The other inconvenient truth | Jonathan Foley | TEDxTC

Summary

In this insightful presentation, the speaker highlights the critical global issue of agriculture's impact on the environment, emphasizing how it dominates land use, water resources, and contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. The talk explores the necessity of agriculture for human survival and the challenges posed by a growing population and changing diets. It calls for a collaborative approach to invent a new type of agriculture, blending commercial, organic, and environmental practices to sustainably feed nine billion people while protecting the planet for future generations.

Takeaways

• 🌏 Human presence is highly visible from space at night, with cities, oil fields, and fishing fleets dominating the planet's surface.
• 🛣️ Deforestation patterns, such as the 'fish bone' pattern in the Amazon, are driven by the expansion of roads and subsequent agricultural development.
• 🐄 The Amazon rainforest is being cleared for cattle farming, primarily for beef consumption in South America, impacting the environment significantly.
• 🌾 Agricultural practices, like soybean farming in the Bolivian Amazon, are influenced by global trade demands, as seen with the shift from rainforest to soybean fields for animal feed in Europe and China.
• 🌱 The extent of land used for agriculture is vast, with croplands and pastures covering an area equivalent to the size of South America and Africa combined.
• 💧 Agriculture is a major consumer of water resources, with practices such as desert irrigation in Arizona and the depletion of the Colorado River and Aral Sea exemplifying the strain on water supplies.
• 🌳 Agriculture is a leading cause of biodiversity loss and contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions, rivaling the impact of climate change.
• 🚜 The current trajectory of agricultural expansion threatens ecological balance, with the potential to double global agricultural production by intensifying farming on existing lands rather than clearing new areas.
• 🌱 There is a need to improve agricultural yields sustainably, focusing on areas with low current productivity without causing environmental harm.
• 🌿 The concept of 'terraculture' is introduced, advocating for a blend of commercial, organic, and conservationist approaches to create a holistic agricultural system.
• 🤝 The script calls for a collaborative approach among various stakeholders, including commercial agriculture, environmental conservation, and organic farming, to address the challenges of feeding a growing population without further damaging the planet.

Q & A

What is the 'other inconvenient truth' referred to in the script?

The 'other inconvenient truth' is a global issue at the intersection of land use, food, and environment, highlighting the significant impact of human activities on the planet, particularly in relation to agriculture and deforestation.

What is the significance of the night-time satellite images of Earth mentioned in the script?

The night-time satellite images of Earth are significant because they show the extent of human presence and activity on the planet, particularly the dominance of urban areas, oil fields, and fishing fleets, which are all illuminated and visible from space.

What is the 'fish bone pattern' of deforestation described in the script?

The 'fish bone pattern' of deforestation refers to the pattern created by roads that penetrate into the rainforest, branching out and leading to the clearing of land for agricultural purposes, such as cattle farming, which resembles the structure of a fish bone.

How has the landscape in the Bolivian edge of the Amazon changed from 1975 to 2003 according to the script?

The landscape in the Bolivian edge of the Amazon has changed dramatically from a rainforest to an area resembling Iowa, with vast soybean fields that are used for animal feed and are shipped to Europe and China.

What is the role of trade and globalization in the changes to the Amazon landscape?

Trade and globalization are responsible for the transformation of the Amazon landscape as they drive the demand for agricultural products like soybeans, which are used as animal feed in other parts of the world, leading to deforestation and land conversion for farming.

What does the script reveal about the scale of land used for agriculture globally?

The script reveals that agriculture occupies about 40 percent of the Earth's land surface, with 16 million square kilometers used for growing crops and another 30 million square kilometers for pastures and rangelands, which is equivalent to the size of South America and Africa, respectively.

How does the script illustrate the impact of agriculture on water resources?

The script illustrates the impact of agriculture on water resources by showing how water is diverted from rivers like the Colorado River to irrigate crops in arid regions, leading to a significant reduction in river flow and the drying up of once large water bodies like the Aral Sea.

What is the script's perspective on the role of agriculture in greenhouse gas emissions?

The script states that agriculture is one of the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases, accounting for 30 percent of human-induced emissions, which is more than transportation, electricity, or manufacturing.

What is the concept of 'terraculture' proposed in the script?

The concept of 'terraculture' is a new kind of agriculture that blends the best ideas from commercial farming, organic farming, and environmental conservation to create a sustainable and holistic approach to food production that is sensitive to both food security and environmental needs.

What challenges does the script present for the future of agriculture?

The script presents the challenge of doubling or even tripling global food production to feed a growing population while also protecting the environment and natural resources, which requires a new approach to agriculture that is sustainable and equitable.

What solutions does the script suggest to address the challenges of agriculture and environmental sustainability?

The script suggests a range of solutions including precision agriculture, new crop varieties, drip irrigation, gray water recycling, better tillage practices, smarter diets, and a collaborative approach that includes commercial agriculture, environmental conservation, and organic farming.