No spam, we promise just our best articles. All of us make critical decisions every day as we manage our lives and we dont consult the literature when making those decisions. Where I think the documentary falls short is in three critical areas. Several scientists featured in Kiss the Ground are clear that simply reducing carbon emission wont be enough to save the planet. Regenerative agriculture is a more resilient system based on principles of soil health and biodiversity that integrates multiple crops, cover crops, and livestock animals. By 2050, it is estimated that 1bn people will be refugees of soil desertification. The good news is that soils can recover fast if they are allowed to and managed correctly. If you want to hear a bit more explanation of these, click here or scroll down. Over the years, tilling causes the soil to dirt, leaving it vulnerable to erosion and desertification. If you are wondering whether its worth your time to watch, or want to know the gist but dont have an hour and a half to spare, read on and Ill cover the key points simply and factually for you. Despite all of this, my fear is that many will be left with a complete misunderstanding of where environmental science truly lies. 1 Claims that holistic grazing can reverse climate change. A Feb. 27, 2023, video of U.S. President Joe Biden purportedly shows him announcing a new national draft, in which 20-year-olds would be conscripted into military service on account of a growing . The filmmakers additionally say "Kiss the Ground" has earned the attention of scientists, farmers and activists alike, crossing boundaries in terms of a highly politicized issue and even being . Journal of Animal Science. The short clip featured Zelenskyy speaking and the audio was that of a translator. I promise not to sell your information, and if you don't like what I send, you can easily unsubscribe at any point. The movie didn't even include an indictment of current US politics or President Trump, which is notable by its absence considering the film was released so close to election time. Unfortunately, overtly telling people they need to cut down on their meat consumption for this change in agriculture to work isnt going to help with the documentarys popularity. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. These are more expensive, so if you can only afford to go organic with some, choose the Dirty dozen so that you get the health benefits of avoiding all the chemicals too The Dirty Dozen organic.org. Try: Compost Toilets in Africa: Human Feces as Fertilizer | Thrive4Good (thriveforgood.org) or GiveLove. Kiss the Ground is a new, feature-length movie that explores key soil health and regenerative agricultural principles, and features interviews with a wide range of authors, experts, farmers, researchers and scientists. Since chemical agriculture ramped up in the 70s, we have lost 1/3 of the worlds topsoil. There are sites where this has been done, and what was desert is now lush grassland with grasses growing taller than people. Get our weekly editors newsletter & special offers delivered right to your inbox! Many of them are based on anecdotal evidence and experience. Josh Tickell, the director of the movie, was associated with Kiss the Ground and was making a film on organic farming when I met him. Ray: Yes, absolutely. So what we are talking about here is how to better use the land dedicated to animal agriculture (83 percent of all agricultural land) that is responsible for 80 percent of food-related greenhouse gas emissions yet provides only 18 percent of our total calories. It carries pleasant stuff. Even though we werent farmers, scientists or experts we knew that together, we could still make a difference! For people who have an hour and a half to watch something like this, For people who are time strapped or not sure that this is their kind of thing, The way we are feeding ourselves is undermining the very ecology were dependent upon. That was good enough for me. Thanks for a well-referenced and easily readable article this seems like a great resource to send to people. Plus FCRNs paper simply ignored the existing peer reviewed science with its claim that no such science exists. BookstoreBook submissionsNewsNewsletter signupRecipesGardening, Our storyGet involvedJobs/FellowshipPartnersContact usPrivacy Shipping & return policy. Gabe: I would have liked the movie to highlight the importance of grazing animals. What the writers ignored is that it was SCIENCE that led to that preferred plan of action. But tilling is incredibly intrusive to the soil structures, destroying the balance of microbial life which create organic matter and help the plants get the nutrients to grow. The basic principles are: minimal tilling/ploughing, using cover crops, involving livestock in managed grazing, organic practices avoiding chemicals, composting, crop diversity and using trees and perennials as protection. We knew the film would really embody the spirit of the regenerative agriculture movement if Ray and Gabe were in it., And from the first days that Kiss the Ground the organization started, the work and research of Kris Nichols were fundamental to grasping why rebuilding soil was not only possible but the biggest solution to the climate, water, and food crises. Factory farms are good at one thing producing a lot of meat in a short period of time to feed a growing appetite for meat. Remember that the decision to depopulate the elephants when Savory was with the game department was a result of the current science among wildlife researchers. Everyone can grow a bit of lettuce or chard, some leeks and some French beans in a small garden, or even most of these on a balcony! Every version got better, and the last version was the best one. The first point that I think deserves our attention, before getting into the science on the reversal claim, is the way the producers wanted you to see holistic grazing. In the past, I did not like how certain environmental groups portrayed farmers. There is too much in the air now and too little in the earth (released by tilling and soil degradation and burning fossil fuels and plants/trees) causing global temperatures to rise. 209 South Oak Ridge Drive Sure, its easy to see with our own eyes that there is more life on land that is managed in a regenerative way, but in order to really know that it is a climate solution, we would need evidence that carbon levels in the soil are not only increasing but increasing by more than the emissions emitted by the animals involved in the system. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 141(34), 310-322. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2011.03.009, Plus a recent LCA funded by General Mills: By partnering with Kiss the Ground, youre making a difference in the world and demonstrating that you are committed to supporting a regenerative future. Regenerated healthy soil greatly increases the carrying capacity of land, so the amount of land needed for regen grazing isnt an issue. Its predicted that, if we can scale up some of these farming methods over the next 30 years, we can REVERSE global warming. Suggestions for viewers to compost and eat a plant-based diet come off as both insignificant and off the mark after the grand scheme of carbon cycling via production agriculture the whole film had been setting up. Looking for a way to kill the quarantine boredom? If not, heres what you can do to join the regenerative farming movement, or at least help make things better . Above all, its great to see this conversation growing from what has very much been a fringe movement to now entering the mainstream. Kris: No, but I am working on creating a virtual party with friends and family as we are scattered throughout the U.S. Ray: I will have a few people over. So its incredibly facile. Doing just one will make a difference!! But its the reality we face. Gabe: No, but only because I am on to the next project, bringing society together in supporting regenerative ag. Minimising the amount of mechanical disturbance, with no tilling/ploughing. If we adopt regenerative farming practices, we can reverse carbon release into the atmosphere and stabilise the climate, and it wont take long! Check out this map for farms local to you Regenerative Farm Map Regeneration International. Thank you for this article! One can only presume that the slaughtering of the animal is not about soil quality, but about profits. Suppose you don't have enough time to read, then watch the KISS the GROUND MOVIE (streaming on Netflix) hosted by Woody Harrelson and directed by Joshua Tickell and Rebecca Harrell Tickell. In other words, a 73 percent reduction in beef available per person in the U.S. For holistic grazing, that figure would be even higher because it requires far more land per cow and thus produces significantly less beef than the traditional more intensive grazing systems. It's a tool. Xu, S. (2016). Its not the most interesting topic of conversation for most, so try just mentioning a one or two of the following points and see if that gets a conversation going. However, I was slightly apprehensive that the documentary may be too focused on California and Hollywood and not be relevant to farmers and ranchers across the U.S. and the globe. The solution is right under our feet - THE SOIL. Any plans to hire an agent or move to L.A? Emerging land use practices rapidly increase soil organic matter. Watching attentively, a classroom full of farmers. His response: holistic management does not permit replication, and youll find the scientific method never discovers anything.. Practically speaking this looks like the plate below perhaps this could be The Regenerative Plate that Kiss the Ground adopts in their communication going forwards. The problem is, the lay viewer who is not across the science, and blinded by the message of hope, is likely to confuse the role of cows in holistic grazing with instruction that we should continue eating meat at current rates (as long as its grass-fed) and perhaps even double down on our meat consumption. Id be willing to donate it to them. To start tiny or full-size victory gardens, turn their lawns into meadows, petition their city councils to zone land for community farms/gardens, or donate to conservation nonprofits or farmland trusts? They are told that the chemicals will make things better by the companies selling these chemicals, and not helped to learn how to work with nature, rather than against it. Early farming was small scale, so diversity was ensured, and combined the animals with plants, so the manures could be used as fertiliser, and crops grown on the land could feed the livestock. reduce the burden of chronic disease in our communities, https://lachefnet.wordpress.com/2018/03/25/its-the-soil-biology-stupid/, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2018.02.003, http://www.jswconline.org/content/71/2/156.abstract, https://asu.pure.elsevier.com/en/publications/potential-mitigation-of-midwest-grass-finished-beef-production-em, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2011.03.009, https://blog.whiteoakpastures.com/hubfs/WOP-LCA-Quantis-2019.pdf. I do feel bad for the farmers trapped in the cycle though. Your email address will not be published. When receiving subsidies for crops like corn and beans, farmers know that they will make a profit. It's a nonprofit organization that he leads today as executive director. GHG Mitigation Potential of Different Grazing Strategies in the United States Southern Great Plains. shabu shabu groupon.