“Water Wars and the Future of Food” by Dr. Vandana Shiva 

-Native seeds and chemicals don’t go together

-Green Revolution brought chemicals and chemicaled seeds to India – 5 Rivers

-Killings in the area where due to the Green Revolution – not religion like the world was saying.

-Because of G.R. the area has been losing water
                -because of the chemicals and the soil could no longer hold the water in it.

-Suicide on the rise in this area – Chemicals & Drinking Pesticides.

-Chemicals and Industrial Farming is still encouraged.

-In 1984; 2000 widows still fighting.

-3000 killed from a gas leak

-“If you drink Coke-Cola, you drink our blood”

-“Violence of the Green Revolution” –book by Dr. Vandana Shiva

-“The Agriculture Testament” – Howard

-War in agriculture is not an accident

-75% of water is abused in ag for non-sustainable ways.

-Protective Irrigation – irrigation to save crops rather than sustain them.

-The biggest water store isn’t a damn – it’s soil with water holding capasisty.

-1 / 2Million farmer suicides

-“The issue of hunger itself is a war against humanity”

-good food producing areas are going hungry.

-“the GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) emperor has no clothes!”

-Good farming is an ecological solution, a war solution.

-Center on well being – not profits, not money.

-uniformity is being treated as health when it is not. Diversity is what’s healthy.
                -causes cheap food to be expensive

-Either people / things will panic or shift:
                -If panic – will cause war.
                -If shift – will cause peace.

-Films-
                -China Blue
                -Bitter Seats
                -Bullshit – Swedish 

 “Causes of War and Conditions for Peace: Food’s Role” by Raj Patel

-food insecurity à human insecurity.

-conflict is unavoidable – but how we manage it is what counts.

-Cold War – greatest war – also about food – brought about ‘Green Movement’ / ‘Green Revolution’ in ‘60’s.

-Today – more food per person than ever before.

-1940’s – Mexico – Wheat – Communism
                -if food shortage then more poor without food and then “people are reduced to sexual desires and growling stomachs”

                -wheat research in order to avoid Communism
                -hunger and angry à leads to Change – in this case wheat was to help the populous and avoid change (possibly resulting in Communism)

-“A Fine Balance” – fictional book about India

-In U.S. – plenty of food but 1 of 5 go hungry -
                -widely known but few talk about it
                -when we have enough food to feed everyone
                -1 of 2 children on food assistance

-Green Revolution – saved 5% of land.

-Was a gap between 1^st Green Revolution and Now.
                -overweight people and people going hungry.

-World Bank à Time Bandits.
                -Give to the poor, then take away and punch in face.

-Poor are being shoved off in the name of progress and utilization.

-In closing – New Thoughts and Ideas – HOPE.

-In Cuba
                -land opportunity – invest so they can keep and pass to their children
                -agro ecological farming
                -factor in that you will lose a bit of your crops to nature so you can counter it and / or survive still
                -plant legumes for Nitrogen and flowers for beneficial bugs
                -workers live on / near farms
                -work in multiple canopies.
                -after hurricane Ike – 90days to get it back in order – mono cultures in the same area took 160 plus..

-Start thinking Differently About How We Manage Resources!

-Trade of Commoners – with open eyes we will destroy the last tree of our sustaining forest with no one to help us.

-We still have ability, wired into us, to show compassion and wellness for each other.

-Common people good for arranging and distributing resources for their area – over governments and banks coming back into the area and managing it.
                -LOCAL and SUSTAINABLE

-Increase trees / Dry land irrigation / Polycultures

-More Harvest is done by Women … forego breast feeding
                -in talking about this in a safe zone – can lead to peace – difficult but safe.
                -because of this men are doing more work and equality is growing.

-“Peace isn’t void of conflict. Peace is the management of conflict to everyone’s satisfaction.”

-“This country (U.S.) became great and free, not because it was given, but because it was demanded.”