Okay, if you want to get pretty well caught up in two hours with where we are in fixing our food system on the national level, get current by watching this wide-ranging, in-depth discussion.
A panel discussion among:
* Walter Jehne, Australian Climate and Soil Scientist, founder of Healthy Soils Australia and delegate to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization;
* Vijay Kumar, government advisor for the Andhra Pradesh Community Managed Natural Farming Movement which is an effort to convert 100% of the farms in that state in India to natural farming;
* and Rep. Chellie Pingree, Congresswoman from Maine and organic farmer who sits on the House Ag Committee and the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture. Pingtree Chairs the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior and the Environment in which capacity she oversees the Interior Department, tribal relations, the EPA, the US Forest Service and public lands. She supports a diverse range of agriculture priorities—including sustainable, organic, and locally focused farming—as well as reducing food waste. Pingtree has introduced the Agriculture Resilience Act (HR 2803) which contains some of the most forward-thinking agricultural policy proposals ever introduced in Congress, many of which have a chance of being incorporated into the next Farm Bill.
This video from June 2021 presents a remarkable look at the potential future of farming with an emphasis current US national policy proposals that promote Regenerative Agriculture and its role in mitigating the effects of climate change.
This discussion is part of a conference series focused on environmental policy and was hosted by Biodiversity for a Livable Climate.
The following slides are from Vijay Kumar's presentation (begins at the 33 minute mark) on the government-funded grassroots organizing effort among farmers in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. After four years operating the program, 750,000 farmers and farmworkers have transitioned to natural farming with the involvement of 3730 villages comprising 215,960 hectares where womens'self-help groups and farmer-to-farmer education programs were initiated.
Don't for one minute think that the farming methods described in these slides and Vijay Kumar's presentation are in any way "primitive" and not applicable to farming in the United States. They are highly applicable to US farming and desperately needed.
Vijay Kumar, government advisor for the Andhra Pradesh Community Managed Natural Farming Movement
