I do hope you’re all keeping up to date with what’s happening in Tunis…
Go Local recognized by CDC
We’ve often referred here to the sterling efforts of Lois Englberger and the Go Local team in Pohnpei in promoting agrobiodiversity-based solutions to the many, grave health and nutrition problems afflicting Pacific Islanders. The karat banana story is only one example.
Now we hear that the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors (NACDD) and Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have listed the Go Local campaign as one of their success stories in reducing the burden of chronic disease across the U.S. The full list is online. Look under Federated States on Micronesia (p.29). Congratulations to the Island Food Community of Pohnpei, the NGO behind Go Local. Some of the other success stories also look interesting.
The youthing of Japanese agriculture
I know I nibbled it, but the recent discussion on Global Voices about how Japanese agriculture is changing really deserves a bit more attention. I was particularly struck by what may just be the green shoots of burgeoning interest in agriculture among the young. There’s a fair way to go, of course.
In the next 10 years, the majority of farmers in Japan will be 70 or older according to an Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry survey, mainly because the younger generation doesn’t want to take over the family business, many young farmers said.
But countering that is the trend for celebrities to get involved in farming. Plus there’s the pilot agriculture-experience program. And increasing use of the internet in farming, including blogging.
Japanese agriculture may just get the shot in the arm it needs after all.
Food strategies for the future
Coming from a state, Wisconsin, that has more cattle than people, I say thank your lucky stars that Hindus worship cows, because it could be a lot worse. As globalization triggers the successful emergence of a world-spanning middle class largely centered on India and China, what Mr. and Mrs. Middle-Class Chindia choose to eat in coming decades will reshape this planet’s ecosystem to a profound degree.
Tom Barnett has a clear-eyed view of the future, and his take on The Economist’s take on rich countries rushing to buy up farmland makes fascinating reading. Here are his two conclusions:
So those Chinese and Saudi Arabian agents running around the planet, buying up all the arable land deeds they can find, are simply trying to hedge against this inexorable future. Will such pieces of paper matter when a serious food shortage hits? I doubt it. Last year China was one of the first nations to slap restrictions on rice exports, so how can it expect states where it may own farmland to act any differently?
But here’s where the new rules really kick in: A 21st century dominated by advances in biotechnologies is sure to feature commensurate bioweaponization, including among the weapons wielded by transnational terrorists. As energy production becomes increasingly localized thanks to technology breakthroughs, expect global food transportation systems to become the preeminently vulnerable — and thus preeminently guarded — commodity network on the planet.
You think so?
Hundreds of 100 questions
Gosh, it’s difficult to keep track of this stuff. There’s been an explosion of “one hundred most important questions facing X” initiatives in the past couple of years. These are the ones I was able to track down, listed in no particular order, but there may be others out there, in which case let us know.
- 100 most important questions facing plant science research.
- Future novel threats and opportunities facing UK biodiversity identified by horizon scanning.
- The identification of 100 ecological questions of high policy relevance in the UK.
- One hundred questions to conserve global biodiversity.
I think the only one we actually blogged about here was the plant science one.
Anyway, I bring all this up because I’ve just heard that Professor Jules Pretty from Essex University is now spearheading an effort to summarize the world’s agricultural challenges down to the top 100 priority questions. Of course, the most interesting thing about these lists will be the intersection among them. Talk about bang for your buck.