[Vision2020] Documentary "Seed Warriors"

[Donovan Arnold]

This leads me to ask a few questions.
 
Wouldn't it be wiser to put the seeds in places all over the world rather than one single spot. If a natural catastrophe were to occur, it would seem more likely the species would survive spread out rather than putting all the seeds (eggs) in one vault (basket).  As if humans really know where the safest spot is. 
 
Wouldn't the same world conditions that wiped out the plant life also wipe out the seeds once or if they became a plant?
 
Isn't it likely that a billion starving people would just eat the seeds rather than starve to death waiting for a plant to bear fruit? As has happened many places before.
 
As for people not finding enough calories, I don't think that is a problem in the foreseeable future for the US with 2/3 of adults on the verge of obesity. Many Americans could stop stuffing their faces right now and still have enough calories to last them to 2050.
 
If you really want to ensure the survival of plants in the future, lock 4.5 billion humans inside a big vault in Longyearbyen instead. 
 
Donovan J. Arnold

From: Ted Moffett <starbliss at gmail.com>
To: Moscow Vision 2020 <vision2020 at moscow.com> 
Sent: Sunday, May 20, 2012 11:54 AM
Subject: [Vision2020] Documentary "Seed Warriors"

Fascinating documentary "Seed Warriors" features University of
Washington climate scientist David Battisti, who has published science
relating to anthropogenic climate change impacts on global food
production.

Info about the global seed bank, is at websites below.  Lower down is
info on a paper authored by Battisti in "Science" magazine, on global
food production under global warming:

http://www.linktv.org/programs/seed-warriors

http://www.viewchange.org/videos/seed-warriors

http://seedwarriors.org/en/film/

In the remote Norwegian town of Longyearbyen, just 1000 kilometres
from the North Pole, politicians from around the world came to
celebrate the opening of the world’s first global seed bank. After
years of difficult negotiations and searching for the right spot, this
was deemed to be the safest place on earth. Eventually, 4.5 million
seed samples will be stored in this "Doomsday Vault" and ensure the
continued existence of biodiversity.

But is the dream of global food security achievable? By 2050
temperatures worldwide are expected to rise by at least 2 degrees.
This will result in a 30 per cent drop in production of food crops. By
this time global food demand will have doubled. How will we feed the
world?

--------------------------------
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/323/5911/240.short

Science 9 January 2009:
Vol. 323 no. 5911 pp. 240-244
DOI: 10.1126/science.1164363

Historical Warnings of Future Food Insecurity with Unprecedented Seasonal Heat

David. S. Battisti1 and Rosamond L. Naylor2

Higher growing season temperatures can have dramatic impacts on
agricultural productivity, farm incomes, and food security. We used
observational data and output from 23 global climate models to show a
high probability (>90%) that growing season temperatures in the
tropics and subtropics by the end of the 21st century will exceed the
most extreme seasonal temperatures recorded from 1900 to 2006. In
temperate regions, the hottest seasons on record will represent the
future norm in many locations. We used historical examples to
illustrate the magnitude of damage to food systems caused by extreme
seasonal heat and show that these short-run events could become
long-term trends without sufficient investments in adaptation.
------------------------------------------
Vision2020 Post: Ted Moffett

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