On February 7, 2000, the statutes of A Rocha France were filed with the sub-prefecture of Aix-en-Provence. In March, the association was registered in the Official Journal, as shown in the extract below:
A Rocha France will officially celebrate its 25th anniversary next month (although in reality, A Rocha’s adventure in France began in early 1997 when Peter and Miranda Harris moved to the Vallée des Baux to start a center there).
We are planning a celebration of this important anniversary on the weekend of May 24-25, 2025, in the Arles area. In the meantime, here is some information below:
- a photo of some of the founding members and key figures who helped establish A Rocha France, several of whom have already confirmed their attendance;
- as well as an excerpt from Peter Harris’ book Foi d’écolo, published 20 years ago, in which an afterword outlines the early days of A Rocha in France. A more detailed account of the history of A Rocha’s creation in France was published in 2008 in Peter Harris’ book Kingfisher’s Fire.
The beginnings of A Rocha in France (excerpt from Peter Harris’ book Foi d’écolo, pp. 213–215):
A Rocha France
A Rocha France is a non-profit organization (under the French law of 1901) founded by Peter and Miranda Harris. After spending fifteen years in Portugal, where they established the first A Rocha center, Peter, Miranda, and their four children moved to the southeast of France, settling between the Camargue, the Crau plain, and the Baux-de-Provence valley, areas renowned by enthusiasts and specialists alike for their biological richness. It was also during this period that the A Rocha International association, led by Peter, gradually developed to administer a whole network of centers created on the same basis as in Portugal.
In January 2000, Peter Harris entrusted Frédéric Baudin with the task of bringing together a few people interested in this project to form a board of directors, in order to create and run the French branch of the A Rocha association. With a degree in Mediterranean biogeography, Frédéric was well acquainted with the environmental issues facing this region. He had also studied at the Free Faculty of Reformed Theology in Aix-en-Provence, where Pierre Berthoud was then dean and professor. At his request, Pierre immediately agreed to become the first president of the new A Rocha France association.
In 1999, while exploring the area with a view to establishing a study and visitor center, Frédéric Baudin and Rob Crofton, a young English biologist, discovered a property called the “Domaine de l’Ilon.” This farm covers 250 hectares and includes a marsh surrounded by magnificent landscapes. To the south, the Crau steppe plateau and its south-facing slopes are covered with scrubland, holm oaks, and olive groves. To the north, the limestone Alpilles mountain range—the future regional park—dominates the Baux-de-Provence valley. This property is home to one of the last wetlands in the region. The valley was drained by farmers, particularly in the early 1960s, in order to cultivate the land. Thanks to the efforts of its owner over several decades, the Ilon marsh still exists and is home to many birds, plants, insects, and amphibians, some of which are protected at the highest level. The association A Rocha France was able to sign a management agreement with the owner, authorizing it to carry out its activities at Ilon with a view to protecting the marsh and its surroundings. To better understand this unique ecosystem, specialists, botanists, ornithologists, entomologists, etc., have taken turns conducting regular inventories.
A Rocha France seeks to put into practice the founding principles of the international association: a Christian perspective, community spirit, and cultural diversity. The scientific leaders wish to extend their research to the entire Baux Valley by conducting systematic studies to better manage and protect the most fragile sites and by raising public awareness of environmental issues.
During a plane trip in 2001, Peter met an elderly businessman who wanted to make a substantial donation to a Christian organization before he died. This man then bought a large property in the Baux Valley on behalf of A Rocha International! The “Domaine des Tourades” thus became A Rocha’s first center for environmental studies and research in France.
This center is truly a gift from God entrusted to the association. Significant work has been carried out there to accommodate employees, volunteers, interns, scientists, visitors, and members of the A Rocha association who wish to contribute to its objectives. A new team is in place and there is no shortage of projects! What is lacking is the time, the people, and often the money to carry them out. But since the association was founded, what a long way we have come!
Permanent staff and interns, some of whom are volunteers, currently run the center, which can accommodate around 15 additional people. Its funding comes from donations, grants, and membership fees, which encourage A Rocha France to grow with God’s blessing. However, the challenge remains: significant funds are needed to carry out this ambitious research and conservation program in the Baux-de-Provence valley. To raise public awareness of environmental issues, the association organizes field trips for small groups of young people and adults. Seminars and conferences are held at the center. The scientific director is in close contact with various stakeholders in the valley to engage in dialogue with hunters, landowners (farmers and private individuals), other environmental associations, public authorities, and others. The work has also developed around the study of a magnificent turquoise blue bird, the European roller, which nests in this valley, where there is probably one of the highest population densities of this rare and protected bird in France.
The dramatic floods of September 2003 and January 2004 in the Arles region had the “positive” effect of partially flooding the valley. Local landowners then wondered whether it was really necessary to drain this water or, on the contrary, to allow at least some areas to be populated, as in the past, by reeds and water birds. This dream, which the A Rocha France team had always cherished, then came true, on a very modest scale, thanks to the support and passion of a few landowners. The hope remains intact that one day it will spread to the whole of this magnificent valley, under the Provence sun…