This week I had the chance to attend the California Climate and Agriculture Summit. The day was filled with farmers, scientist, and policy folks. The various workshops and panels dealt with the effects of climate change and strategies to improve our climate through agriculture.
An ecology and justice workshop discussed integrating social equity into the rural farming communities. From years of studies, the panelist showed how soil health and human health improve with reduced exposure to pesticides.They pointed out that life expectancy for a California farm worker still hovers around 49 years old.
In a talk about tilling farmland, a researcher showed the potential value of reduced tillage for increasing soil carbon sequestration. While a farmer gave first hand experience on his efforts to implement these different low till techniques. Summits like this are a great reminder that even in these modern times, agriculture’s effects touch all aspects of our world.