Unit 6
Community Impact of Agriculture
Food can bring people together. Local and regenerative food systems foster equitable and resilient communities where everyone can thrive.
Human Health
In its purest form, from the inside and out, food is energy, beauty, and life.
Videos:
TED Ed
“The bacteria in our guts can break down food the body can’t digest, produce important nutrients, regulate the immune system, and protect against harmful germs. And while we can’t control all the factors that go into maintaining a healthy gut microbiome, we can manipulate the balance of our microbes by paying attention to what we eat. Shilpa Ravella shares the best foods for a healthy gut.”
TED Ed
“Annually, we shower over 5 billion pounds of pesticides across the Earth to control insects, unwanted weeds, funguses, rodents, and bacteria that may threaten our food supply. But is it worth it, knowing what we do about the associated environmental and public health risks? Fernan Pérez-Gálvez weighs the pros and cons of pesticides.”
Articles:
The Power of the Plate: The Case for Regenerative Organic Agriculture in Improving Human Health
“This white paper offers a holistic analysis of the rise of industrial agriculture, the connection to our poor diets and nutrition, and solutions to move towards regenerative healthcare.”
Source: Rodale Institute (pdf)
Soil Health Means Better Human Health
“New Research suggests soil health may have a surprising influence on your food.”
Source: Successful Farming
The Connection Between Soil Microbiomes and Gut Microbiomes
Ongoing research “indicates that the health of all life on this planet — including our own — is predicated on communities of minuscule microorganisms, working in tandem, that proliferate everywhere around and in us.”
Source: FoodPrint
Books:
“In Farmacology, practicing family physician and renowned nutrition explorer Daphne Miller brings us beyond the simple concept of "food as medicine" and introduces us to the critical idea that it's the farm where that food is grown that offers us the real medicine.”
Community Dynamics
Regenerative agriculture can rebuild consumer trust in the food system.
Videos:
The HEAL Project
The HEAL Project staff and visitors enjoying a day of learning at the San Mateo County School Farm in Half Moon Bay, CA.
Robin Moore
This film documents a class of mission high school students on an overnight trip to Pie Ranch.
Growing the Table
Growing The Table - Los Angeles
New Entry Sustainable Farming Project
New Entry Sustainable Farming Project is training and working with new farmers to build strong businesses, expertise in the field, and a resilient food system.
Connection to Land
Soil sprung forth life. We would be wise to remember that.
Books:
“Drawing on her life as an indigenous scientist, and as a woman, Kimmerer shows how other living beings―asters and goldenrod, strawberries and squash, salamanders, algae, and sweetgrass―offer us gifts and lessons, even if we've forgotten how to hear their voices.”
Robin Wall Kimmerer
Power in Food Systems
Food is life, as such, assuring the best food possilbe reaches all lies in the power of the people.
Articles:
Source: School Lunch for All
More than Filling Empty Bellies: How Food Banks are Evolving to Nourish Community Health
“The charitable food system is vital for food access for vulnerable people in nearly every community in the United States.”
Source: Community Psychology
What is the Farm Bill?
“Our food and farming system confronts new challenges today, but through citizen and stakeholder action for a fair farm bill, we can ensure the vibrancy and productivity of our agriculture, economy, and communities for generations to come.”
Source: National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition
School Lunch for All
“School Lunch for All was started to ensure that school meals are provided, free of charge, to every K-12 student in America. We are also calling for an end to the indefensible practice of school lunch debt, and school lunch shaming. We believe that no student should go hungry at school and that no child or family should experience financial strain, public shame, or debt in exchange for those meals.”
Books:
“Approximately 60 percent of all farms are less than 180 acres in 'size, indicating that the majority of farmland is managed by a large number of small farm operators. Responsible management of the natural resources of soil, water, and wildlife encompassed by these operations produce significant environmental benefits for society to enjoy.”
Source: USDA National Commission on Small Farms
Inequalities in Food System
Videos:
Feeding America
Learn about, share and discuss the intersections of food insecurity and health.
Soul Fire Farm
Soul Fire Farm - Ending Racism and Injustice in the Food System
Stone Barns Center for Food & Agriculture
Yana Gilbuena, Hannah Koski, Margiana Peterson-Rockney and Shakirah Simley, confront the challenges of building agroequity and address the question of accountability.
Sustainable Harvest International
Every day, we all make choices.
SHI operates at the intersection of environmental degradation and rural poverty - a nexus that forces people to make difficult choices everyday.
Articles:
Racial Inequality in the Food System
“There is a long and vital history of black, indigenous, and people of color-led food justice organizing in the U.S. and around the world. However, narratives of the alternative food movement have largely relegated people of color to marginal, passive roles in the story (hungry, poor, disempowered workers who are ‘disconnected’ from their food).”
Source: Young Farmers’ Coalition
Books:
“The growing trend of organic farming and homesteading is changing the way the farmer is portrayed in mainstream media, and yet, farmers of color are still largely left out of the picture. The Color of Food seeks to rectify this.”
Natasha Browens
