Agriculture

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Video - Everything Old is New Again: Time to Get Growing with Biochar and Victory Gardens

Sat, 2012-04-07 21:27 — Kathy Gilbeaux

The TrackerNews Project / J.A. Ginsburg, editor - April 5, 2012

Straight biochar can be a little tricky for the novice to use, so Black Revolution is a blend of biochar, nutrients and sustainably harvested coconut husks. Compared to conventional growing media, which is made from composted factory farm manure, Bornean peat moss and Kenyan vermiculite, it has a better carbon footprint right out the bag (the recycled burlap coffee bean bag). According to Aramburu, each bag contains enough carbon negative goodness to offset emissions from 60+ miles of driving.

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DISASTERS: Smart Weather Data Can Make a Difference

Sat, 2012-02-25 10:50 — Kathy Gilbeaux

irinnews.org

NAIROBI, 15 February 2012 (IRIN) - “When should we plant?” is a question increasingly being asked by small farmers in sub-Saharan Africa who depend on rain-fed agriculture. To help answer such questions, climate scientists are being urged to provide more reliable and relevant local climate data, and better communicate their knowledge on climate adaptation techniques.

"When we think about preparing for imminent disasters it is not possible to prepare for flooding, for example, just a few days in advance, which we get from the weather forecast. We need to think about preparedness further in advance and think in terms of what kind of decisions we can make, say, three months in advance, such as moving important resources away. We need a continuum of information,” said Simon Mason, the chief climate scientist at Columbia University's International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI) in the USA.

According to Mason, more effective short, mid-range and seasonal weather forecasting is needed for the development of useful early warning systems.

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"Mystery Disease in Central America Kills Thousands"

Mon, 2012-02-13 16:14 — Jphl

Mysterious epidemic Killing more than 24,000 people in El Salvador and Nicaragua since 2000 and the Pacific coast of Central America.
Agriculture Chemicals seems to be a factor in kidney disease,kidney damage and death. Field workers seem to be most affected.

(ARTICLE FOUND HERE) HUFF POST WORLD February 13,2012 by Filadelfo Aleman and Michael Weissenstein

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Situation Report

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The New Land Rush

Tue, 2012-01-31 21:01 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Janine Rees

Image Gallery - REUTERS / Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah

by Terry J. Allen, from In These Times - utne.com - January-February 2012

A 21st-century land rush is on. Driven by fear and lured by promises of high profits, foreign investors are scooping up vast tracts of farmland in some of the world’s hungriest countries to grow crops for export.

As the climate changes and populations shift and grow, billions of people around the globe face shortages of land and water, rising food prices, and increasing hunger. Alarm over a future without affordable food and water is sparking unrest in a world already tinder-dried by repression and recession, corruption and mismanagement, boundary disputes and ancient feuds, ethnic tension and religious fundamentalism.

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http://www.resalliance.org/

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Resilience Alliance

Sat, 2012-01-28 13:29 — mdmcdonald

There are many definitions of resilience from simple deterministic views of resilience anchored in Newtonian mechanics to far more dynamic views of resilience from a systems perspective, including insights from quantum mechanics and the sciences of complexity. One baseline perspective of resilience sees it in terms of the viability of socio-ecological systems as the foundation for sustainability. For those that are ready to look beyond resilience as the ability to return to the "normal state" before a disaster, take a look at:

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US - West

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With Work Scarce in Athens, Greeks Go Back to the Land

Tue, 2012-01-10 22:43 — Kathy Gilbeaux

by Rachel Donadio - The New York Times - January 8, 2012

Vassilis Ballas and his wife, Roula Boura, extracted the gum from a mastic tree on their 400-tree farm in Chios, Greece. Eirini Vourloumis for The New York Times

CHIOS, Greece — Nikos Gavalas and Alexandra Tricha, both 31 and trained as agriculturalists, were frustrated working on poorly paying, short-term contracts in Athens, where jobs are scarce and the cost of living is high. So last year, they decided to start a new project: growing edible snails for export.

As Greece’s blighted economy plunges further into the abyss, the couple are joining with an exodus of Greeks who are fleeing to the countryside and looking to the nation’s rich rural past as a guide to the future.

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Sustainable Development

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Video - Dr. Upmanu Lall - Water Shortages

Fri, 2011-12-30 22:57 — Kathy Gilbeaux

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Will the Next War Be Fought Over Water?

Fri, 2011-12-30 22:49 — Kathy Gilbeaux

by Megan Erickson - bigthink.com - December 23, 2011

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Mystery Kidney Disease in Central America

Mon, 2011-12-12 20:56 — Kathy Gilbeaux

by Kate Sheehy - PRI's The World - BBC News - December 12, 2011

A mysterious epidemic is sweeping Central America - it's the second biggest cause of death among men in El Salvador, and in Nicaragua it's a bigger killer of men than HIV and diabetes combined. It's unexplained but the latest theory is that the victims are literally working themselves to death.

In the western lowlands of Nicaragua, in a region of vast sugar cane fields, sits the tiny community of La Isla.

The small houses are a patchwork of concrete and wood. Pieces of cloth serve as doors.

Maudiel Martinez emerges from his house to greet me. He's pale, and his cheekbones protrude from his face. He hunches over like an old man - but he is only 19 years old.

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