Lecture 1
Dr Kiran Zahid
My background
 MSc. in Biotechnology [ University of Karachi (2005)]
 Research Fellowship [ KIBGE, University of Karachi (2005-
2007)
 Obtained Australian Endeavour Postgraduate Award
(2007)
 PhD in Plant Biotechnology [ University of Wollongong &
CSIRO, Plant Industry (2013)]
Agriculture
 For the last 10,000 years humans have been practicing
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agriculture, or simply put, farming.
Farming has allowed us to feed many people and have
food year round.
Today’s farming is very different than it was in the
past.
Traditional, or conventional, agriculture is how most
of our food is made.
It is large scale, industrial and designed to make the
most amount of food with the smallest amount of
space
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What you think farming looks like…
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What it really looks like…
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Where are we?
What are the
Strengths
and
Weaknesses
of our current agricultural system?
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Successes
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abundant food supply in the developed world.
fresh fruits and vegetables available year-round.
cheap food.
luxury foods such as coffee, tea, chocolate, and spices
easily available around the world.
effective food preservation technologies (refrigeration,
freezing, canning, packaging).
convenience foods.
mechanization produces high labor efficiency.
improvements in soil conservation.
availability of agricultural inputs for quick solutions to
production problems.
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Problems
 continuing soil loss
 food safety concerns (mad cow disease, food poisoning
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outbreaks, antibiotic resistance, toxins and pesticides)
water pollution, air pollution (& odors), habitat loss,
water depletion
continuing hunger – and rise of obesity
failing farms, economic uncertainty and stress
declining communities
farm accidents, chronic diseases linked to agricultural
chemicals
reliance on fossil fuels, global warming
farmland loss to development, ugly countryside
difficulty of starting in farming
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Wants and Needs
 There is a difference between human wants and
human needs.
 Gandhi said that the world could surely provide for the
needs of the many but not the greed of the few.
Sustainable Agriculture
 Sustainability – Meeting needs without compromising
future generations or providing for the NEEDS of
ALL people alive today, without jeopardizing future
generations
 Sustainable Agriculture – A commitment to satisfy
human food and fiber needs and to enhance the
quality of life for farmers and society as a whole, now
and into the future.
SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
 Educational Objectives:
 This course is offered to familiarize the students with
the concepts of sustainable farming that could save our
environment and feed the world.
 It is necessary because many of our current
agricultural practices are harmful to human health
and the students must know about them before
starting their careers in research or industry.
Course outline
 The History and Development of Agriculture
 World food situation, hunger and malnutrition
 Environmental Quality and Human Health Issues in Modern
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Agriculture
Energy use in agriculture
Green revolution
Climate change and its impact on food production
Genetically engineered organisms in agriculture
Soil as the basis of sustainable agriculture
Deforestation
Sustainable livestock based agricultural systems
Pest management practices and sustainable agriculture
The millennium development goals and different treaties on
environmental protection
Grading of the course
 Sessional 1 =
15/20
 Sessional 2=
15/20
 Final
=
50
 Assignments
=
10/5
 Final Project
=
10/5
----------------------------------------- Total
=
100
My approach to teaching…
The teaching sessions should be
interactive…..
Keep the students engaged and interested
To be open to students concerns
and suggestions…
Try to incorporate updated information
and modify lectures as per students
requirements……
Remember…..
Sustainable Agriculture Goals
 Meet human needs for food and fibre
 Protect the natural resource base and prevent
the degradation of soil and water quality
 Use nonrenewable resources efficiently
 Use natural biological cycles and controls
 Assure the economic survival of farming and the
well-being of farmers and their families
Monocultures
 A monoculture is an area of land that only grows a
large amount of one crop.
 This makes it very easy for pests to destroy the
crops.
 As a result, pesticides are used.
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Pesticides
 Pesticides damage soil and can run off into the
surrounding area
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Pesticides
 If a small amount of the pests survives and are
resistant to the pesticide, then they will repopulate
and a stronger, more toxic pesticide must be used.
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Fertilizers
 Since the soil gets degraded quickly, fertilizers must be
added to the soil.
 Fertilizer runoff causes “eutrophication” which means
“too much of a good thing” because the added
nutrients cause algae to flourish and choke out aquatic
ecosystems
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Integrates three main goals…
1. Environmental health
2. Economic profitability
3. Social & economic equity
What if we lived our lives as if…
A healthy economy only is possible within a healthy
society….
and….
A healthy society is only possible within a healthy
environment?
Economically sustainable
 Provides a secure living for farm families
 Provides a secure living to other workers in the food
system
 Provides access to good food for all
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Borrow or repair?
Keeping up with the neighbors
Going Retail
More Progress
with Economic Sustainability
1.
2.
3.
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5.
6.
Equipment is used and repaired
Yields are good
Govt. provides money for investment
Interns can trade work for education
Farm supports other farm businesses
No waste
Environmentally Sound
Preserves
the
quality of
soil,
water,
and air
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Environmentally Sound
Cooperates
with and
is modeled
on natural
systems
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Biological fertilizer
green manures for fertility
Biological fertility
Got Earthworms?
Cows provide a bit more
manure
Renewable Energy
Biodiesel fuel
More Progress on Environmental
Sustainability
1. Compost for fertility
2. Pastures to feed animals & soil
3. Cover crops used
4. Legumes for nitrogen
5. Windbreaks
6. Conservation tillage
Socially sustainable
 Good for families
 Supports
communities
 Fair to all involved
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Sustainable farming….
…involve the neighbors!
It takes a village….
Community Supported
Agriculture
Farm meetings….
….involve the kids!
More Progress
with Social Sustainability
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10.
Donate food to the Food Bank
Working with apprentices
Pleasant environment
Healthy employees
Vacation time for family
Simple living
No machine noise
Farm products stay local
Supports neighbors
Are we a sustainable society?
Is agriculture economically viable?
Well….
•1935 – 6.8 million farms
• Today – 2.1 million farms with
1.3 million part time
•McDonalds increased from 1000
restaurants in 1968 to 28,000 today, with 5
new ones each day
•The suicide rate among farmers and
ranchers is 3X national average in
developed countries
•Is it environmentally
sound? Well…
• Chemical fertilizer use has
increased 10X since 1950
•The Dead Zone in the Gulf of
Mexico from nitrogen fertilizer
•Is it socially just?
•Farm workers
Health care
•Meatpacking plant workers
Injury rates
•Fast food workers
3.5 million with a turnover rate of 300400%/yr
And – lets look at the future …
Population
Water
Soil
Oil
Water Shortages Today
 Major global problem areas
And the big one!
 Humankind expends in one year an amount of fossil
fuel that it took nature roughly a million years to
produce.
We are a non-sustainable society
 Food production, land use, water use etc. are part of a
larger problem affecting every aspect of our lives,
including:
 Energy use
 Waste handling
 Pollution
 Population
 and on and on…..
This “seems” normal???
Natural
Resources
Goods and
Services
Pollution, Waste
and Environmental
Disturbances