Hi Tom,

you are so right -- What we need instead is to make regenerative
agriculture the norm.

i lived in Vedic City for maybe 6 years. i don't see any chance of it
becoming an urban sprawl. perhaps closer to what you said -- collection of,
say, a dozen small farming villages.

:)

Fred

On Thu, Oct 6, 2016 at 12:33 AM, l <
[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Thanks, Fred, Donna, and Wally.
>
> As I was reading the Climate Smart ag docs, I was struck by how they were
> merely grafting some climate-friendly initiatives onto the industrial
> agriculture model. What we need instead is to make regenerative agriculture
> the norm.
>
> We visited MUM earlier this year. The big question for me regarding MUM is
> the future of Vedic City, a vast tract of mostly farmland near Fairfield,
> incorporated about 15 years ago as a city. It is still mostly farmland.
> Will it be another automobile-choked urban sprawl mess in a few years, like
> Ankeny or West Des Moines? Or will it be a collection of, say, a dozen
> small farming villages, set among acres of rich Iowa land, and not
> subdivisions, strip malls or office parks? (Or data centers.)
>
> My 0.014 acres of gardens here in my Des Moines back yard did
> fantastically well this year, fed by compost and not sprayed with any
> chemicals. Half a freezer of frozen green beans; 44 quarts of canned
> tomatoes plus many containers of frozen tomatoes. Lots of bell peppers.
> Good crop of zuchinni. Collards and carrots still to be harvested. Not
> bragging. I owe it all to this amazing Iowa soil. Our house was built in
> 1940, and it seems at that time they were not bulldozing topsoil away when
> new houses went in. Not the case today.
>
> Tom Mathews
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: fred rosenberg <[log in to unmask]>
> To: IOWA-TOPICS <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Wed, Oct 5, 2016 2:51 pm
> Subject: Re: TODAY: TOP IOWA Scientists release Iowa Climate Statement
> 2016: The Multiple Benefits of Climate-Smart Agriculture
>
> This also just came across my attention today -- that MUM in Fairfield is
> just starting an entire new academic certificate program in regenerative
> agriculture.  here is the announcement that hit my email today:
> Fred Rosenberg
>
> *Certificate in Regenerative Organic Agriculture to be Offered*
> Those interested in being part of the next generation of organic farming
> will be able to enroll in a 10-month certificate program in regenerative
> organic agriculture beginning this January.
> The program will combine classroom instruction with six months of field
> work learning all facets of organic agriculture. The field work will take
> place at the Center for Regenerative Organic Agriculture, which includes 26
> acres of land with facilities such as classrooms, food processing areas, a
> kitchen, and offices.
> Courses include planning an organic farm, soil science, starting seeds,
> biodynamic agriculture, greenhouse management, organic crop nutrient
> management, organic pest management, and more. Apprenticeships will be
> available in the U.S., Nepal, Italy, Bali, and Costa Rica.
> Graduates will receive a certificate in regenerative agriculture
> underwritten by MUM, the Biodynamic Association, and the International
> Federation of Organic Farming Movements.
> According to program head A. Thimmaiah, few schools or organizations offer
> hands-on programs in regenerative organic farming systems, which he
> distinguishes from common organic farming.
> "Most organic agriculture is still a substitution farming wherein most of
> the inputs are imported, such as seeds, manures, biopesticides, and more."
> Regenerative agriculture, on the other hand, is a self-sufficient,
> closed-loop system in which all the inputs required for farming are
> produced by farmers on their farms using only the naturally available
> resources within their farms.
> "This course will be of interest to anyone who has a passion to create
> radical change in the current food and agriculture systems," Dr. Thimmaiah
> said. "The students can be food activists, farmers, food advocates, home
> and urban gardeners, or future organic farmers."
> The program will be a collaborative effort among five internationally
> renowned organizations in the field of organic and biodynamic agriculture.
> "The world leaders in this field will be helping to teach this course," he
> said. "This is a great opportunity for students to have a global
> understanding and to learn solutions to the present unsustainable,
> exploitative farming systems."
> For more information, see www.mum.edu/roa-certificate. Or send an email to
> [log in to unmask]
>
>
> On Wed, Oct 5, 2016 at 2:46 PM, Donna Buell <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>> This topic of regenerative agriculture is something that I believe Sierra
>> Club is looking into as a national campaign issue.  It is building momentum
>> and has so many positives that we should be supporting regenerative
>> agriculture whenever possible.  Thanks for sharing, Wally.
>>
>> Donna
>>
>>
>> On Oct 5, 2016, at 9:42 AM, Wallace Taylor <00000041ecaa5627-dmarc-reques
>> [log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>
>> Iowa scientists keep issuing these warnings every year, but no one
>> listens.
>>
>> Wally Taylor
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Bolkcom, Joseph L <[log in to unmask]>
>> Sent: Wed, Oct 5, 2016 9:37 am
>> Subject: TODAY: TOP IOWA Scientists release Iowa Climate Statement 2016:
>> The Multiple Benefits of Climate-Smart Agriculture
>>
>> Friends,
>>
>> Good morning!
>>
>> The *Iowa Climate Statement 2016: The Multiple Benefits of Climate-Smart
>> Agriculture* was released today at a 9:00 am press conference call with
>> Iowa media.
>>
>> The 6th annual Iowa Climate Statement was endorsed by 187 science
>> faculty and researchers from 39 Iowa colleges and universities.
>>
>> Attached please find a copy of the statement with endorsers, the
>> statement with references and the press statement announcing the release.
>>
>> Please feel free to share the statement with interested parties.  Here is
>> a link to the 2016 statement and press release at
>> https://cgrer.uiowa.edu/. Visit https://iowaenvironmenta
>> lfocus.wordpress.com/iowa-climate-statement/ to view all previous Iowa
>> Climate Statements.
>>
>> Let us know if you have any questions.
>>
>> Best regards,
>>
>> Joe
>>
>>
>> Joe Bolkcom
>> Outreach and Community Education Director
>> Center for Global and Regional Environmental Research
>> and the Iowa Flood Center
>> The University of Iowa
>> 426 IATL
>> Iowa City, IA 52242
>> 319-353-2681
>> joe- <[log in to unmask]>[log in to unmask]
>> www.cgrer.uiowa.edu
>> www.iowafloodcenter.org
>> www.iowaenvironmentalfocus.org
>> <image001.jpg>
>>
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