I have wanted to “save the world” since I first learned about the widespread destruction of our tropical rainforests during a high school biology class.
thanks for sharing your experience. reflection on one's journey is so important and it's good to know how your heart leads you! what's missing for me here is the analysis of the imperialism, colonialism, and global systems at play that put these communities in this position in the first place. it's not just that this is how their land is and that the people across the globe suffer from this set of circumstances - this is a globalized and system based theft - of knowledge, culture, arable land, and resources. climate change is the fault of capitalism, wealthy people, and consumerism which then makes life unbearable for many others across the earth. this blog - while lovely in its documenting of your own journey towards agroecology - is missing these pillars of how our world is set up and the analysis behind why these 'programs' and 'initiatives' exist in the first place. "Many of their parents or grandparents had stopped incorporating that knowledge when imported cash crops, inputs and “modern” techniques were successfully promoted, and started to dominate the markets." - why? how? what is the history of these areas and how do they relate to the marketing shared (and who is it that is marketing!)? 'successful promotion' sounds like capitalism came thru and took over - leaving little choice for farmers. did your schools educate you and your classmates on imperialism? on colonialism? on religion's 'mission' to 'civilize' others? and it's relationship to the earth, farming, and/or sovereignty? how does this impact your lens? how do you relate to marginalized communities without accountability of the systems that the US perpetuates, funds, and uses through large violent 'business'? how does agroecology resist and dismantle these systems? thanks for considering.
Thank you for this thoughtful response. Yes - are you right, an analysis of the big systems issues - the "why" and the "how" - is missing here. If I had tried to include it, I think this would have been far too long! But it's something I hope we can get in to here as the blog continues. If you are able to share more about how you work on resisting some of the systems and businesses that do harm, please consider submitting it here (see the "submit your work" tab, I'm sure that many would like to read it. These first few posts are meant only as individual, personal, reflections, to showcase different ways that people relate to agroecology. My experience is only one way, and I recognize that.
But we want this to be a space where analysis also happens.
With that in mind, a tiny(!) attempt to discuss your questions: I don't know the full history of colonialism in Mali, or any of the countries I've worked in. I know some, and have tried to learn as I go, it was not something I have been exposed to much in school. Schools (in the US) could do better with this. And, I think that yes - there has been historical imperialist processes that have damaged farmers' relationship to the earth. That is the "successful promotion" I was eluding to, and only that it was successful in that it changed farming and increased product sales for companies. Not that it was good. We can't go back and erase that, I wish we could. What do we do now? How does the "resist" wing of the butterfly, or the principle of "movement" look to you?
thanks for sharing your experience. reflection on one's journey is so important and it's good to know how your heart leads you! what's missing for me here is the analysis of the imperialism, colonialism, and global systems at play that put these communities in this position in the first place. it's not just that this is how their land is and that the people across the globe suffer from this set of circumstances - this is a globalized and system based theft - of knowledge, culture, arable land, and resources. climate change is the fault of capitalism, wealthy people, and consumerism which then makes life unbearable for many others across the earth. this blog - while lovely in its documenting of your own journey towards agroecology - is missing these pillars of how our world is set up and the analysis behind why these 'programs' and 'initiatives' exist in the first place. "Many of their parents or grandparents had stopped incorporating that knowledge when imported cash crops, inputs and “modern” techniques were successfully promoted, and started to dominate the markets." - why? how? what is the history of these areas and how do they relate to the marketing shared (and who is it that is marketing!)? 'successful promotion' sounds like capitalism came thru and took over - leaving little choice for farmers. did your schools educate you and your classmates on imperialism? on colonialism? on religion's 'mission' to 'civilize' others? and it's relationship to the earth, farming, and/or sovereignty? how does this impact your lens? how do you relate to marginalized communities without accountability of the systems that the US perpetuates, funds, and uses through large violent 'business'? how does agroecology resist and dismantle these systems? thanks for considering.
Thank you for this thoughtful response. Yes - are you right, an analysis of the big systems issues - the "why" and the "how" - is missing here. If I had tried to include it, I think this would have been far too long! But it's something I hope we can get in to here as the blog continues. If you are able to share more about how you work on resisting some of the systems and businesses that do harm, please consider submitting it here (see the "submit your work" tab, I'm sure that many would like to read it. These first few posts are meant only as individual, personal, reflections, to showcase different ways that people relate to agroecology. My experience is only one way, and I recognize that.
But we want this to be a space where analysis also happens.
With that in mind, a tiny(!) attempt to discuss your questions: I don't know the full history of colonialism in Mali, or any of the countries I've worked in. I know some, and have tried to learn as I go, it was not something I have been exposed to much in school. Schools (in the US) could do better with this. And, I think that yes - there has been historical imperialist processes that have damaged farmers' relationship to the earth. That is the "successful promotion" I was eluding to, and only that it was successful in that it changed farming and increased product sales for companies. Not that it was good. We can't go back and erase that, I wish we could. What do we do now? How does the "resist" wing of the butterfly, or the principle of "movement" look to you?