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All Blog Posts Tagged 'Planet' (27)

Cultivating Knowledge and Crops: Women Are Key to Sustainable Agricultural Development

Crossposted from the Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



Women account for 75 percent of the agricultural producers in sub-Saharan Africa, but the majority of women farmers are living on only $1.25 per day, according to researchers from the Worldwatch Institute.



Despite the challenging circumstances that women in developing countries face, important innovations in…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on August 17, 2011 at 18:41 — No Comments

World Population Day: Agriculture Offers Huge Opportunities for a Planet of 7 Billion

Crossposted from the Worldwatch Institute's Nourishing the Planet.

 

As the global population increases, so does the number of mouths to feed. The good news is that in addition to providing food, innovations in sustainable agriculture can provide a solution to many of the challenges that a growing population presents. Agriculture is emerging as a solution to mitigating climate change, reducing…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on July 6, 2011 at 16:25 — No Comments

Farming the cities, feeding an urban future

Crossposted from the Worldwatch Institute's Nourishing the Planet.

 

As people move from rural to urban settings in search of economic opportunities, urban agriculture is becoming an important provider of both food and employment, according to researchers with the Worldwatch Institute. “Urban agriculture is providing food, jobs, and hope in Nairobi, Kampala, Dakar, and…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on June 16, 2011 at 17:30 — 1 Comment

Fishing for Sustainable Practices to Conserve Fisheries

Crossposted from the Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



Global fish production has reached an all-time high, according to Nourishing the Planet’s latest research for the Worldwatch Institute’s Vital Signs Online publication. Aquaculture, or fish farming—once a minor contributor to total…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on May 3, 2011 at 14:30 — No Comments

Getting “More Crop Per Drop” to Strengthen Global Food Security

Crossposted from the Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



Increasing demand for water continues to put a strain on available water sources, threatening the livelihood of millions of small-scale farmers who depend on water for their crops. At a time when one in eight people lack access to safe water, Nourishing the… Continue

Added by Danielle Nierenberg on April 28, 2011 at 16:50 — No Comments

State of the World 2011 Launches in NYC Today

Nigeria: With IITA in Ibadan



Today the Worldwatch Institute launches its flagship publication, State of the World 2011: Innovations that Nourish the Planet in New York City. The report spotlights successful agricultural innovations and unearths major successes in… Continue

Added by Danielle Nierenberg on January 12, 2011 at 18:30 — No Comments

Providing the Skills—and the Confidence—Needed to Improve Livelihoods

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



For most women living in rural and remote parts of India, the day begins as early as 3:00am. The flour for the day’s meals needs grinding, livestock need to be fed, breakfast needs to be cooked, and water needs to be…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on December 9, 2010 at 16:00 — No Comments

Sneak Preview: State of the World 2011

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.

In just a few short weeks State of the World 2011: Innovations that Nourish the Planet will be launched! We're excited to share with you a sneak preview of Chapter 1…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on December 6, 2010 at 17:43 — No Comments

Gathering the Food Growing at our Feet

After many years of studying invasive plant species in Patagonia, Argentina, Dr. Eduardo Rapoport, Professor at the Universidad Nacional Del Camohue, realized that many of the “pests” he was caataloging were edible. “I found that, especially in areas disturbed by man, such as roads, back lots, and gardens, there are a great deal of unintentional food sources.” As a result, Dr. Rapoport found himself looking at these “pests, invaders, and weeds,” in a…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on November 24, 2010 at 23:43 — No Comments

Putting Classroom Theory into Practice

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



“The idea was to bring a lot of expertise from the corporate world to help young social start ups,” says Fred

Rose when asked…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on November 17, 2010 at 18:58 — No Comments

Turning an Invasive Species into a Livelihood

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



In Kenya, for the over 5,000 people living in rural communities on or near its shore, Lake Victoria—the largest body of freshwater in Africa—is a life line. It is the main source of water for bathing, drinking, and cooking in the area and its fish populations… Continue

Added by Danielle Nierenberg on November 3, 2010 at 18:05 — No Comments

Improving the Harvest, From the Soil to the Market

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



Farmers in the Uluguru Mountains in Tanzania are fighting a losing battle against increasingly degraded land. Repeated plantings are quickly depleting the nutrients in the soil, leaving it nearly barren and vulnerable to erosion. Meanwhile, downstream, the… Continue

Added by Danielle Nierenberg on October 27, 2010 at 19:45 — No Comments

Banking on the Harvest

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



In the Maradi area in south central Niger, where 70 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, the months before the harvest are called “the hunger season.” From mid-July to… Continue

Added by Danielle Nierenberg on October 21, 2010 at 13:17 — No Comments

Giving Farmers a Reason to Stay

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



While the coast of The Gambia is a popular—and economically thriving— tourist destination for European

vacationers, the inland portion…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on October 6, 2010 at 19:08 — No Comments

Putting a Stop to the Spreading Sands

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



Throughout the Sahel, recurrent drought since the late 1960’s is turning once crop covered land into desert. And the sand is spreading. Picked up by wind, dunes created by soil particles from the West African coastline and the Sahel are covering villages, roads, crops, and… Continue

Added by Danielle Nierenberg on September 22, 2010 at 19:29 — No Comments

Innovation of the Week: From the Township Garden to the City Table

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



Townshiptogarden Around 1 million people in South Africa—the majority of whom are

recent arrivals from the former apartheid homelands, Transkei and…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on September 16, 2010 at 13:33 — No Comments

Innovation of the Week: Water Out of Thin Air

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on September 8, 2010 at 18:52 — No Comments

Staying Tuned for More Innovations

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



Listen to Radio Fanaka Fana and Radio Jigiya, in the Fana and Zégoua regions of Mali, and you are much more likely to hear tips for improving compost piles and soil quality than you are pop music hits or current events. That’s because the station is participating in…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on September 1, 2010 at 20:00 — No Comments

Funding a Blue Revolution

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.



As climate change worsens, and fresh water availability grows more erratic, the food security of small-scale farmers throughout Africa will increasingly depend on their water management abilities. Luckily, the tools for improving water management already exist. But, as a recent…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on August 25, 2010 at 16:47 — No Comments

Innovation of the Week: Turning Agriculture into Gold

Cross posted from Worldwatch Institute’s Nourishing the Planet.





Before Kenya’s independence, the Migori District’s economy was driven by the Macalder Mining Company, the area’s largest employer. When the company shut down in 1966, it left behind a lot of abandoned land—and a lot of unemployed miners. These miners, some of…

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Added by Danielle Nierenberg on August 18, 2010 at 15:02 — No Comments

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