Environmental Studies: Ethics, Ideas and Nature: Food & Agriculture

This first source talks about food security and potential solutions for that problem in the future. Not only is the human population growing rapidly, but by taking poor care of our farmland and only using it to incentivise profit we are slowly losing more and more land. Showing that it is essential that we increase our productivity and find better efficient ways to go about farming, we've discussed better methods of land usage in class before They dive into the dependency on fertilizers and how it affects our health just as much as it affects the land. They propose the idea of the exploitation of microbes to be used as an alternative fertilizer rather than what we use right now. Nature always has a solution and these biofertilizers could be a potential one for the future. - Annotation by Henry Sharp, Spring 2023

Khan conducts a study about the risks of heavy metals in vegetables due to the use of fertilizers. The study found that heavy metals can be transferred from the soil to the vegetables. Khan created health risk assessments to determine whether these heavy metals were putting human lives at risk. Khan’s contribution to these studies are needed as he is a doctor from Pakistan. The main argument is that farmers and others involved need to use his health risk index tool to help prevent the heavy metal effects on the population. This source agrees with many of the texts we read in class. Heavy metals are very concerning and are a disruption to not only the population, but even more so in certain areas, just like we read in class. This source reinforces that this is a worldly issue–not just in America. I would recommend this source for anyone wanting to know how to calculate if vegetables are healthy for human consumption, and I would highly recommend this article to farmers. - Annotation by Marie Lehman, Fall 2023

Lucy Kibe et al seek to show a relationship between food insecurity and food environment on diet quality of specifically older African Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kibe draws attention to the leading diseases in elderly people such as heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension that are exacerbated by poor diet. Kibe found that during the COVID-19 pandemic food insecurity rose from 21% in 2018 to 36% in 2020, in Flint, Michigan “173 food venues closed… with only 17 new venues taking their place. Locations with predominantly African American populations had three times that rate of emergency food outlet closures as other locations” (Taylor Bell, Vanishing food infrastructure). These closures have greatly impacted life of African Americans, as food availability diminished so did the health and quality of life for those in these communities.
This source expands on topics of race-based discrimination that readings from the class spoke of such as “Wrath of Grapes Speech” by Chavez and “Wrong Complexion for Protection” by Bullard and Wright. I recommend this source to further illuminate the problems that African American communities face today, and the health risks that they are more prone to because of their lack of basic resources. This is important because only be spreading this information, can we make necessary positive changes towards the food availability in African American communities. - Annotation by Orion Swienton, Fall 2023

This source is written by a woman. This article is about queer farmers, and it examines the role queerness plays in agricultural participation. Agriculture benefits heterosexual and cisgender farmers through the “family farm” model which makes it difficult for queer farmers to navigate interactions in the industry. Interactions with customers, community members, and other farmers are all effected in one way or another by the “family farm” model. One of the main claims is that sexuality is at the foundation of U.S. agriculture. This foundation has many effects on the way queer farmers are represented in the industry.
This article adds to the perspectives covered in class and provides prospectives on how sexuality can influence one’s life. Due to the heteronormativity that dominates agriculture it often creates barriers for queer farmers such as acceptance and communication. In our class reading “The agrarian standard” by Wendall Berry, it is even referenced how the “family farm” is not heard by industrial agriculture. Even more so is the queer farm not heard by industrial agriculture. With the topic of this bibliography in mind I feel that this source is very good at representing unheard voices therefore I would recommend this source for those looking for specifically LGBTQ+ perspectives on modern agriculture. - Annotation by Thomas Coole, Spring 2023

Isaac Sohn Leslie, the author of this paper, is an assistant professor of community development at the University of Vermont. They have a Ph.D. in Sociology/Community and Environmental Sociology. They focus a lot on gender and sexuality within environmental and agricultural systems. This paper focuses on queer farmers and their lived experiences within the industry. Leslie interviews 30 sustainable farmers of various identities in New England and shares their responses. This article reinforces the idea that farmers that are not heterosexual and cisgender experience heterosexism in the workplace. It also speaks about the motivations of queer farmers to become farmers and many responses match those of other minority groups. It provides more first-hand experiences from personal interviews. I would recommend this paper to anyone looking to understand the involvement of queer farmers in sustainable agriculture and desires to see how sexuality and gender are prevalent in the industry. However, this paper only speaks about white queer farmers and would not be beneficial if the wish is to learn about queer people of color in agriculture. - Annotation by Madison Wiley, Spring 2023

Brita Brandtzaeg in this article discusses the disadvantages women in third-world countries are facing in the food conservation world. She finds that women have to do more work than men and deal with several setbacks. She highlights that women are often forgotten and excluded from post-harvest food conservation decision-making because men fail to see the work they put into the process, like preserving and storing said food. All of their contributions positively impact they have on the economy and other sectors of life. She highlights the need for smaller community-driven food conservation and advancing technology to help women in the post-harvest efforts. She argues that women's contributions should be paid attention to because of the benefits they could have for things like food security or sustainable progress. Brandtzaeg also wants a focus on community benefits and the push for a more sustainable life for all members of society. - Annotation by Anonymous, Spring 2023

Tess McNamara begins by explaining that Cuba was extremely dependent on the Soviet Union for imports and exports so with the fall of the country in 1991 came intense scarcity especially with food. To combat this the government supported a movement of urban farming through the Organoponico Program. She then transitions to interviewing Cuban farmers that currently lead some of these organoponicos in which farmers often use underutilized land in urban centers as places to grow fresh produce to support their community. They employee local workers and include a market outside of the growing space where they can sell the produce significantly cheaper than the commercial markets nearby because there is no transportation cost.
This relates to Wendall Berry’s “The Agrarian Standard” that we read in class as both discuss how agriculture shouldn’t be viewed as an entity to industrialize. They also both discuss the benefits when farming is done on a small local level with sustainable practices. This piece by McNamara adds an example of how the ideas discussed in Berry’s piece can play out in the real world as it talks about how communities in Cuba achieved small-scale local agriculture. I would recommend this piece because it looks at how local agriculture has impacted communities in Cuba and points out things America can learn from Cuba’s agriculture system. The only negative point about this article was that it often talked about food insecurity in America as a problem of the future rather than better addressing that this issue is faced by many communities currently. - Annotation by Audrey Brown, Spring 2023

The essay We don’t farm because it’s trendy; we farm as resistance, for healing and sovereignty by Ashley Gripper highlights the experience of Black Americans in regard to resilience and groundbreaking work in the farming industry throughout the course of the United States’ history. She uses the historical context of the relationship Black people have had with land, as well as the history of events that have worked to diminish this relationship to emphasize the importance of diversity in food and agriculture today. Explaining the obstacles Black Americans have faced, such as lower quality education systems, inequal healthcare access, and diminished access to healthy foods, Gripper works to connect the past with the present in her conversation about faulty representation, as well as offering consequences of the future if the agriculture industries continue to remain White-dominant.
Gripper’s essay reinforces the importance of the contributions of Black people to the agriculture and food industries in the United States today. Her use of personal anecdote as well as historical fact present a connection between food and agriculture with social justice and systemic racism. It inspires conversation about the importance of representation in all aspects of life, as well as offers assistance in how to engage in work that will promote it. - Annotation by Keely English, Spring 2023

Flower and seed farmer Bo Dennis shares his personal perspective on the hardships and benefits of farming in rural areas as a queer and trans individual. He talks about the freedom and liberation that comes from working with your body, especially having a queer body that is policed and discriminated against. A major concern that is often forgotten according to Dennis is the lack of access to health care and mental health resources, such as therapy and gender-affirming health care, in rural areas. However, he says, though living ‘out and proud’ in the countryside is not made easy for LGBTQ+ people, they find ways of supporting each other and creating a community. Besides, though rural towns lack the diversity and easy access to inclusive establishments you find in cities, the small-scale and autonomous character of life in the countryside brings people together by forcing neighbors to rely on each other.
I highly recommend this podcast because it offers a perspective on agriculture that has not been given attention to in our course materials and thereby broadens our understanding of what agriculture looks like and means to different kinds of people. Not only does Dennis shine a light on the intricacies of farming as a trans and queer person, but he offers interesting perspectives on land ownership and the difficulties of starting a farming business (especially for young people and people who cannot rely on inherited wealth). At the same time, however, Dennis’ reiterating the importance of uplifting Indigenous, young, and marginalized perspectives while recognizing the colonial history of industrial agriculture perfectly aligns with the course content. - Annotation by Lize van Leeuwen, Spring 2023

In this piece, Montalvo writes about many stories of Indigenous tribes reclaiming spaces of their own in order to prioritize their survival. The Mi’kmaq First Nations people bought 50% of Clearwater Seafoods, giving them access to a huge business and providing food security for the tribe. The Wiyot Tribe in Northern California has gained their land back and fought for it to restore the habitat and gain food sovereignty, especially in terms of the large salmon population, for the members. In addition, the Yurok Tribe has fought for the restoration of waterways and habitats to allow salmon to return in greater numbers to feed people who need it. All of these stories center around an initiative to provide for oneself and one another in a tribe and to now reap the benefits of land that was stolen from them long ago.
This reading ties to “Sacred Resistance” by Tara Houska, an excerpt of All We Can Save. Fighting back against oppressive regimes is what is necessary to bring back the natural order of the land. The Native tribes working to reclaim what is rightfully theirs is an act of defiance, and it is their right to do so. As they work to heal the land of the pain inflicted by colonialism, they will restore peace and plenty to the ecosystem and themselves. - Annotation by Claire Dopp, Spring 2023

Pamela Ronald is a plant geneticist who specializes in keeping food resistant to disease and stress. In this Ted Talk, she counters the argument that genetic modification is inherently bad. In her slideshow, she shows both genetic modifications that have happened throughout history, such as the development of bananas, corn, and eggplants as well as her own research and work in the genetic modification of rice. She claims that since much of the potential harvest each year is lost to pests and disease, that many farmers will use certain genetically modified rice varieties that are specifically resistant. Through her research and experimentation, she is able to isolate specific genes and reproduce these plants to make them more widely accessible to farmers. This genetic modification can happen in many different ways and have various effects, in this Ted Talk, she explains how genetic modification can help plant under specific conditions as well as help stop the spread of plant viruses. She also argues that the use of genetic modification can help reduce the use of harmful insecticides. By modifying the plants genes to be resistant to certain bacteria from pests, the demand for pesticides will decrease. In the end, she argues that genetic modification processes have strongly developed in time to something ultimately beneficial to the environment and the people and that the fear of genetically modified food is caused by misinformation. This Ted Talk reminded me of the cocoa documentary that we watched in class of the corporations using child labor. In this Talk, Pamela uses an example where children are the ones spraying insecticides on these eggplants in Bangladesh. When genetically modified plants were introduced, their insecticide use decreased to nearly zero. These children working in the fields, although still upsetting to see them in that situation, can now live with less risk of being poisoned with pesticides. I would recommend this Ted Talk to anyone who has ever heard the term GMO, as I feel like the general population is widely misinformed on what the term actually means. - Annotation by Breck Carpenter, Spring 2023

Whereas Thanksgiving is a happy time for most, for Indigenous communities it is nothing short of a painful reminder of the warfare against Native American people. This false and whitewashed narrative of unity between colonizers and the Native tribes disrupted Indigenous foodways, relations with food and ecological knowledge that provided for a entire communities. This disconnection has rooted from forced relocation, slash and burn campaigns, deforestation, the installation of water damns, and overall, the right to individual and communal indigeneity being outlawed, as M. Karlos Baca writes. It has been only a little over 40 years, since 1978, when Indigenous communities have “legally” been able to commence restoration with the land. Since then, many communities have banded together to shift consciousness to Indigenous food sovereignty to store their foodways, ceremonial relations, and even languages.
M. Karlos Baca writes masterfully to repurpose the meaning of Thanksgiving, giving light to the state and sufferings of many tribes and communities. He emphasizes the significance of individual and communal power in the fight against this oppression, reinforcing the need for commitment to tradition and land restoration. Baca’s writing adds to the emotional outcry of many indigenous communities, advocates, and writers we’ve encountered in our course texts. We must give ear to Indigenous voices. - Annotation by Anonymous, Spring 2023

The declining rights of agricultural laborers have become increasingly noticeable throughout the last decades. Such rights are being deprived from laborers of a variety of backgrounds including women, children, and racial and ethnic minorities. These rights include the rights to land ownership and maintenance, wages and hours worked, and documentational necessities for workers. By depriving their underrepresented workers of such rights, employers effectively maintain a hold on their employees, causing these employees to rely on the employers and thus remain silent on the inequalities they experienced. Carlile further delves into the importance of the issues in agricultural labor and their impacts on their victims. Carlile claims that employers deprive their workers of the rights to which they are entitled so as to encroach on their opportunities. In the Food and Agriculture section of this course, the readings and videos did not go into depth about the negative aspects of food and agriculture and humans, which is supplemented in my research with Carlile’s article through her explanation of the specific rights and peoples impacted by these aspects. - Annotation by Maha Jornaz, Fall 2023