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Ever since I began my journey to care for the Earth, I’ve run into information that’s made me feel blind-sighted, overwhelmed, and helpless. As many of the foundational systems for our survival and society have been found to be environmentally damaging, it’s felt impossible to disengage them, and even less possible to change them.
Depression and anxiety have been the natural side-effects to the helplessness I’ve felt as I’ve learned about how the world that I depend on (and perpetuate) has been designed in ways that ultimately backfire significantly. It’s been disorienting, terrifying, and humbling -to say the least.
Naturally, there’s been a desire to change whatever I can. But it hasn’t felt easy (to put it lightly). Just by being alive in the world today, I have unwittingly invested into harmful practices. The extent to which this is true became evident as I earnestly tried to disengage everything that’s been found to have consequences. But, after years of feeling like a perpetual failure and accomplice, I was a wreck: isolated from society and family, and sick in spirit and body.
Thankfully, after strings of sleepless nights and lost battles with the potty, grace came to me with a new way to frame the changes that are called into being. With a compassionate way of understanding our story, my heart began to unfreeze and I started to regain hope, connections, and energy. Learn more about the story that grace brought me here.
That being said, I know I’m not alone in despair, or even denial, that can arise with the realization of how our favorite things and investments are contributing to the crisis that we’re all facing. Indeed, making those changes can feel phenomenally risky; it can feel like we’re not only putting our lives on the line, but also the lives of everyone that depends on us. While some may say that it’s worth risking short-term comforts for the sake of longevity, when those short-term discomforts threaten to demolish everything that we’ve ever come to depend on, making those kinds of changes can seem far from reality.
Still, every day folks are finding creative ways to mitigate the tension between the needs of the moment and those of the future, such as the story of Regenerative Agriculture.
As this story brings hope and mercy to the wide-reaching conundrums that we’re all facing, here’s tale of how humanity has wrestled with the demands of agriculture, and how folks are finding a way forward -together.
A Brief History of Humans Feeding Themselves
The Neolithic Revolution started about 12,000 years ago when agriculture simultaneously and independently arose all around the world (in at least 11 separate centers of origin1) to set into motion the global society that we’ve come to know today. That being said, homo sapiens have been on Earth much longer, for about 300,000 years2. So it’s important to note that, relatively speaking, it’s a pretty new technology (taking up only about 4% of human history).
That being said, much of what we’ve come to know as modern society has largely been born of the discovery of agriculture. On the plus side, it’s made possible tremendous human developments, especially in the arts and sciences (this is largely due to the fact that farming has given folks more time to tinker and think). On the negative side, it contributed to huge class divides between landowners and land workers, including the development of slavery34. It has also contributed to the development of modern cities and lifestyles5 that ultimately have created a huge disconnect between humans and the natural world6.
On the ecological side, agriculture has had varying degrees of impact on the natural world; on the one hand technologies like crop rotations keep the soil relatively healthy through intentionally replenishing cycles. But, on the other hand, practices such as over-plowing have caused disasters as big as the Dust Bowl7.
Even so, it wasn’t until the development of industrial agriculture that that modern approaches to growing food rapidly started to show consequences. That being said, as with most technologies, it started with the best intentions. Here’s the story:
The Charitable Beginnings of the Green Revolution
In the 1940s, The Green Revolution began in Mexico with the intention to “reduce poverty and hunger in developing countries.8” Here, scientists developed a hybrid wheat variety that dramatically expanded yields. Following its introduction, hunger and malnutrition there dropped significantly.9”
The methods then spread all over the world, and “had a dramatic effect: Between 1940 and the mid-1960s, Mexico achieved agricultural self-sufficiency. The results were heralded as an agricultural miracle, and the techniques were extended to other crops and regions grappling with food insecurity.10” These techniques included mono-cropping (which is “the practice of growing a single crop year after year on the same land”) as well as genetic engineering, chemical pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers, as well as modern irrigation systems. One of the Green Revolution’s primary contributors, Norman Borlaug, even won the Nobel Price Prize for his work11.
However, the results of Green Revolution12 were ultimately short-lived as the methods had many negative consequences, including: increased water usage, soil, air, and water pollution13, soil depletion (thus accelerating erosion and soil loss14) and increased carbon emissions. Furthermore, on a social-level, the Green Revolution has decreased traditional farming knowledge, thus increasing dependence on Green Revolution farming techniques.
With all that in mind, "despite its promise, mono-cropping did not solve the problem of food insecurity, as world hunger continues to rise15” and the environmental degradation that has come of it ultimately threatens the ability to grow food in the generations to come.
Taking the Risk for Regeneration
To address these challenges, Regenerative Agriculture has developed as a method of “restoring degraded soils using practices…based on ecological principles.16” In a world that has grown to population sizes that require large-scale farming, Regenerative Agriculture offers a path forward that simultaneously meets the needs of human and Earth flourishing: though simple and ancient practices such as crop rotations, Regenerative Agriculture allows large-scale production of food while maintaining healthy soil and ecosystems. Learn more about regenerative agriculture here.
Does it sound too good to be true? It’s not, but it’s also not a quick or easy transition for conventional farmers to make. Indeed, there are a few significant challenges that come with the move into regenerative practices:
Firstly, it’s risky. Regenerative Agriculture encourages the use of cover crops. But, adding another crop to the rotation is a significant investment that requires not only purchasing new seed but crop-specific infrastructure (such as equipment for planting, harvesting, processing and storing). It also requires investment in knowledge; indeed, the tricks for growing good corn don’t all transfer to the new cover crops. Each cover crop requires its own specialization, which is its own investment in education and/or specialized labor. With that in mind, each cover crop comes with its own risks, including the potential loss of the whole crop. This risk is especially high early in the process as regenerative practices take careful planning and organization, and mistakes can be costly.
Furthermore, the benefits of Regenerative Agriculture are not immediate, often taking years to reap.
Finally, insurance plans for conventional agriculture often don’t offer support for switches to Regenerative Agriculture, making the change even more risky.
Still, given the relative benefits that Regenerative Agriculture can bring to both farmers and the environment, some may scoff at these obstacles. But I think it’s important to put ourselves in the shoes of the farmers, and all those in the industrial agriculture industry. Farming is a public service that is extremely vulnerable. Indeed the threat of pests and bad weather can be absolutely devastating. So, when the Green Revolution initially produced such positive results, many people made big investments in the new methods, ultimately creating the enormous industry, and culture, that’s become dependent on those methods today. At the time that investments were being made, I can only imagine what a relief it was to find something that seemed like it could remove a few of the the vulnerable variables. With that in mind, even as it’s has been proven that those methods are harmful in the long-run, I can imagine that’s not easy to stomach when you’ve invested your whole life and your whole family’s well being into it.
But, thankfully, folks are finding ways to mitigate the risks of change by forming conglomerates that share the risks, thus lightening the load for everyone involved. For example,
a group of unlikely allies came together in 2018: the Practical Farmers of Iowa, Unilever, PepsiCo, Cargill and ADM. The non-profit and two food brands, plus their suppliers, began working together on a regenerative agriculture project after realizing there was overlap…in their long-term sustainability goals...
In Iowa, as much as 90% of the land is devoted to agriculture, and many farmers produce both soy and corn. By implementing a regenerative agriculture program for farmers who provide crops for Unilever and PepsiCo…a certain amount of de-risking for those farmers can be achieved…
Herrish Patel, nutrition North America general manager at Unilever, says that part of the reason they’ve been able to scale the project up is because of this shared-cost approach, where not only farmers but a network of interested parties, all shoulder the financial risk..And the result? The more than 90,000 acres that were planted regeneratively in 2021 as part of the program meant a 27% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, according to PepsiCo. ‘Having such proof-points is helpful in trying to affect change at a policy level,’ says Patel. 17
These kinds of groups (which are happening more and more) form a winning strategy that brings tremendous hope and help to those who have found themselves with the weight of the world on their shoulders.
With that in mind, this next song is dedicated to the farmers who, on the one hand, offer so much to support the nutritional needs of our global population, while on the other hand are under the weight of having inherited a broken agricultural system that has been in the making not just for the last century, but for millennia. With this mind, those who grow food for us on mass levels need our love and support in making the difficult changes that are required, but that come with such high risks and costs to the individuals who are challenged to make them. How can we share the costs and risks to make the changes lighter on us all?
Indeed, with these farmers as a reflection, this song is also for all of us who have inherited and/or invested in things that have only revealed themselves as harmful after inheriting or investing in them (and, at this point, I’d say that’s all of us, in one way or another). That’s the thing about technology: as it becomes rooted into our foundations, as habits are born of it, as lifestyles are formed with it, and as even addictions are caused by it, technologies birth whole new realities for humanity. With that in mind, making changes that are connected to blindspots in our technology can feel very risky as they’re at the root of our realities.
Furthermore, making changes can feel especially tricky because any new approach or technology is also inherently risky; all technology is (ultimately) an experiment. The Green Revolution is a perfect example of this as the technology that was developed to address an important social problem ultimately made new problems. The extent of those problems, however, was only fully realized after significant investments, and damage, had been done. Indeed, the momentum that can come with new technology can be hard to interrupt once it gets going, no matter how harmful it ends up being.
With that in mind, of course it’s important to design creative solutions with as much foresight as possible; the development of technology, no matter how well-meaning, requires a careful balance of restraint and courage. But, when it comes to Regenerative Agriculture, the recommended methods have been tried and tested over many generations, all over the world. Even so, for those who are called to make the change, it takes a certain leap of faith. How can we help each other feel safe?
I think it starts with compassionately recognizing that in the process of development, where we draw the line between patient testing and brave implementation is not always clear as the need for new strategies pushes harder and the pressure for solutions gets stronger. Plus, the nature of blind-spots is that they’re blind; they only come to light when the consequences have already been set into motion. How can we be caring and supportive to each other on the tricky tightrope of technology? How can we use our creativity to address the challenges that are inherent in development?
In any case, the strange beauty of sentences like “scientists predict that in 60 years there’ll be no more usable topsoil” is the realization of the risk that we’re already in; life is already on the line. For years, those kinds of apocalyptic sentences sent me straight into me in fight or flight responses that either paralyzed me or fed even more destructive patterns of fear. But, overtime, I’ve come to discover the freedom and courage that is also available in these times of revelation. What’s left to lose when it’s already all on the line?
As global crises continue to reveal (with growing clarity): the path that we’re on is already leading towards destruction. Of course, that’s terrifying -if we stay on that path. But, can it also be freeing? What if these kinds of apocalyptic sentences (that we all face every day), also have the ability to give us the greatest courage that humanity has ever seen?
One thing, for certain, is that it’s all easier when you risk it with me.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_agriculture#:~:text=Agriculture%20began%20independently%20in%20different,changed%20the%20way%20humans%20lived.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/essential-timeline-understanding-evolution-homo-sapiens-180976807/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_slavery#:~:text=Evidence%20of%20slavery%20predates%20written,that%20made%20mass%20slavery%20viable.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/slavery-sociology/Agriculture
https://foodsystemprimer.org/production/history-of-agriculture#:~:text=More%20abundant%20food%20supplies%20could,and%20towns%20grew%20into%20cities.&text=Agriculture%20produced%20enough%20food%20that,going%20to%20eat%20that%20day.
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-94-007-7088-1_2
https://www.history.com/topics/great-depression/dust-bowl
https://www.treehugger.com/green-revolution-history-technologies-and-impact-5189596
Ibid.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Ibid.
https://e360.yale.edu/features/how-the-loss-of-soil-is-sacrificing-americas-natural-heritage
Ibid.
https://www.treehugger.com/how-monocropping-harms-the-environment-5193191#:~:text=the%20United%20States.-,The%20Origins%20of%20Monocropping,as%20tractors%20and%20irrigation%20systems.
https://www.noble.org/regenerative-agriculture/
Ibid.
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