5.29.2014

Organic Solutions to our Species' Global Abuse are Meaningless Unless Consumer Capitalism Collapses


There are solutions to the destruction our species continues at an ever increasing rate to spew into our bio-sphere. We could reverse all of the abuse [though some types would take a very long time like pollution of aquifers]. Below there's a list of links to many of the scientifically accepted solutions that mixed organic farming and the restoration of perennial grasslands could achieve.

'Could achieve' But in reality none of Vandana Shiva or anyone's organic solutions can matter a bit on a global scale unless demand driven extractive capitalism ends. Be it by collapse - economic or environmental - revolution [Vegas odds 1,000,000 to 1 against] or epiphany driven conservation [same odds], we must stop our headlong gallop toward extinction immediately. Even if some longshot miracle were to happen tomorrow in our bling addicted consumer culture, the current crud in our air will continue to ramp up its effects for decades or centuries.

The fact is that never in history have the privileged given up their privileges voluntarily and it sure seems to me that the materialistic consumers aren't about to rise up and revolt so about the only hope i see of turning free-fall to slightly slower slide is long-term degrowth driven deflation [more on that in the coming days].

As Vandana Shiva says, "Forty per cent of all greenhouse gas emissions come from the use of fossil fuels and chemical-intensive industrial globalised system of agriculture. Biodiversity and soils rich in organic matter are the best strategy for climate resilience and climate adaptation." Biodiversity is an emergent quality on small scale mixed organic farms. Small scale, where hands do the work not inappropriate technology bought with loans from the enemy. Peasant farming is actually the most sophisticated, and though threatened by land grabbing international criminals, our best hope for the survival of our descendants.

“Unlike agribusiness, peasants do not treat food as a commodity for speculation profiting out of hunger. They do not patent nature for profit, keeping it out of the hands of the common man and woman. They share their knowledge and seeds, so everyone can have food to eat.” - La Via Campesina

Please read through some or all of the links below to learn more about how we can help undo the abuse of fair Gaia IF our species can first shrug off the chains of capitalism.

Climate change and Agriculture, by Vandana Shiva
Biodiverse organic farms produce more food and higher incomes than industrial monocultures. Mitigating climate change, conserving biodiversity and increasing food security can thus go hand in hand.

World Soils and the Carbon Cycle in Relation to Climate Change and Food Security. by Rattan Lal
Carbon Management and Sequestration Center Ohio State University

Organic Farming Sequesters Atmospheric Carbon and Nutrients in SoilsA decades long study by The Rodale Institute

Perennial Solution by National Geographic
Annual grains feed the world, but they create problems. Perennials are thrifty. Their long roots hold on to soil, water, and fertilizer, which means less pollution.

Putting carbon back into the ground – the way nature does it, by Adam D. Sacks

Why Conservation, not False Hope, is the Solution to Our Ecological and Financial Dilemmas, by The Mud Report