Seed and chemical giant Monsanto and friends have lately been conducting all-out re-branding campaigns, seeking to present themselves as the answer to world hunger and the actualization of sustainability.  As an extension of this tight message control, Oxfam is hosting a panel discussion at the Asia Society in New York tomorrow at 8:30 am called “The Global Food Crisis – Time for Another Green Revolution?“  But the discussion seems like it will be rather one-sided.

Taking part are Kevin L. Eblen, Vice President, Public Policy and “Sustainability Lead” at Monsanto, as well as Rajiv Shah, Director of Agricultural Development at the Gates Foundation and Dr. Robert Zeigler, Director General, International Rice Research Institute (The institute that conducted the research for the original Green Revolution).

Perhaps this group is convening to pat each other on the back for their role in bringing forth a similar Green Revolution to what we have seen before.  In any case it is clear there will not be a considered critique of the role genetically modified seeds have played in increased farmer debt, and by extension, farmer suicides worldwide; the increase dependence on international food aid due to a reliance on monocropping (growing one single, usually inedible-before-processed crop — or worse, growing something like BT Cotton, which is totally inedible); and not to mention, a stripping of the fertility of the land, contributing to desertification and climate change; and waning GM crop yields that have resulted in the face of proven increased productivity of organics over time.

Tom Philpott pointed out the lopsided nature of the panel on Comfood:

If Oxfam wants a real debate or even a robust discussion, where are the agro-ecologists, the organic ag folks on this panel? Has Oxfam never heard of the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD), which — under the aegis of the World Bank, of all institutions — took an extremely skeptical position viz. patented transgenics as a solution to climate change-related ag problems in the global south? Or the recent UN report finding vast potential for low-tech organic ag in Africa?

The debate is on for whether we actually need a new Green Revolution, and if so, what that should look like.  I spoke with Raj Patel a few months back for a piece about our perceptions of GM seed.  He spoke then about his discussion with panelist Rajiv Shah that was quoted in the New York Times Magazine, and he had this to say:

“I absolutely think we need a sustainable Green Revolution.  But it has to be with the kind of technology that Vandana [Shiva]‘s working with, or Via Campesina is working with.  An agroecological revolution is one that isn’t just about what chemicals and what genes to use in the fields, but changing our relationship with the earth. That’s not something that the Gates folk are ready to hear (we’ve tried). Moreover, though, there’s something very wrong about a private foundation doing something that should be government policy – and the only reason it isn’t government policy is because governments have been prevented in the past 30 years from doing this sort of agricultural work and research. I’d say if something is to be sustainable in Africa, shouldn’t Africans be involved, rather than the passive recipients for US largesse (which hasn’t worked out very well).”

Apparently, we are not the only ones scratching our heads about plans for the new Green Revolution.  Seemingly preemptive to the meeting at the Asia Society tomorrow, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) released a study on Tuesday called the “Environmental Food Crisis: Environment’s Role in Averting Future Food Crises,” which suggests that we begin to think more ecologically about food waste and infrastructure.  UN Under-Secretary-General and UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner: “We need to deal with not only the way the world produces food but the way it is distributed, sold and consumed, and we need a revolution that can boost yields by working with rather than against nature.”

They suggest “managing and better harvesting extreme rainfall on continents such as Africa, alongside [giving] support to farmers for adopting more diversified and ecologically-friendly farming systems – ones that enhance the ‘nature-based’ inputs from pollinators such as bees as well as water supplies and genetic diversity.”  The report also speaks rationally about water scarcity, organic production capacity, re-organizing the food market structure and removing crop subsidies.  Check out this great article from Inter Press Service about the report for more perspective.

Needless to say, I will be present at the discussion in the morning, looking forward to (and a bit freaked out about) standing up for all of those voices who have no say in how their land is developed under the auspices of philanthropy, by those whose pockets have the potential to be lined by this little experiment.  Please join me at th Asia Society, I will be outside at 8:00am, somehow making myself known (Late twenties with an iPhone addiction, and I won’t be bothered if you approach me — unless you are a Monsanto exec), and will be livetweeting the event on my twitter feed, featured in the right-hand side panel on Civil Eats.

UPDATE: Doug Gurian-Sherman, a Senior Scientist of the Food & Environment Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) is speaking tomorrow at the Asia Society panel, instead of Rajiv Shah.

Image: Monsanto’s recent ad campaign

We live in a time where there is a seemingly endless parade of information streaming across our brains.  And increasingly, this information is ecological in scope – green, eco, natural and sustainable.

This is especially true when it comes to food, where the increased eco-awareness in the past year has been dramatic.  Oprah is now promoting the humane treatment of animals, and Safeway and Wal-mart are rapidly increasing their sales of organic products.

But, do we really understand what all this information means?  Do we, as a society, have the background to separate the truly green from the green-washed?

In our primary schools, teachers are still hobbled by restrictive No Child Left Behind regulations, forcing them to cut “electives” like classes on ecology and the environment.

And a sobering new study of over 1000 colleges and universities conducted by the National Wildlife Federation indicates, “There is a widening gap between where education actually is on teaching sustainability versus where it should be.”  There are fewer environmental courses and programs in our nation’s college campuses now than there were in 2001, the study found.

So as a nation, we are arguably receiving less environmental education than before at a time when we have to understand more environmental facts and details.

What is the solution to this growing dichotomy? We need to include Ecology in our discussion of all things green.  We need to return Eco- and Green back to their roots.  “Eco” comes from the ancient Greek word “oikos” which means “house” – the place where we live.  What this means, fundamentally, is that our ecology is the place where we live; we are not separate from it.

When it comes to an understanding of food, an integrated ecological context has significant implications.

Currently, most thinking about food is linear.  That is, people buy food, transport it home, prepare it, eat it and throw away the waste.  That’s the extent of our common awareness.

Even if we extend that discussion to organic foods, this simply extends this linear model one notch – moving the “beginning” from the store back to the organic farm.  And if we include local food in the mix, it simply makes the distances traveled smaller, and the number of steps fewer.

An alternative to this would be to recognize that food comes from a cyclical system. A circle has no beginning and no end, and neither does the food cycle.  To be sustainable, the entire food system needs to be in balance.  Therefore, we can’t pay attention to certain parts of the cycle, say organic farming, and then ignore the rest and pretend we are acting sustainably.

I hasten to clarify that I am not diminishing the importance of organic farms, or of supporting local food networks. On the contrary, they are vitally important. But they are no more important than supporting efficient compost and waste procedures, or streamlining our wholesale and retail operations.

These ideas can give valuable context to foster understanding of unfamiliar ideas. For example, if someone brings up “Vineyard Irrigation”, as mentioned in the New York Times Magazine Food Issue, then even if you don’t understand the specifics, you already know what part of the food cycle you are addressing, and what sustainability issues are addressed. A quite different set of issues arises when the conversation moves on to “Biofortification.”

More superficially, an integration of true ecological ideas into common understanding will help prevent a consumer backlash. If we continue on in the direction we’ve been going, Eco and Green will become completely meaningless, and people will start to distrust such labeling.  This will lead to a widespread rejection of all Sustainable minded products and companies, which will be understandable but disastrous.  We need truth in labeling, and an understanding of the issues. We simply can’t afford not to.

So I urge you all to become Ecotarians, to pay attention to the entire ecological cycle as you garden, shop, cook, eat, and compost. With this broader context in mind, we can begin to pave a path toward true sustainability.

Interested? Want to hear more? For our readers that live in the Los Angeles area, Aaron French will present “Eating Greener: The Ecology of Food and Why It Matters” at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County (NHM) on November 9. The presentation is a part of Sustainable Sundays, a new program at NHM, which allows visitors the opportunity to learn from museum scientists and guest researchers about international conservation issues. The presentation begins at 12:30 p.m. on November 9. Tickets can be purchased at the door; $9 for adults and $2 for kids. Conservation International’s Jen Morris will also be presenting information about investing in global pro-conservation, small- and medium-sized businesses at 2:30 p.m. For more information about Sustainable Sundays, please visit: http://www.nhm.org/calendar/ssundays.html