H.R.Y.O. Human Rights Youth Organization Presents: Sustainable Agriculture for All!

Sustainable agriculture is the practice of farming using principles of ecology, the study of relationships between organisms and their environment. It has been defined as "an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site-specific application that will last over the long term"

°Satisfy human food and fiber needs °Enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon which the agricultural economy depends °Make the most efficient use of non-renewable resources and on-farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls °Sustain the economic viability of farm operations °Enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole

When we think to the Sustainable Agriculture, we have to think to the 4 most important factors of the site wher we could farm: Sun, Air, Water and Soil.

Which of these factors we can control directly?

Obviously Water and Soil! Excessive tillage lead to erosion and irrigation without adequate drainage leading to salinization

°The soil loses a lot of its nutrients like carbon, nitrogen and its ability to store water °Higher rate of fertilizer and chemical runoff °Eutrophication ( the ecosystem response to the addition of artificial or natural substances, such as nitrates and phosphates, through fertilizers or sewage ) °Can attract slugs, cut worms, army worms, and other harmful insects to the left over residues °Crop diseases can be harbored in surface residues

°Overdrafting of underground aquifers °Ground subsidence °Overirrigation because of poor distribution uniformity or management wastes water, chemicals, and may lead to water pollution °Irrigation with saline or high-sodium water may damage soil structure owing to the formation of alkaline soil

When farmers grow and harvest crops, they remove some of these nutrients from the soil. Without replenishment, land suffers from nutrient depletion and becomes either unusable or suffers from reduced yields. Sustainable agriculture depends on replenishing the soil while minimizing the use of non-renewable resources, such as natural gas (used in converting atmospheric nitrogen into synthetic fertilizer), or mineral ores (e.g., phosphate). Possible sources of nitrogen that would, in principle, be available indefinitely, include:

°Recycling crop waste and livestock or treated human manure °Growing legume crops and forages such as peanuts or alfalfa that form symbioses with nitrogen-fixing bacteria called rhizobia °Industrial production of nitrogen by the Haber Process uses hydrogen, which is currently derived from natural gas, (but this hydrogen could instead be made by electrolysis of water using electricity (perhaps from solar cells or windmills)) or °Genetically engineering (non-legume) crops to form nitrogen-fixing symbioses or fix nitrogen without microbial symbionts.

More realistic, and often overlooked, options include long-term crop rotations, returning to natural cycles that annually flood cultivated lands (returning lost nutrients indefinitely) such as the Flooding of the Nile, the long-term use of biochar, and use of crop and livestock landraces that are adapted to less than ideal conditions such as pests, drought, or lack of nutrients.

Some Methods: °Organic Farming °Biodynamic Agriculture °Permaculture °Ecovillage

Organic farming is the form of agriculture that relies on techniques such as crop rotation, compost and biological pest control. Organic farming uses fertilizers and pesticides but excludes or strictly limits the use of manufactured (synthetic) fertilizers, pesticides (which include herbicides, insecticides and fungicides), plant growth regulators such as hormones, livestock antibiotics, food additives, genetically modified organisms, human sewage sludge, and nanomaterials Organic Farming

Biodynamic Agriculture Biodynamic agriculture is a method of sustainable agrculture that emphasizes the holistic development and interrelationships of the soil, plants and animals as a self-sustaining system. One of the first modern ecological farming systems, it emphasizes a sustainable approach to agriculture

Biodynamic Agriculture Biodynamic agriculture has been characterized as pseudoscience by critics. Its founder, Rudolf Steiner, and its developers characterize it as "spiritual science". They advocate taking a holistic view rather than a reductionist view.

Permaculture Permaculture is a branch of ecological design and ecological engineering which develops sustainable human settlements and self- maintained agricultural systems modeled from natural ecosystems

Permaculture Permaculture aims to integrate the natural cycles and human life for a sustainable environment and balanced. As in ecosystems, including human settlements in each element has to perform more than one function (the earthworm digest the land and provides organic matter for plants, is food for birds and other animals), as each feature may be realized in several ways (the water enters the system through the rain, through the damp night, from the streams by underground faults...)

Permaculture In a permaculture project then, everything has to be placed in the most consistent with the principles of respect for biodiversity and the use of renewable energies "Permaculture is not a set of theories or methods, but a way of thinking (Bill Mollison, permaculture designer)."

Ecovillage Ecovillages are intentional communities with the goal of becoming more socially, economically and ecologically sustainable. Some aim for a population of 50–150 individuals. Larger ecovillages of up to 2,000 individuals exist as networks of smaller subcommunities to create an ecovillage model that allows for social networks within a broader foundation of support

Ecovillage Ecovillage members are united by shared ecological, social-economic and cultural-spiritual values. An ecovillage is often composed of people who have chosen an alternative to centralized electrical, water, and sewage systems.

Ecovillage In 1991, Robert Gilman set out a definition of an ecovillage that was to become a standard. Gilman defined an ecovillage as a: "human-scale full-featured settlement in which human activities are harmlessly integrated into the natural world in a way that is supportive of healthy human development, and can be successfully continued into the indefinite future."