OLDWAYSNEW
82 | May• 2019
T’SLATEJUNEANDIN
therocky,sun-scorched
hillsnorthofGranada,
Spain,ayoungwoman
tendsa flockof 170 shiny
blackgoatsastheygraze
on tufts of yellowing
grass.JuliaAbalosReznk,
23,tallandlankywith
short-croppedhair,looksasifshe’s
beencaringfortheseanimalssince
shecouldwalk.Yetjustfourmonths
agoJuliawasliving inbustling
Madridandstudyingtranslation.
Asthegoatsbegintowandertoo
far,Juliatakesthehandwovensling
thatdanglesoverhershoulderand
foldsitinhalf,insertinga stoneinto
themiddlesection.Sheswingsitin
aloopingcircle,releasingoneend
atjusttherightmomentsothatthe
stonegoesflying,sailinga hundred
metresinawidearcovertheherd
andclatteringdownontheother
side.Thenoisestartlesthegoatsand
theyf lockawayfromit– andback
towardsJulia.
Watching her is 62-year-old
JuanAntonioJiménezAlmagro,a
weather-wornshepherdwitha gen-
tlesmile whohasbeenroaming
theselandsfordecades.Herding
animalswithsling-thrownstones
isanancientshepherdingmethod,
andsomethingthatJuanisproud
tohavetaughtJulia.It’sjustoneofa
multitudeofskillsthatJuliaislearn-
inghereatanAndalusianshepherd
school in the south of Spain.
Thatyoungpeoplearetakingan
interestintendinganimalsisofcrit-
icalimportancetothoserunning
theschool.Withoutthesmall-scale
shepherdingoffree-ranginganimals,
thelandsofEuropewouldchange
dramatically.Theeffectsofclimate
changewould accelerate.Whole
breedsofanimals,bothdomestic and
wild,couldgoextinct.EVERYMARCHforthepasteight
years, 15 to 20 eagerstudentsbegin
classesattheShepherdSchoolof
Andalucia.They’llspendtenweeks
intheclassroom,learningabout
everythingfromveterinaryscience
topigfarmingtoaccounting.
Thefirstfiveweeksareheldinan
agriculturalresearchcentrenearGra-
nada,whilethesecondfivetakeplace
ina differentlocationeveryyear.This
yearitisintheCazalladelaSierra,
anhournorthofSeville.Duringthe
course,studentsalsocompletethree
placementsinthefield,wheretheyare
instructedone-on-onebyexperienced
shepherdtutors.
Tuition,mealsanddormaccom-
modationareallprovidedfreeof
charge;theprogrammeispartofan
EuropeanUnion(EU)initiativethat
fundssimilarcoursesinFrance.
Themajorityofthestudentsare
sonsanddaughtersofruralsmall-
holdings,buttherearethoselike
Juliawhoareleavingthecitybehind
topursuethesolitaryprofessionof
shepherding. Anyone can apply, but PHOTOS: DAVID BIASI