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The Asilomar Declaration

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http://www.yeomansplow.com.au/asilomar_declaration.htm

 

his is a copy of the release made available by the Committee For

Sustainable Agriculture. Colfax. California. January 1990.

 

The Asilomar Declaration was drafted at a three day congress

immediately preceding the 1990 Ecological Farming Conference. The need

to frame the discussion of " what is sustainable agriculture? " was

recognized by the attendees. The Declaration addresses that question

and indicates the scope of the problem.

 

The Declaration was subsequently ratified by acclamation by the 800

individuals in attendance at the 1990 Ecological Farming Conference,

Asilomar, California. following the congress.

 

The congress was basically convened as an assembly of people most able

to consider and give direction to Sustainable Agriculture for the next

decade and as a forum for the general exchange of related ideas and

concepts.

 

Attendees were selected by the Committee for Sustainable Agriculture,

Colfax, California and were guests of the Esalen Institute of Big Sur,

California. Other contributing sponsors were the Tides Foundation and

the Strong Foundation.

 

The attendees at the Esalen Congress were:

 

* Steve Beck, Esalen Institute, Big Sur, California.

* Eliot Coleman, Working Land Fund, Vershire, Vermont.

* Terry Gips, Int.Alliance for Sus.Ag. Minneapolis,Minnesota.

* Steve Gliessman, UCSC Agroecology Program, Santa Cruz, CA.

* Diane Goodman, CSA Board, San Francisco, CAlifornia.

* Wes Jackson, The Land Institute, Salina, Kansas.

* Ron Kroese, Land Stewardship Project, Marine, Minnesota.

* Bill Leibhart, UCD Sus Ag and Research Prog., Davis, CA.

* Amory Lovins, Rocky Mountain Inst., Snowmass, Colorado.

* Patrick Madden, Madden Associates, Glendale, California.

* Kevin Martin, Nat.Org.Grown Week, Coor., San Francisco, CA.

* Jane Mulder, Editor, Organic Food Matters, Colfax, CA.

* Richard Nilsen, Whole Earth Review, Sausalito, California.

* Conn Nugent, Nathan Cummings Foundation, New York,New York.

* Steve Pavich, Pavich Family Farms, Delano, California.

* Molly Penberth, CSA Board President, Sacramento,CA.

* John Reganold, Wash.State U. Dept of Agron.Pullman WA

* Bob Rodale, Rodale Institute, Emmaus, Pennsylvania.

* Kaye Thornely, Molino Farm, past CSA Pres. Davenport,CA.

* James S. Turner, Healthy Harvest, Washington, DC

* Otis Wollam, CSA, E.D., Colfax, California.

* Allan J.Yeomans, Keyline Ag Consultant Forbes,NSW Australia

 

asilomar_dec.JPG (10119 bytes)

 

" Let us hope that by the best cultivation of the physical world,

beneath and around us, and the intellectual and moral world within us,

we shall secure an individual,social,and political prosperity and

happiness, whose course shall be onward and upward, and which, while

the earth endures, shall not pass away. " --Abraham Lincoln, on

agriculture, Milwaukee 1859

blueLine.JPG (3257 bytes)

blueLine.JPG (3257 bytes)

asilomar_dec.JPG (10119 bytes) The present system for American

agriculture cannot long endure. Our farms have succeeded in producing

abundant food and fiber. But the costs and fragility of that success

are becoming each day more evident.

 

Sustainable alternatives already prove their value. Not only are they

more efficient in their use of energy, biological sources of fertility

and pest management, they also enhance rural communities and encourage

families to remain on the land. We commit ourselves to hastening the

broad adoption of an agriculture that is environmentally sound,

economically viable, fair, and humane.

 

A sustainable agriculture will require and support a sustainable

society. Our challenge is to meet human needs without denying our

descendents' birthright to the natural inheritance of this planet. We

must revere the earth, sustaining and regenerating both nature and our

communities. People are apart of mature, not separate from it.

Sustainable agriculture is as attainable as it is necessary. Though we

recognize difficulties in this transformation, we can state with

confidence that in every region there are fare families profitably

growing healthy food through a practical partnership with nature.

 

A sustainable agriculture that provides nourishing food, protects

those who work the land, helps stabilize the earth's climate, and

safeguards soil and water depends on our ability to meet a number of

challenges. We must address these challenges without delay.

 

seven_challenges.JPG (5648 bytes)

 

Promote and sustain healthy rural communities. Healthy rural

communities are attractive and equitable for farmers, farm workers,

and their families. The continuation of traditional values and farming

wisdom depends on a stable, multi-generational population. Absentee of

corporate land ownership and the ever-increasing size of farms

diminish rural life.

 

Expand opportunities for new and existing farmers to prosper using

sustainable systems. We must devise ways to help people get started in

sustainable farming, Reliable information on sustainable agriculture

needs to be readily available to farmers, extension agents, bankers,

and others. Training and apprenticeship programs should be provided

for entry-level farmers and established conventional farmers

interested in making the transition. Tax forgiveness or other

incentives should be devised to ease the financial stress of new and

transitional farmers.

 

Inspire the public to value safe and healthful food. The biological

quality of food is known to affect the health and well-being of those

who eat it. Food quality is a key factor in disease prevention.

Approaches which are striving to be sustainable - such as organic

farming - avoid hazardous pesticide use and maintain nutrient balance.

Consumers' understanding of these facts will increase their

willingness to pay prices that reflect the true costs of production.

 

Foster an ethic of land stewardship and humaneness in the treatment of

farm animals. Sustainable agriculture recognizes that the gifts of

nature upon which it depends - soil, water, plants, and animals, both

wild and domestic - are to be treated with loving care and humility.

The greatest calling of the farmer is to leave those gifts in better

condition than when they were received. Such a responsible agriculture

can only be achieved when nature is both mentor and model, and when

natural systems are the standard against which success is measured.

Farm animals often contribute to ecologically sound agricultural

systems and they deserve humane care.

 

Expand knowledge and access to information about sustainable

agriculture. American farmers are innovators. Given scientifically

validated techniques, farmers will adopt sustainable agricultural

practices. Seeing these practices in the field will speed adoption. We

need demonstration farms, farmer-to-farmer field tours, and studies of

successful alternative farms of all sizes. University teaching,

research, and extension must be redirected toward understanding the

whole farm ecology and away from chemical dependence in farm management.

 

Reform the relationship among government, industry, and agriculture

Government must use resources such as subsidies, grants, and loans to

convert significant portions of industrial agriculture to a

sustainable system. Undue rewards to concentrated corporate interest

should be replaces with fair returns to farmers who sustainable

provide food and fiber.

 

Redefine the role of U.S. agriculture in the global community. The

present global agriculture trade is placing unnecessary pressure on

the sustainability of the earth's resource base. The United States has

a unique opportunity to change that situation. The people of many

other countries look to us for agricultural leadership. We can honor

that respect by restricting our trade in dangerous substances. We can

encourage the Agency for International Development, The World Bank,

and international research institutions to convert to sustainable

programs. The international programs of universities can become

centers of sustainability training and research.

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