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Indigenous Food Sovereignty Movements Are Taking Back Ancestral Land

Melissa Montalvo

March 31, 2021 |

Civil Eats |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Quapaw, Oklahoma

More and more Indigenous communities throughout North America are reclaiming their ancestral lands as a way to access traditional foodways. For example, a group of Mi’kmaq tribes in Nova Scotia bought a majority share in one of the largest seafood businesses on the continent, allowing them to use the company’s fishing licenses to harvest more scallops, lobsters, and crabs. The Quapaw Tribe in Oklahoma is restoring their land that had been polluted by mining. Under the Quapaw Cattle Company, they are able to sustain more than 1,000 cattle and bison as well as growing two crops.

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This seaweed can fight climate change

Cory Zapatka Mariya Abdulkaf

February 25, 2021 |

The Verge |

Video |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Dover Plains, New York

Symbrosia, a clean-tech startup in Hawaii, is taking seaweed from the ocean and turning it into a powder that can be used to feed livestock to reduce the amount of methane they produce — a key contribution to greenhouse gas emissions. The company worked with an organic farm in Upstate New York to test the product and found that sheep given a high dosage of the supplement had up to 70 percent reduction in methane emission. Creating the powder takes weeks and a lot of steps, but the startup is hopeful the product can become a mass-produced commodity.

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Agroforestry and land reform give Brazil cacao farmers sweet taste of success

Patricia Moll

February 24, 2021 |

Mongabay |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Brazil, Ibirapitanga, Bahia

After there was a fungal disease outbreak in the 1990s that affected cacao crops in Brazil, a group of 150 community members got together to collectively manage a farm to grow back cacao trees using agroforestry techniques. Because of their efforts, they sell their cacao to major chocolate brands and have seen their monthly income more than double.

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Zimbabwe's mango growers look to the sun to boost incomes

Lungelo Ndhlovu

February 15, 2021 |

Thomson Reuters Foundation |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Zimbabwe, Gokwe

A new dried fruit processing center in Zimbabwe has allowed farmers to turn their excess mangos into another product that can be sold to various markets around the world. The center serves more than 3,400 farmers and farmers can fetch up to four times as much for dried mangos as they would normally get from selling the fruit.

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Egypt's farmers tap new tech to save water and boost crops

Menna Farouk

February 10, 2021 |

Thomson Reuters Foundation |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Egypt, Samalout

A new government pilot program in Egypt is allowing farmers to use technology to tell them when their soil is dry and how much water it needs, which can aid the country as it navigates its water crisis. Sensors buried in the soil measure the ground’s moisture levels and sends the data to the user through a mobile app. The government has given 200 devices away for free, but some experts question the cost and if farmers will be comfortable with the technology. Still, one farmer says that because of the new system, she has been using 20 percent less water and her labor costs have also decreased.

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With free print newspaper, Indian farmers record their protest

Rina Chandran

February 04, 2021 |

Thomson Reuters Foundation |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: India, New Delhi

Because of internet shutdowns, six friends created a bilingual newspaper to document and record the farmer protests in India. Thousands of farmers have been protesting for weeks about the government’s new agricultural laws. Since there are many older farmers and the government has blocked the internet, they give out free print copies of their biweekly “Trolley Times” newspaper with information on speeches, medical aid, and community kitchens. While producing the newspaper has become harder, they are able to print about 5,000 copies for the farmers.

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Pakistan pins big hopes on small dams to help farmers beat drought

Imran Mukhtar

January 25, 2021 |

Thomson Reuters Foundation |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Pakistan, Nagarparkar, Sindh

A government scheme in Pakistan involves the construction of water-harvesting dams in areas that experience droughts, which allows farmers in the region to use the irrigation water from the dams for their crops. One farmer is growing onions and wheat and because of the access to water, his income has increased more than 60 percent. There are concerns about how helpful the water from the dams will ultimately be in the arid region, but there are plans to build more dams in the next few years.

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Plotting the future: the ‘seed guardians' bringing variety to UK gardens

Alexander Turner

January 19, 2021 |

The Guardian |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United Kingdom

Hundreds of seed-saving initiatives across the UK support the cultivation of “open pollinated seeds” in small plots and gardens to preserve future seed diversity. In contrast to static seeds in a bank, these seed-saving efforts focus on actually growing and sustaining seeds to provide security and more resilient crops. Open pollinated seeds reliably produce viable, true-to-type plants year after year so new seeds do not have to be purchased every season. Many “seed-savers” participate in seed circles where they exchange surplus seeds among small groups, enhancing the security and diversity of seeds.

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How Solar Panels Could Help Save Struggling Farms

XiaoZhi Lim

January 18, 2021 |

The Huffington Post |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Tucson, Arizona

As the amount of farmland decreases in the United States and climate change brings hotter and drier conditions, many farmers are turning to agrivoltaics — growing crops and installing solar panels on the same land — as a way to make ends meet. Research on a garden in Arizona showed that certain crops like tomatoes and chiltepin peppers were able to thrive under the shade of solar panels, while also improving the solar panels’ productivity. “It’s a very unique positive feedback,” said one of the researchers.

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The Seneca Nation Is Building Food Sovereignty, One Bison at a Time

Gabriel Pietrorazio

January 14, 2021 |

Civil Eats |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Collins, New York

Gakwi:yo:h Farms aims to increase the Seneca Nation’s food security and sovereignty by engaging in traditional agricultural practices. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the farm has been able to continue its work to establish a bison herd, tap more trees for maple syrup, and increase its various livestock operations. They still face challenges due to a lack of a food-processing plant, but they’ve been able to expand their land to keep food close to their community.

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