New Agriculturist

The true history of tea

Today the cultivation of tea provides a lucrative commodity for large multinational corporations, and livelihoods for millions of farmers and estate workers. The true history of tea explores how the tea plant spread from East to West and how the uses of this beverage have changed from ancient times to the present.

Date published: July 2009

Conservation refugees: The hundred-year conflict between global conservation and native peoples

According to the author, Conservation refugees is a good guy vs. good guy story that has seen millions of indigenous people displaced in the interests of conservation. In that respect, Mark Dowie questions the strategies, not motives, of global conservation organisations in their treatment of indigenous peoples.

Date published: July 2009

Farmer first revisited: Innovation for agricultural research and development

Twenty years ago the Farmer First movement was launched to encourage farmer participation in agricultural research and extension. Farmer first revisited presents just some of the discussions and papers presented at a workshop in 2007 to assess what has worked, what hasn't, and why.

Date published: July 2009

Vital signs 2009: The trends that are shaping our future

Compiled by the WorldWatch Institute, Vital signs 2009 documents trends in the environment, energy, industry, the global economy, population, health, and transport that are shaping our future.

Date published: July 2009

Women feeding cities: Mainstreaming gender in urban agriculture and food security

Women may make up the majority of urban farmers in many cities but they tend to be subsistence farmers, producing food for their own household. Women feeding cities seeks to highlight the crucial role women play in urban agriculture, and suggest ways women can be empowered and their contribution enhanced.

Date published: July 2009

Towards food sovereignty: Reclaiming autonomous food systems (Chapter 7)

This on-line publication is the latest contribution to a series which explores equality and sustainability in the food and agriculture sector. Titled Transforming knowledge and ways of knowing, this chapter argues that to achieve food sovereignty, farmers need to have more influence over agricultural research, and the knowledge produced.

Date published: July 2009

Sustainable agriculture and food security in an era of oil scarcity - lessons from Cuba

When the Soviet Union collapsed, Cuba saw its fuel and food supplies vanish almost overnight. This book demonstrates how, faced with a lack of agricultural inputs and internationally-shunned, Cuba still managed to feed its population - and to feed it well.

Date published: May 2009

Confessions of an eco sinner

If you've ever wondered where all your stuff comes from - computers, bananas, wedding ring gold - and where it all goes, Fred Pearce has beaten you to it, been there, cast a critical eye over it and published it here.

Date published: May 2009