The Agroecological Revolution: Feeding All Humans Without Destroying the Planet

Ripe for the agroecological revolution? The failures of the Green Revolution of the 1960s and the dysfunctions of the current global food system are no longer in doubt: soil depletion, erosion of biodiversity, health problems linked to pesticides, food deficiencies among millions of people, not to mention the indebtedness of farmers, the privatization of living organisms and the domination of agribusiness giants over seeds and food distribution networks... It is time to combine agriculture and ecology!
Drawing on his experience as an agricultural teacher and researcher, Alain Olivier guides us through the set of scientific principles and agricultural practices that is agroecology. It is important to focus on appropriate soil management, the recycling of plant and animal biomass, and the protection of water and ecosystems. Crop rotations, combinations, and agroforestry should be the norm, while integrating livestock farming in a responsible manner. Since agroecology values the terroir, peasant knowledge, and the role of women, it is also crucial that those who feed us have access to land and seeds.
In the era of climate change, ecological processes, social justice, and food sovereignty must be central to the functioning of agroecosystems and the food system in general. A broad social movement seeking to establish more sustainable and just practices, agroecology is the ideal path to transforming the connections between human beings and their food, their land, and a nature that is running out of breath.