Eating our way to a healthy planet: Can how we eat help reduce climate change?

Agriculture and livestock production are often named as major contributors to climate change and other environmental problems such as poor air quality, polluted water supplies and degraded land. There is some truth in these accusations, but the blame needs to be focused on the way that the food is being produced, not the food itself.

This realization can help consumers make decisions about buying and eating food that actually sustains our environment, instead of hurting it.

Allan Savory, a Zimbabwean farmer, rancher, game warden and biologist, will talk about how a holistic approach to food production can bring the land back to life while increasing the amount of carbon sequestered in the soil. His nature-based approach to livestock production is sustainable for farmers and ranchers because it improves land productivity without compromising the long-term viability of the resource base.

Savory wil discuss how consumer behavior can create market pulls that wil result in large-scale changes in how food is produced which in turn can greatly reduce the impacts of climate change. These decisions can make a difference in the health of our planet and people who live on it.

Grant Information

  • Project ID: 115
  • Project Status: Complete

2012

2013

Additional Funds Leveraged

Charged a $99 registration fee that covered the workshop and the keynote presentation. Keynote only registration fee was $15 in advance and $20 at the door

Impacts

Short‐term
Participants were given a good introduction to Holistic Management and the tools to get started using the decision‐making process.
Intermediate‐term
All of the participants provided their email addresses that will be used to provide new information about Holistic Management and the upcoming workshops.
Long‐term
The participants will be contacted in mid‐2013 to determine if they pursued additional training and/or adopted the holistic decision‐making process.