Sustainable Agriculture and the Green Energy Economy
I have recently been focusing on the work and contributions of Dr. Mae Wan Ho and the Institute of Science in Society, UK . Here is a paper she presented at Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland 24-25 March 2010 entitled "Sustainable Agriculture and the Green Economy" (PDF).
The importance of agriculture within the context of the establishment of a viable green economy is surprisingly overlooked still – even with all of the data and information made available, which more than adequately speaks to this fact. This was certainly the case with much of the planning behind Masdar City, for example, touted as the world’s first zero emissions/carbon neutral city. The problem with that claim is there exists no chance for it to be true unless a serious, sustainable local food production capability is developed — and it can’t look anything like we have at present.
As long as most of the "green economy" discussion — and funding — is only dedicated to matters connected to power generation, architecture, and transportation we will fail to notice and, more importantly, do what’s needed to address the "elephant in the room" that is the problem of sustainable food production, which is arguably the most critical problem facing us.
“In a healthy town every family can grow vegetables for itself. The time is past to think of this as a hobby for enthusiasts; it is a fundamental part of human life.”
– PATTERN 177, VEGETABLE GARDEN: https://vasarhelyi.eu/books/A_pattern_language_book/apl177/apl177.htm
Totally agree that we must start in any project, no matter how big it is, with the way of producing food and then build the rest in a particularly order. But seems that just a few people want to take a look at this first and try to find solutions.