Pickles in Peril?

Illustration: Marvin Bauersfeld

Everyone knows them. You either love them or hate them. Pickles in a jar.

But what happens when the water needed to make them becomes scarce? In the Bergtheim Basin near Würzburg, taste and tradition meet today’s crises: climate change, water shortages, and changing agriculture. In this region — and elsewhere — the question arises: Who owns the water? The farmers or the local communities? Do we need technological solutions or nature-based approaches to tackle water scarcity?

This story is about the Anthropocene and shows how European ethnology can help us better understand such conflicts.