Food Chain Radio Show #1015

Michael Olson, Author & Urban Farming Agriculturalist

Uganda and American Farming

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Can we in the developed world learn from those in the developing world?

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Yes

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Guests: Godfrey Kasozi, Center for Environment Technology and Rural Development, Uganda; and Rural Development, Uganda; Peggy Pollard, U.S. Uganda Sister Cities

Godfrey Kasozi came to the University of California, Santa Cruz from Uganda to learn how to be an organic farmer. Much to his surprise, he was offered a tent at the UCSC Farm in which to sleep at night!

Michael Olson Food Chain Radio – Africa and America – What can we in the developed world of America learn about farming from those in the developing world of Uganda?

The kind of farming taught at UCSC was decidedly different than that taught at land grant universities throughout the United States. While the land grant universities taught an agriculture that relies on the input of money, UCSC taught an agriculture that relies the input of time. UCSC staff and students sometimes called their method, “French-Intensive Biodynamic.”

Though perhaps ill-suited to the scale of modern, industrialized agriculture, the French-intensive biodynamic method can make a lot of sense when the scale is reduced to that available throughout much of the world. What may not make sense with 1,000 acres may well make sense with one acre.

Equipped with his new knowledge of this very old practice, Godfrey returned to Uganda, where he now teaches thousands of fellow Ugandans how to farm organically on their small parcels of land, and thus survive and prosper in one of the world’s most strife-filled political regions.

In considering how what Godfrey learned at the UCSC Farm is being used to strengthen his community in Uganda, we ask…

Want to comment?  What can we in the developed world learn from those in the developing world?

Tune in here, for the syndicated Food Chain Radio Show #1015 May 30, 2015 Saturday 9AM Pacific