by Lynne Whitbeck | May 5, 2021 | Down to Earth, Farming, Rangeland Science, Soil, Working with Nature
Native Americans used fire and other methods to cultivate food on the prairie. In the 20th century it was plowed under for endless rows of monocrops. Omar de Kok-Mercado is part of a team that is working to make prairie land ecologically–and economically–sustainable.
by Lynne Whitbeck | Apr 20, 2021 | Apprenticeship, Decolonizing Ag, Down to Earth, Grazing, Ranching, Rural Communities, Soil, Succession
Beth Robinette grew up on a ranch but didn’t expect to stay there. But then she got so interested in food system and regenerative practices that now she’s ranching, developing new business models, and teaching the ropes to the next generation of ranchers.
by Lynne Whitbeck | Jul 14, 2020 | Down to Earth, Farming, Ranching, Rangeland Science, Soil, Working with Nature
When the “green revolution” offered the promise of better agriculture through chemical-intensive farming, J.I. Rodale was skeptical. He started an organic farm and then an institute to study how farming could improve the land and human health. Now they’re doing great work from coast to coast.
by Lynne Whitbeck | Jun 23, 2020 | Down to Earth, Farming, Racial Equity, Radical Center, Rural Communities, Soil, Working with Nature
Hopi farmers must be doing something right: they have survived and grown their own food for hundreds of generations. We talk to Dr. Michael Kotutwa Johnson about their regenerative farming and cultural practices––and the challenges to maintaining them.
by Lynne Whitbeck | Apr 14, 2020 | Down to Earth, Farming, Health and Nutrition, Policy, Radical Center, Rural Communities, Soil
Grant and Dawn Breitkreutz didn’t know they were cultivating soil health when they started doing Holistic Management of their livestock. But as they learned to work with nature rather than fighting it their soil–and their farm–began to thrive in ways they’d never dreamed of.
by Lynne Whitbeck | Mar 31, 2020 | Down to Earth, Farming, Health and Nutrition, Policy, Radical Center, Rural Communities, Soil
Farmer and writer Stanley Crawford got involved in a legal action that challenged a huge firm that wasn’t paying duties, and was “dumping” garlic onto the US market. What was supposed to take one year turned into a multi-year drama that is still ongoing.