Save the Seeds!

Where does our food come from? Some may answer the grocery store, the farmers market, the drive through, or even their backyard. But let’s dig a little deeper… all of our food derives from a basic, seed unit. Seeds have been saved and stored for hundreds of years by farmers, peasants, Indigenous peoples, and garden enthusiasts alike for the purpose of feeding humanity! These little units are arguably one of the most essential aspects of sustaining life as we know it. However, seeds are facing an unprecedented moment in global history, a time where many seeds may become extinct forever!

With increased intensity of the global capitalist economy and advances in crop and seed technology, local seed saving and knowledge of indigenous seeds are in danger of being lost. More, the dangers of loss in biodiversity, and knowledge of regionally native foods and seed families, are all on the chopping block due to seed monopolies and patent lawsuits perpetrated by Big Agribusiness companies such as Monsanto – Bayer. 

Ever since the commercial introduction of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in 1996, Monsanto has aggressively pursued its commercial interests on the market, in the fields and in courts, at home and abroad. The company has filed for patent protection for its genetically modified (GM) plant varieties in various jurisdictions and invented unprecedented systems for the collection of royalties and surveillance of farmers. With its resources and power, Monsanto – Beyer has won every single intellectual property (IP) lawsuit filed in the United States and Canada since 1997. This legal precedent of agribusiness winning intellectual property battles against their growers poses a massive threat (perhaps the largest in global history) to seed sovereignty in both local and international arenas.

Seeds determine how and what we are able to eat. Seeds provide the nourishing foods that support us in our day to day lives. Seeds define our communities and how we relate to one another culturally. Most importantly, seeds define our freedom from dependence on industrial agriculture and modified seeds. In this age of genetic modification and the accompanying intellectual property rights, monopolies pose a threat to each and every one of us. 

The effects of seeds in the wrong hands can displace families, decemate plant diversity, and cause genetic contamination as well as creating a manufactured reliance on industry rather than our own communities. GM seeds and local seeds are incompatible due to ethical differences in viewing seeds as living beings, ancestors of our food systems, and markers of cultural history while the former is a product of lab engineering, ignorance to locality and colonial histories of erasure of Indigenous knowledge – forcing reliance on neocolonial systems. GM seeds emphasize few varieties of ‘profitable’ products rather than that of historically accurate, culturally appropriate, regional varieties that produce more nutritious foods. More, manufactured seeds are less climate resilient than local varieties, produce less compared to local methods of growing, and work to enhance negative environmental outcomes through use of chemical inputs, poor soil management, and imposition of outside actors into foreign soils (quite literally).

Fight the struggle against the restructuring of our social and natural worlds around the narrow logic of the market and join the movement in defence of our freedom and our food systems!

La Via Campesina, Global Campaign For Seeds.

Do you feel a sense of impending doom when thinking about our planet’s future? Are you concerned about the ever-widening wealth gap between the 1% and the dwindling middle class? Does the current political climate seem unsustainable to you? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then maybe ecosocialism is for you!

Broadly defined, ecosocialism is a burgeoning ideology combining criticisms of capitalism from both social and environmental perspectives. Ecosocialists argue that pursuing individual financial gain at the expense of the working class and the planet landed us in our current climate crisis. That proposition requires ecosocialists to ask a fundamental question: how can we create a better future for all when we refuse to change the systems that created the present? 

Just as with human-induced climate change, capitalism is not the natural order of the world. Capitalism in its current, unregulated form wasn’t conceived until the late 18th-century, though slavery and exploitation of labor harken back several centuries. With roots in the imperialist traditions of the British and American Empires, capitalism celebrates personal gain instead of collective success and private property rather than traditional land rights. 

Capitalist principles directly oppose those of Indigenous peoples, who remain victims of Western economic growth to this day. A prominent tenet of many Indigenous nations, respecting the land helped these societies prosper for hundreds of years before the arrival of European colonists. Indigenous traditions offer an alternative, more sustainable relationship with the planet, but are currently incompatible with Western consumer culture. 

Turning a profit, though not inherently bad, is embedded in capitalism. However, a study from 2017 shows that the richest 1% possess more than half of the world’s wealth. This massive wealth gap is no accident–unchecked capitalism is largely responsible. Between 2010-2015, American fossil fuel executives alone pocketed over $6 billion, approximately 1000x times more than the average American. 

Corporations often claim that “going green” is bad for business. Is this true? Partially. While the operating costs of sustainable business are higher, the social and environmental costs, however, are worth the extra cash. Corporations don’t pollute for fun, but they do behave in a risk-averse manner. Though often the safest business decision, weighing immediate profit over long-term environmental consequences and human lives comes with a high price tag: our planet itself.   

For this beat, I will examine case studies of countries that incorporate eco-social policies. There is a precedent for modern ecosocialism. In fact, the United States is far behind most of the world at implementing ecosocial and collectivist policy to combat climate change. 

A number of countries, including India, Bhutan, France, Canada, Norway, and the United Kingdom, incorporate ecosocialist policies in their mainstream government. By examining the United States’s shortcomings and successful policy applications in other countries, I will highlight ways the U.S.  can move forward towards a more sustainable and equitable future. 

While breeding imported French moths one day in the 1860s, a young zoologist accidentally let a few escape in the bustling city of Boston, Massachusetts. Little did he know, those insects whose products were originally intended to solve a silk shortage would have disastrous effects on agriculture and the economy in New England into the 21st century. Today, we call those escapees “Gypsy Moths”. 

Adult spotted lanternfly (2019) Credit: Mark Nakahara

Invasive species, particularly pests like the gypsy moth, have wreaked havoc on the American Northeast for hundreds of years. One of the latest invasive species is the spotted lanternfly. The spotted lanternfly, which was first sighted in Pennsylvania in 2014, is native to China, Bangladesh, and Vietnam. It has now taken up residence on the east coast from Virginia to Connecticut. Spotted lanternflies will, unfortunately, impact hundreds of thousands of jobs for those in the grape, apple, hops, and hardwood industries because of their ability to quickly decimate these crops. How is it that after all of the experience we’ve gained and the technological advancements we’ve made in the United States, invasive species can still bring American agriculture to its knees?

Technology has actually exacerbated the problem. When invasive species find themselves on new shores, they lack the natural predators of their homeland, allowing them to multiply and spread without interference. Technology is at the core of this introduction and spread. Advances in transportation have made a streamlined process to move people and goods, but unwanted species have also found it all too easy to hitch a ride. 

Growth in global travel and trade over the past century has worsened the impact of invasive species. With economic losses estimated at $137 billion per year by the USDA, it is clearly a significant issue. Farmers take the largest hit in these losses; invasive species cause them to lose significant portions of their harvest yields and drive up spending on pest prevention. 

While improved methods of communication allow us to quickly identify and locate invasive species, methods for the control and regulation of these species are still being developed. Policies like quarantine zones that limit the transportation of certain resources outside of the infested area are helpful but are not as effective as more controversial solutions, such as predator species introductions. Introducing predator species requires an abundance of testing to ensure that it’s population doesn’t spread too quickly or endanger unexpected prey. In the past, predator species have included animals, pests, and fungi. Scientists have also been working to make other existing solutions more environmentally friendly. For example, they have been working to improve the effectiveness of pesticides to reduce the number of chemicals being used and limit the chances of those pesticides showing up in drinking water.

My beat will explain the ins and outs of the science behind invasive species and the impact that they’ve had on the environment, economy, and health of the Northeast.

     “Save the bees!” has become a popular phrase, seen on cute t-shirts, tote bags, and Instagram posts. Most people are taught to fear bees for their painful stings, but the attitudes of many have begun to shift. Bees provide countless services and benefits to us and the world’s ecosystems, and people are catching on. Honey bees’ capacity to convert tiny drops of nectar from thousands of flowers into pounds of honey is especially remarkable. One in three bites of food we take every single day can be traced back to the pollination services of native bees and honey bees. Beekeepers and researchers of these animals have known these wonders for millennia, and the bees they love continued to prosper until quite recently. 

     A mysterious occurrence, known to scientists as colony collapse disorder, is decimating bee populations. This rapid decline began recently when entire hives were dying. Several native bee species, too, are now near impossible to find. Research is ongoing, and the causes are complicated. What we do know is that human behavior is responsible. Pesticides, such as neonicotinoids have become so potent and effective against target agricultural insect pests, that they easily kill bees, too. The urbanization of once natural spaces, and damaging farming practices have eliminated so many flowering plants, that some bee populations struggle to find adequate food sources around them.

Signs such as this help protect apiaries from nearby farmers who apply pesticides. Photo credit: FieldWatch® apiary registry

    Invasive species, a by-product of human activity, also constantly threaten the survival of honey bee colonies. You may have heard of the infamous “murder hornets”. These giant hornets originating from east Asia have been introduced to the United States. The threat they pose to honey bees is serious, as just a few hornets can kill tens of thousands of bees in a couple of hours. These are just the latest of species whose introduction to foreign ecosystems is very dangerous! 

Three Giant Asian Hornets at the entrance of a honey bee colony, prepared for attack. Photo credit: Satoshi Kuribayashi/Minden Pictures

Bees face enormous challenges that are too easy to overlook amid the struggles of 2020. However, there are immense consequences at stake and things people can do about it, besides buying that cute T-shirt. Throughout this term, I will explore some of the biggest threats to bees, and explain the actions and changes anyone can make to protect our precious pollinators.

“Bee hotels”, such as this, provide nesting habitat for many wild bee species. They are easy to make and place outside. Photo credit: tektur (Shutterstock)

In Vietnam, a coastal community struggling with flooding implemented a mangrove restoration project. The project saved $215 million in flood damages. What if a strategy such as this could be deployed more broadly to tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges, like climate change? Nature-based solutions (NbS) involve protecting, restoring, and sustainably managing landscapes to help us address society’s challenges.

NbS typically involve carbon sinks, or reservoirs that draw down and store carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases driving climate change. Forests are the world’s most well-known carbon sinks. Less recognized are peatlands, a type of wetland consisting of organic matter such as soil, leaves, and branches. Here is a surprise: despite only making up 3% of global land area (28% less than forests) peatlands can store twice as much carbon as the world’s forests! Protecting forests and peatlands is vital to addressing climate change. Losing these ecosystems, typically through agricultural or industrial development, hampers the Earth’s ability to store carbon and emits greenhouse gases in the process.

Peatlands are carbon-rich ecosystems with massive carbon storage potential. Photo courtesy of Wetlands International.

NbS not only reduce the risk of climate change but can protect communities against its negative impacts. Climate change makes natural disasters more likely to happen, but ecosystems can serve as first-line protection. Wetlands moderate storm and flooding damages, saving homes and fishing grounds in coastal communities. Protecting ecosystems and making use of what exists in nature is a cost-effective method for guarding communities against climate impacts.

In the United States, natural wetlands prevented losses of $625 million during Hurricane Sandy. Photo courtesy of Bridget Besaw.

Despite the evidence in favor of NbS, implementation is slow. Of the 167 countries that submitted their country climate pledges under the 2016 Paris Agreement, less than half integrated nature-based solutions into their plans.

Part of the reason for the slow uptake is because NbS alone will not completely solve the climate crisis. There needs to be massive action to reduce the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide, and trees and peatlands can only take in so much. To meet the goals set by the 2016 Paris Agreement, we need to shift our energy and transportation systems away from carbon-intensive activities, such as coal burning.

But this doesn’t mean that NbS should be disregarded. Climate change is an existential threat, but nature has immense restorative power. It presents cost-effective climate tools we can use towards addressing the climate crisis. We need to let ecosystems take center stage. I will explore how NbS can help solve climate change, from the benefits and challenges that come with them to how we can better integrate them into our society.