[Vision2020] Fwd: World Grain Production Rises

[Tom Trail]

>Visionaires


This article from World Watch Institute may be of interest to you.

Tom Trail

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>Grain Production Continues Growth After Mixed Decade
>
>
>Flowering quinoa plant:flickr/net_efekt
>
>For the second year in a row, world grain 
>production rose in 2008, with farmers producing 
>some 2.3 billion tons. The record harvest was up 
>more than 7 percent over the previous year and 
>caps a decade in which only half the years 
>registered gains. Today, only 150 crops are 
>cultivated, a sharp drop from the 10,000 used 
>over time, and three grains--maize, rice, and 
>wheat--combined with potatoes provide more than 
>50 percent of human energy needs.
>
>Read: 
><http://www.elabs5.com/c.html?rtr=on&s=lizj,6rpp,db,h6u0,503f,4acv,3mu5&MLM_MID=315853&MLM_UNIQUEID=30d6f2965d>"Grain 
>Production Continues Growth After Mixed Decade" 
>by Alice McKeown
>
>
>
>
>Thinking Outside the Agricultural Development Box
>
>In a letter published in the New York Times, 
>Worldwatch Senior Researchers Brian Halweil and 
>Danielle Nierenberg argue that solving hunger, 
>particularly in Africa, is not an "either-or" 
>scenario. Agricultural development, they write, 
>shouldn't focus solely on the adoption of 
>organic farming or on techno-fixes such as new 
>seeds, fertilizers, and irrigation, but rather 
>on a combination of approaches. Combined 
>approaches, including using conventional 
>practices paired with agro-ecological 
>techniques, have proven more effective in terms 
>of productivity, income generation, and 
>resilience than any single approach.
>
>Read: 
><http://www.elabs5.com/c.html?rtr=on&s=lizj,6rpp,db,34jr,2ypv,4acv,3mu5>Worldwatch 
>Responds to the New York Times by Brian Halweil 
>and Danielle Nierenberg
>
>
>
>
>U.S. Public Still Unconvinced on Climate Change
>
>The latest Pew survey finds that fewer U.S. 
>residents consider climate change to be a 
>"serious" threat, compared to previous surveys, 
>even as scientific evidence demonstrates that 
>the problem has become increasingly severe. The 
>results suggest that those who disseminate 
>climate science are losing ground, analysts said.
>
>Read: 
><http://www.elabs5.com/c.html?rtr=on&s=lizj,6rpp,db,5udu,3hpu,4acv,3mu5&MLM_MID=315853&MLM_UNIQUEID=30d6f2965d>U.S. 
>Public Still Unconvinced on Climate Change by 
>Ben Block
>
>
>
>
>Pesticide Endosulfan Ruled "Highly Toxic"
>
>An international scientific review committee 
>ruled last week that endosulfan, a widely used 
>pesticide, is highly toxic to humans and 
>wildlife. The ruling concludes debate on whether 
>the chemical should be classified as a 
>persistent organic pollutant (POP), a decision 
>that could result in a global ban.
>
>Read: 
><http://www.elabs5.com/c.html?rtr=on&s=lizj,6rpp,db,3kkv,2u8z,4acv,3mu5&MLM_MID=315853&MLM_UNIQUEID=30d6f2965d>Pesticide 
>Endosulfan Ruled "Highly Toxic" by Ben Block
>
>
>
>
>Cheap Energy Comes at High "Hidden" Cost
>
>U.S. consumers pay less for their energy than 
>consumers in most industrialized nations. Yet 
>electricity and fuel prices typically fail to 
>reflect the full cost of energy production and 
>consumption, especially in terms of health 
>effects. As part of its 2005 energy bill, the 
>U.S. Congress requested a clarification of 
>"hidden" energy costs. The result, released 
>recently, concluded that the external effects of 
>burning fossil fuels cost the United States more 
>than $120 billion in 2005.
>
>Read: 
><http://www.elabs5.com/c.html?rtr=on&s=lizj,6rpp,db,h3k5,ltp0,4acv,3mu5&MLM_MID=315853&MLM_UNIQUEID=30d6f2965d>Cheap 
>Energy Comes at High "Hidden" Cost by Ben Block
>
>
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><http://www.elabs5.com/c.html?rtr=on&s=lizj,6rpp,db,1hzp,a84m,4acv,3mu5>"No 
>Impact Man" Calls for a Cultural Shift by Erik 
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>Dateline: Copenhagen:
><http://www.elabs5.com/c.html?rtr=on&s=lizj,6rpp,db,gv4,k9hn,4acv,3mu5>A 
>Strong Voice: Indian Youth Fighting for 350 ppm 
>by Anna da Costa
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>Nourishing the Planet:
><http://www.elabs5.com/c.html?rtr=on&s=lizj,6rpp,db,4wrx,l9ng,4acv,3mu5>Letter 
>from Des Moines 2: A World Food Prize Postmortem 
>by Brian Halweil
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-- 
Dr. Tom Trail
International Trails
1375 Mt. View Rd.
Moscow, Id. 83843
Tel:  (208) 882-6077
Fax:  (208) 882-0896
e mail ttrail at moscow.com
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