Food Security
Photo: María Esteban
Hector and María Estaban with their organic crops. The goal of sustainable agriculture is to lower costs while improving the quality and quantity of yields.
Lacking Sufficient Resources to Grow Food
Travelers in some of the most remote parts of the globe have seen it. No matter how remote the village, there is always a shop selling genetically modified seeds, chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Countless small-scale farmers are negatively affected by the use of genetically modified (GMO) seeds and the chemicals needed to achieve the promised yields.
At its most basic level, poverty is connected to a lack of food security.
Over time GMO seeds take its toll. Soil quality worsens. Groundwater is contaminated. Pest resistance increases. High nutrient and organic seed varieties indigenous to the area are lost. “Terminator” genes lead to seed sterility and force farmers to buy new seeds every season instead of saving from the harvest.
There’s more. The seeds are not always suited to some ecosystems or terrains. Irrigation is not a feature of most remote areas. Weather patterns are less and less predictable every year. Users are often illiterate and may not be able to read product instructions.
Developing Sustainable Agriculture
But there is some good news. Many of IDEX partners work to promote sustainable organic agriculture, horticulture and livestock rearing. This is to improve food supplies and nutrition while at the same time manage the land, water, and seeds on which their livelihoods – and very survival – depend, both now and in the future.
The goal is to lower farming communities’ costs and improve the quality and quantity of their crop yields. At the same time, they need to care for the land, find buyers and earn fair prices.
With IDEX funding, local partners are joining the growing worldwide movement to promote sustainable organic agriculture as an environmentally sound and economically viable alternative for small-scale farmers. Training may include:
- Permaculture design
- Vermicomposting (the use of earthworms)
- Water management
- Organic pest control systems
- Seed bank development
- Crop rotation
- Intercropping
- Erosion control
- Sustainable livestock rearing
Read how DESMI is creating food security through sustainable agriculture.
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IDEX identifies, evaluates, and grows the best ideas from local leaders and organizations to alleviate poverty and injustice around the world. Grants to our international partners come entirely from our network of passionate and engaged supporters. Please donate to IDEX today.