Today in Washington, D.C., Arizona State University, the New America Foundation and Slate magazine are tackling the sticky subject of how to feed the world as population swells and climate changes in both extreme and subtle ways to threaten vital crops around the world.
Tune in to hear the conversation and review the agenda on topics including:
“The Collision Course: Rising Demands on a Hotter Planet,” “Will New Seeds Conquer the New Climate,” “Where’s the Beef: Your Hamburger in 2050,” “The Next Green Revolution: Is There an App for That?” and “Business as Usual: Toward Global Adaptation.”
In the session on “How to Avert a Food Crisis,” guided by David Biello of the Scientific American, Hans Herren, 1995 World Food Prize winner and president of the Millennium Institute and USAID climate specialist Ed Carr of the University of South Carolina discuss what can be done now.
“What we don’t need is more food,” Herren said. “We grow enough for 2,500 calories per person now. What we do need is diversity, different varieties of food grown in more places.”
“We cannot solve a problem with the same thinking that created it,” Herren concluded. “We need more production developing countries. In places where we now have food deficits, we can easily double or triple food production and access. We just have to change our thinking.”
Carr reinforced the importance of local knowledge and production of smallholder farmers.
It’s erroneous to ignore local knowledge when dreaming up solutions to food scarcity, Carr said. “When you look at climate trends these farmers are already coping with tremendous variability in climate. Do not underestimate how smart these famers are and consider that they are already adjusting crops based on markets and climate while development experts debate the best way to do it.”
On Twitter? Join the conversation with @FutureTenseNow at #foodfuture.
Hello Donna . . I enjoyed this report a lot and would like to read more. Perhaps Heifer should establish a “think tank” to find solutions based on some of these findings.
Thank you for your excellent reporting.
Rosalee
Hi Rosalee,
Thanks for your comments. I wish I had caught the entire forum yesterday as many solutions were discussed that Heifer can be a part of. I plan to go back and watch the other sessions on tape.
AnonymousBetty, What a wonderful year you have ahead of you. I have alayws been attracted to and supported Heifer International which is a tradition started by my Mother. This Christmas I gave a gift of a goat on behalf of my grandchildren. I had previously given them the book Beatrice’s Goat which is the true story of how a gift of a goat changed the life of a little girl about the age of my own grandchildren. They loved both the book and the gift of the goat I gave for them. They were curious about which country the goat would go to and what the family who received it might name it. I assured them that although we could not find the answers to these questions, that the goat would be going to a place where it was needed and would no doubt be given a wonderful name .just like the goat Mugisa in the story of Beatrice’s Goat. I hope we can continue to support Heifer International through the years.It will be fun to follow your adventures. Best of luck. Margaret