Biodiversity and Sustainable Agriculture
We believe that agriculture and biodiversity are essential elements of life on planet earth. Biodiversity and agriculture are connected and can benefit greatly from each other. Our biodiversity and sustainable agriculture initiative will explore this connection.
It is often the case that modern, industrial agriculture can have extremely negative impacts on biodiversity. Much of the world's food production now comes from corporate mega-farms that consist of a monoculture of just one crop. And often that crop is genetically engineered to withstand high-levels of herbicides or other poisons that are designed to kill weeds or animal pests. Unfortunately, the pesticides routinely applied to these monoculture crops also kill many other plants and animals, including many non-target species. Rachael Carson is famous for warning about the dangers of pesticide use in industrial agriculture in her book, Silent Spring (1962).
Fortunately, there is a resurgence of interest in more traditional forms of agriculture that incorporate the wealth of knowledge of sustainable, life-friendly, agricultural practices that have accumulated over the thousands of years of human development. Pacific Biodiversity Institute has launched an initiative to explore this knowledge and the connections between biodiversity and sustainable agriculture.
We also wish to provide educational opportunities for others to learn about the connections between the health of other life forms on Planet Earth and the food that they purchase and eat. Local, organically grown food that is produced on small, diverse farms has a vastly different impact on biodiversity than genetically engineered, poisoned, monoculture crops grown on distant, immense corporate mega-farms.
One small part of this initiative is to provide a concrete example of small-scale, biodiverse, sustainable, organic agriculture right here at the Pacific Biodiversity Institute office. Our community garden project is providing our staff and some community members great food and an opportunity for us to practice what we preach. It is also a great learning experience for us and our community. We encourage everyone to plant a garden, join a community garden project or at least buy locally grown, organic food. Your body will appreciate it and the plants, animals and ecosystems that you love will greatly appreciate your actions.
More information on our biodiversity and sustainable agriculture initiative will be coming soon.
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