Insight and inspiration in turbulent times.
It would serve us well to consequently apply and further develop known, climate friendly farming techniques before we continue with “precision techniques” on a whim. Unfortunately, in both research and practice this approach is rarely taken.
A couple of posts back Greg Reynolds suggested I might write some short declarative sentences about my case for household farming, which struck me as a good idea. So here’s my best shot at it.
The radical changes known to history by the innocuous name enclosure peaked in two long waves: during the rise of agrarian capitalism in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and during the consolidation of agrarian capitalism in the eighteenth and nineteenth.
With a deliberate emphasis on BPOC and also LGBTQ+ communities, the Land Skills Fair took seriously the inseparable connection between ecological diversity and political, social and cultural diversity.
Two recent reports add to the mounting evidence about how this strangely destructive system works.
Obrador’s touted Fourth Transformation must include a balance between city and countryside, and a movement from the rapidly growing and unsustainable megacities back to the land. And megadams like El Zapotillo must become a thing of the past…
With its one-dimensional focus on modern science as the gatekeeper of ‘truth,’ the new SPI is in fact designed to exclude many of the knowledges (e.g., Indigenous, experiential, farmers’, tacit, feminine) that are now needed to deal with uncertainty and co-create more just and sustainable food, farming, and land use systems.
I have no comprehensive proposal for how we can get to “fewer and less,” nor does anyone else. The scale and scope of the challenge is unprecedented, and beyond the reach of conventional policy proposals. But we can enhance our chances of success by cultivating restless and relentless minds.
The golden rule of agriculture is the land is borrowed from our kids.
Farming can help to prepare for climate change, as well as feeding the population. But the merits of agriculture are often forgotten.
I contemplate how the bison found their way here — from Kodiak, from Yellowstone, via tribal networks — from the brink of extinction to grow in another place, where they’re once again stewarded by an Indigenous tribe.
Throughout the CFS process and now leading up to these events, we are building deeper conversations among farmers, NGOs and scientists about the kind of agriculture we want to ensure that food is a human right. Already, many countries are initiating pilot projects to adopt agroecological approaches.
Hurricane season has arrived, and it’s a load off my mind to know that I could cook dinner efficiently and conveniently regardless of the power and gas situation. What’s your stove back-up plan?
