++

Music written & performed by https://www.youtube.com/@travismcnamara9313