Yesterday I completed my application for GIVEN, a Catholic young women's leadership forum. This conference is exactly what I have been looking for, so fingers crossed I get accepted. But even if not, how great is it that there is a space for young Catholic women to come together and be inspired by others and by the Lord, and explore their talents and aspirations? As part of the application, I had to answer the question: "If you had unlimited funds and all the time in the world, with no outside constraints from school or work, what would you do with your time, money, and talents?" It took me quite a while to figure out an answer, but as I was reading the Organic Manifesto by Maria Rodale, I knew. So pardon me while I get on a mini-soap box, but here is how I would change the world if I could...If I had unlimited funds and all the time in the world, I would help each and every farm in the United States - and potentially beyond - transition to organic. Poverty and consequent hunger are serious problems, and studies have shown that organic agriculture is truly the way to not only “feed the world” but restore the environment. Unfortunately, the three year transition required for certification can be long and initially expensive for farmers, which can be off-putting. Due to the myriad benefits of organic farming, though, I would assist these farmers to make the transition so that they can better serve the earth, the people, and themselves. In doing so, healthy food would also become cheaper and more widely available for consumers.
Organic agriculture allows the farmer to function independently, whereas “conventional” farming, particularly of cash crops like corn and soy, creates a dependency on big industry companies who own the seeds and do not allow the seeds to be saved and reused. Organic agriculture allows for seed saving, which is both more sustainable for the earth and the farmer.
Use of pesticides and herbicides depletes the quality of the soil, destroying the soil’s ability to sequester carbon. Organic soil, on the other hand, is a living organism and can absorb carbon back into the ground and use it for plant growth. By allowing the soil to do its job, carbon emissions would be greatly depleted, fending off global warming and other environmental issues.
GMOs and heavy pesticide use are also being linked to many developmental and other health problems now rampant in the United States such as autism, allergies, and thyroid disorders. I met a young man whose family lives on a farm and he admitted that every spring everyone gets terribly sick because the farmers start to spray their pesticides. Sickness is just an accepted byproduct, and that is unacceptable. If it makes us sick to inhale it or just be near or touch it, wouldn’t it then make us sick to eat it? We are putting ourselves and our children and our children’s children at risk with the continued use of these dangerous products.
Conventional agriculture is also contrary to religious duty and our natural calling. God told Adam to be a steward of the Earth. Destroying its natural balance is not being a good steward. Pope Benedict XVI said in his message to the director general of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations that “The Catholic Church […] hopes to encourage the FAO’s activity and efforts to contribute to increasing the ability to nourish world population, with respect for biodiversity. In fact, the human being must not rashly compromise the natural balance, a result of the order of creation, but, on the contrary, must take care to pass on to future generations an earth able to feed them” (my emphasis). At the present moment, the majority of US farmland – corn and soy – is not in a natural balance, nor can the earth properly feed the future generations with those two crops.
Conventional farming touts the appeal of being easier for the farmer, but as Pope Benedict said, “agricultural labor takes on a deeper meaning, both because of the effort and hardship that it involves and also because it offers a privileged experience of God’s presence and his love for his creatures.” Organic farmers, I believe, are more likely to understand this, as they truly till the earth. Also, conventional farming is not easier, and truly is more expensive which puts more stress on the farmer, not allowing him to actually farm.
Lending my time and money, I would hope not only farmers but consumers would understand the “privileged experience of God’s presence” that comes with organic agriculture. I would hope this would spread from the farms to more gardens so that everyone gets the opportunity to be a steward of the land.
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