About the Program: This week we’ll be talking with activist Daniel Imhoff, who has written a book called Food Fight: The Citizen’s Guide to the Next Food and Farm Bill, published by Watershed Media.

The Farm Bill is up for renewal in September of this year–it is generally renewed and revised every four years–and in his book, Dan explores its myriad complexities and the issues that will likely be coming up.

Farmer/writer Wendell Barry says:

The United States government’s agricultural policy, or non-policy, since 1952 has merely consented to the farmers’ predicament of high costs and low prices; it has never envisioned or advocated in particular the prosperity of farmers or farmland, but has only promised “cheap food” to consumers and “survival” to the “larger and more efficient” farmers who supposedly could adapt to and endure the attrition of high costs and low prices.  And after each inevitable wave of farm failures and the inevitable enlargement of the destitution and degradation of the countryside, there have been the inevitable reassurances from government propagandists and university experts that American agriculture was no more efficient and that everybody would be better off in the future.

Listen to the Program

Our Discussion with Daniel Imhoff

About a year ago, we spoke with Daniel Imhoff about his book CAFO: Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, which described in graphic detail the cruelty and health problems associated with factory meat farming. He has recently released another richly detailed and illustrated book called Food Fight: The Citizen’s Guide to the Next Food and Farm Bill. Dan is the president and co-founder of Watershed Media in Healdsburg and he speaks and conducts workshops on a wide range of food, farming, and environmental issues.

–Your book is a collage of essays, photographs, charts, and quotes on about the Farm Bill that will come before congress in the fall. Why did you write the book and why did you present it in this form?

–In the Foreword to your book, Michael Pollan says, “Don’t Call it the ‘Farm Bill,’ call it the ‘Food Bill’,” and one of your aims in writing the book is to educate people about this huge piece of legislation. To begin, then, what is the Food/Farm bill, and could you tell us about its history? When was it created? for what purposes? How has it evolved over the years?

–What is the authorization and funding process that will be happening starting in September and carrying on throughout the life of the bill? [Authorization, Funding, CHIMPING, reconciliation, etc.]

–You write, “Delving into the Farm Bill can seem like visiting another country (if not another planet),…” (p. 12). You have a very helpful chart that shows the major components of the bill, and perhaps we could talk about each. What have been the promises, successes, and complications in the areas of:

…Commodity Support (22%) ~$89.9 billion. What’s a “commodity” crop as opposed to a “specialty” crop? What are the major commodity support programs? Are farmers really paid not to farm? Who gets the lion’s share of the support? How do small farmers make out under the commodities appropriations? What has commodity support achieved? What problems has it created?

…Nutrition (72%) ~$470 billion. What are the elements of this program? When and why did “Food Stamps” begin? How has the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) progressed over the years? How does it help its target audience of the hungry? How does it fail? Is ketchup a vegetable? Why does the Department of Defense participate in school nutrition programs? How does the commodities support program conflict with the stated aims of the nutrition program?

…Conservation and Energy (6%) ~$38 billion. What does the conservation element of the Food and Farm Bill include? What kinds of programs have been established? How has the conservation aspect fared under budget cuts? What have been its major accomplishments? Is it making a genuine contribution to global efforts to reduce pollution and increase sustainability?

–You point out that the agricultural lobby is strong and well funded. Who will be lobbying in Washington this fall? What will they be trying to accomplish? Do you see the ag bill being a major issue in the presidential campaign?

–In your book, Food Fight, you say, “It would be naive to imagine that the Farm Bill could be radically overhauled in any single negotiation cycle” (105). In this segment, we’d like to discuss some of your recommendations. [We know we can't possibly cover all of these, but we'd like to spend about fifteen minutes discussing your choice of topics]. How can the Farm Bill catalyze See chart 22-23]:

–Beginning Farm Programs–Good eating habits and the food pyramid
–Organic agriculture
–Know Your Farmer programs
–SNAP good food incentives ( Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program)
–Ethanol from noncorn sources, biobased energy
–Energy efficient farming (National policy on renewable energy and climate change, p. 147)
–Land conservation.
–Perennial farming
–Many models in existence that are “ignored, marginalized or largely underfunded.”

–You write, “The time has arrived for a food fight,” (187) and your book includes an “activist toolkit” (p. 193. also described online at foodfight2012.org). What are the steps, and in particular, what can our concerned listeners do to get involved?
…Learn about the bill (as in tonight’s program)
…Adopt a local food charter
…Bring officials up to speed
…Communicate with representatives (Do you have recommendations for Northern California reps?)
…Be clear about connections [benefits]
…Create outreach/education
…Build coalitions
…Think beyond Washington
..Take the long view

–What will you and your various organizations be doing to promote a better Food and Farm Bill over the coming months?

Learn more at http://foodfight2012.org/.

Playlist

1. Poor Old Dirt Farmer 3:53    Levon Helm      Dirt Farmer     Classic Rock
2. On This Old Farm     2:54    Si Kahn Courage Country & Folk
3. Factory Farms        3:40    Trouser Factory Farm Songs      Rock
4. Down on Penny’s Farm 3:44    Natalie Merchant        The House Carpenter’s Daughter  Folk
5. Weave Me the Sunshine        4:28    Peter, Paul And Mary    The Very Best of Peter, Paul and Mary   Folk
6. Maggie's Farm        3:58    Bob Dylan       Bringing It All Back Home       Folk
7. Farmer's Delight     3:38    Busy Kid        Barbecue Beets  Electronica 

Tonight we’ll talk with people who are working on production of healthy foods in our area. First we’ll talk with Monica Bell, one of the leaders of Cultivating Community. She’ll tell us about how this new group is working to strengthen the local food network and access for low income people. In the second half of the show, we’ll talk with Dave Miller. Dave as just been designated a local hero by Edible Shasta-Butte for his work as a food artisan, in his bakery, Miller’s Bakehouse.

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Our Questions for Monica Bell

You are listening to Ecotopia and with us in the studio now is Monica Bell, a major leader of Cultivating Community. Welcome, Monica.

1. Monica, can you tell us what “Cultivating Community” is?  What are its goals?
2. How long has it been functioning? How did it get formed? How are you funded? Who’s involved?
3. How are you working toward fulfilling those goals of:

–Strengthening Local Food Security
–Supporting Community Gardens
–Supporting Small Farmers
–Providing Workshops
–Promoting Local, Healthy Use of Nutritional Assistance Funds
–Supporting Lower-Income Residents

4.  Tell us about some of the workshops and activities you’ve sponsored so far

5. You have a workshop coming soon on drip irrigation. Could you tell us when and where that will be?

6.  What are some of your hopes and dreams for the future of this project?

7.  Who do you hope will be involved in Cultivating Community? How can people become involved?

Thank you, Monica Bell. Monica is a leader of Cultivating Community. Check out their website cultivatingcommunitynv.org

Our Conversation with Dave Miller

You’re listening to Ecotopia on KZFR 90.1, and with us in the studio now is Dave Miller. Dave has just been designated a local hero by Edible Butte Shasta. Dave is the owner and baker of Miller’s Bakehouse, and sells his bread at the Saturday morning Chico Farmer’s market. Welcome, Dave.

1. In Edible Shasta-Butte, you are designated as a food artisan, but the article goes on to say that you don’t like the word “artisan.” Isn’t that a fair description of your kind of baking?
2. Tell us a little about your history as a baker. How did you get interested in baking? How did you learn to bake? (Edinburgh, Scotland; baking in college)
3. You had an important mentor in St. Paul. What did you learn there?
4. How did you get to Chico?
5. What makes your bread so great? Tell us about what’s in your bread and your process of baking? What does your week look like?

Playlist for Eco 185

1. Dirt Made My Lunch 2:25 Banana Slug String Band Dirt Made My Lunch

2. Back To The Garden 4:03 Jason Webley Against The Night

3. Real Food 2:58 Jerry Engler Very Jerry

4. Food Food Food (Oh How I Love my Food) 2:10 The Wiggles Toot Toot

5. Weave Me the Sunshine 4:28 Peter, Paul And Mary The Very Best of Peter, Paul and Mary

6. Blinuet 4:35 Zoot Sims Rushmore

7. Working On A Dream 3:30 Bruce Springsteen Working On A Dream

Diane Suzuki-Brobeck and Cheetah Tchudi guest host the show with famed farmer/farm advocate Joel Salatan.

Listen to the Interview

For full info on Joel go to his website:

Polyface, Inc. www.polyfacefarms.com/

In late March, a week before this broadcast, leaders from fifty nations , including President Obama, gathered in Seoul, Korea for a summit on Nuclear Terrorism, ways of reducing the threat of terrorism given the amount of fissile material that resides around the globe.

Tonight we’ll assess the results of that summit, including the implications for the environment. Our first guest will be Alexandra Toma, who is the Executive Director of the Connect US Fund in Washington, D.C., a nonprofit working to reduce the possible nuclear terrorism and war.

Then we’ll talk with Paul Walker International Director of the Environmental Security and Sustainability Program for Green Cross International (GCI) and its US national affiliate, Global Green USA, in Washington. He is interested in the nuclear terrorism issue and is also concerned with the destruction and of chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction.

Listen to the Program

Our Discussion with Alexandra Toma

Our guest on the phone from Washington is Alexandara Toma, Executive Director of the Connect U.S. Fund, which has a mission of “advancing a vision for responsible U.S. engagement.” She is also founder and cochair of the Fissile Materials Working Group, a non-governmental coalition of more than 60 U.S. and international organizations working to provide action-oriented policy solutions to keep the world safe from nuclear terrorism.

–In the first part of our discussion, we’d like to focus on the Nuclear Summit held in Korea last week. The press issuing from this summit was lukewarm at best. Could you please give us your appraisal:
…What were the initial aims of and hopes for the summit?
…Were there modest or major achievements?
…What were the disappointments?

–Perhaps the greatest concern with fissile materials at the moment is their falling into the hands of “terrorists.” Could you please explain what this risk is? Where is this material now? Who are the terrorists and what would it take for them to make use of it?

–There is equal concern about nations (rather than terrorists) developing and employing nuclear weapons, in particular, North Korea and Iran. What’s your perspective on those countries’ nuclear efforts and their long-range missile development?

–Both of your organizations, the Connect U.S. Fund and the Fissile Materials Working Group (as well as Ploughshare, for which you have also worked), have long recommended that the U.S. reduce is nuclear stockpiles. START calls for a reduction of nuclear warheads from 2200 to 1600 by 2018. Is that anywhere near enough? What are the loopholes in START? Does START address “rogue” uses of fissile materials?

–Please tell us more about your work with the Connect U.S. Fund. You seek “responsible U.S. global engagement.” What is that engagement? Is it principally military? economic? social? How do you hope to bring it about?

–And where does your work with the Fissile Materials Working Group fit in?

–How can our listeners learn more about your work in particular, and more generally, about ways of getting nuclear materials under sensible control?

FMWG www.fmwg.org

Connect U.S. Fund, http://www.connectusfund.org

Guest Part 2:

Our Conversation with Paul Walker

Our guest on the phone now is Paul Walker, who is the International Director of the Environmental Security and Sustainability Program for Green Cross International (GCI) and its US national affiliate, Global Green USA, located in Washington. He’s part of an international effort to facilitate and advocate the safe and sound demilitarization, nonproliferation, and remediation of nuclear, chemical, biological, and conventional weapons stockpiles. He is also a U.S. Army veteran from the Vietnam era.

–In the first part of the program, we spoke with Alex Toma of the Connect US Fund about the recent Nuclear Security Summit. A couple of weeks ago you wrote: “The Seoul Nuclear Security Summit must provide real progress in eliminating high-level nuclear materials, and the major nuclear weapons states, including Russia and the United States, must lead the way.” How well did our leaders do?

–Please tell us a little about Green Cross International and Global Green. You are “Director of Security and Sustainability”. One doesn’t often see “security” and “sustainability” linked together. What is your view of a secure and sustainable world? How can this come about? What sorts of attitude, economic, political, or military changes would be necessary to bring this about? [Impossibly broad questions, we realize.]

–We recently watched two classic antinuke films on late night TV–Dr. Strangelove and War Games–where military and political arrogance and bumbling nearly bring about the end of the world. Are such scenarios just relics of the cold war?

–We tend to think of nuclear bombs as the greatest threat to civilization, but you have long been concerned about other weapons of mass destruction and about non-bomb dangers of nuclear materials. Could we talk about (your choice of topics as time permits):

…The Chemical Weapons Convention and the destruction of chemical weapons supplies. [We've recently interviewed a guest on the destruction of chemical weapons at Umatilla, Oregon.] Is the world safer because of efforts to control and destroy chemical weapons? Are chemical weapons a terrorist threat?

…Biological Weapons. Officially, they have been banned since 1972, yet some countries maintain biological weapons programs. What are your concerns about bioterrorism? How are these being addressed by Global Green and Green Cross?

…Disposing of radioactive materials. There is reportedly enough nuclear material lying around to build 100,000 bombs. Can we possibly dispose of it in environmentally sound ways? Thoughts on Yucca Mountain

–Global Green has a much larger agenda than just weapons of mass destruction. Please tell us about some of its other projects and how they mesh with your immediate concerns with WMD?

We’ve been talking with Paul Walker, Directory of Security and Sustainability with Global Green USA. You can learn more about their work at www.globalgreen.org, where they have a number of excellent articles and blogs on the kinds of issues we discuss on this program.

Playlist:

1. Nuclear 3:25 Ryan Adams Demolition

2. Masters Of War 4:36 Bob Dylan The Freewheellin’ Bob Dylan

3. Nuclear Infected (Album Version) 2:16 Alice Cooper Flush The Fashion

4. The Great Mandella (The Wheel of Life) 4:45 Peter, Paul And Mary The Very Best of Peter, Paul and Mary

5. Weave Me the Sunshine 4:28 Peter, Paul And Mary The Very Best of Peter, Paul and Mary

6. The Invention of Nuclear Power 2:46 Peter Adams The Spiral Eyes

You are listening to KZFR 90.1 community radio for the Sacramento Valley, the Foothills, and Beyond. I’m Stephen Tchudi. Usually in this time slot we bring you Ecotopia, exploring ecosystems: environmental, technological, and social. But tonight we are bringing you a ninety minute special that we call Eco-Storyteller-Kids-N-Creeks-O-Topia.

I’m Susan Tchudi. We’ll joining forces with Adrienne Scott and Kathryn Robinson of the StoryTeller, usually on at 7 pm, and a bit later, we’ll be joined by Marcie Holmes and other members of the Kids-and-Creeks show that is featured on the third Tuesday of the month.

I’m Adrienne Scott, and in the next hour and a half you’ll hear stories, poems, music, and nonfiction for ecologically minded kids of all ages as we talk about seeds and sprouts and frogs and ladybugs and water and a bunch of other critters and events taking place in the Northstate and beyond in these spring months.

And I’m Kathryn Robinson. We’re doing this program as a special part of KZFR’s pledge week. We hope you’ll call in during this hour–the number is: 895-0131

Listen to the Show

Our topic tonight is–optimisim–what we can do to build a better world. Our guest will be Bryan Welch, author of a book called Beautiful and Abundant, which is not only optimistic about the human future, but also outlines some strategies for imagining and implementing the world we want to live in.

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Our Discussion with Bryan Welch

As listeners know, one of the questions we often ask on the program is about optimism. We want to know the level of hope our guests have about solving the monumental environmental and social problems that the planet faces.

Our guest tonight, Bryan Welch, definitely logs in on the optimistic side. He’s the author of a book with the title Beautiful and Abundant, and he argues that we can create the kind of world we want.

Bryan comes to this conclusion through two avenues: He’s the publisher of Ogden Publications, which owns Mother Earth News, Home and Garden, Natural Home, and Utne Reader. But he’s also a small farmer and rancher: His family’s 50-acre Rancho Cappuccino homestead sits a few miles outside of Lawrence, Kansas

–Let’s start with the ranch, where you practice what you preach. How long have you been a farmer/rancher? At what point in your life did you and your wife begin Rancho Cappuccino? What do you grow and raise? Is this for personal use or for sale or perhaps both? [One of your meditations in the book describes The Farm as Mandala. Please explain that metaphor.]

–In Chapter 8 [we'll get to earlier chapters shortly], you quote pessimist/activist Derrick Jensen, who has said that it’s basically all over for the planet: “We’re [and here we'll substitute the FCC acceptable word] screwed.” However, you argue, “pessimism seldom motivates change” (168). Please tell us about the source of your optimism. How do we know you’re not just falsely, polly-anna-ish optimistic?

–You also say, “We don’t need a disaster to motivate change” (5). What combination of circumstances prior to disaster might bring about change? government mandates? the economic engine? people’s good will or common sense? [You argue persuasively for human imagination and inventiveness.]

–Your book offers both a process for change and a set of criteria to create and evaluate that change. Two of the criteria are in your title: “Is it beautiful?” “Does it create abundance?”

…Let’s start with beauty. Tell us why/how you think that functions as a criterion (including the role of art and beauty in people’s lives). And who gets to decide what’s beautiful, us or our neighbor? [Please give us an example of changes that are both functional and lovely.]

…And then there is abundance. Doesn’t much of the planet already have abundance? two cars in every garage? a choice of dozens of cereals–sweet or healthy–at the supermarket? plenty of oil and coal and uranium to get us through the energy crisis?

–Could tell us about the process of change. You begin with the recommendation that we “idealize the destination” and you urge us “don’t be realistic.” How “realistic” is that? Please explain how this relates to step two, “acknowledge the challenges.” How does this lead to first steps?

–We’ve been a little abstract so far. Could you give us an example or two of change that you see as positive? Maybe the Prius or the Pickens Plan or (what?!) Google?

–In your chapter on Acknowledging Challenges, you describe three mountains that we’ll need to cross to create a better, even livable world, and you rank them in order of difficulty:

…Conservation (“least imposing”)

…Population control (“perfectly unavoidable”)

…Economics dependent on growth (“brand new economic tools”).

Let’s talk about any/all–you choose: highest mountain? lower?

–Please explain your idea that population and the economy are “a Ponzi scheme.” How do you answer your own counter-argument that “Bluntly, we have no examples of economic growth occurring in the absence of population growth” (159).

–A great many of the examples in your book come from “developed” countries, and you acknowledge that we in the West have the advantage of sitting in a “luxury box.” How do your recommendations for change operate in “underdeveloped” or “third-world” countries? Do criteria such as “beauty” apply in conditions of poverty?

–You write that you deliberately did not include your own vision of a better possible world in the book because you don’t want to impose that vision. Nevertheless, in the epilogue you do, in fact, hint at some of your own priorities. Please tell us about your own greatest passions for change.

–And finally, since you obviously do practice what you preach on the farm, please tell us: What are your next projects at Rancho Cappuccino, and how will they make it more beautiful and abundant?

Lear more at www.beautifulandabundant.com

And Here’s a Little Info About Optimism

Given our broad topic of optimism tonight, we did some web browsing on the topic and came up with two stories leading to some goodnews/badnews conclusions:

A story by Sara Kliff in the Daily Beast called “This Is Your Brain on Optimism” reportes on research that::

We humans tend to be an optimistic bunch. In fact, it’s long been established by psychologists that most people tend to be irrationally positive. The optimism bias, as it’s called, accounts for the fact that we expect to live longer and be more successful than the average and we tend to underestimate the likelihood of getting a serious disease or a divorce. This tendency is adaptive—many researchers have claimed that a positive outlook motivates us to plan for our future and may even have an effect on our long-term physical health….

Optimism may be so necessary to our survival that it’s hardwired in our brains.  A study published in the journal Nature further confirms the idea that having a rosy outlook is a personality trait with deep, neurological roots. Researchers found that the brains of optimistic people actually light up differently on a scan than those who tend to be more pessimistic when they think about future events.

The disparity between positive and pessimistic minds is especially prominent in areas of the brain that have been linked to depression. ‘The same areas that malfunction in depression are very active when people think about positive events,” says Tali Sharot, a post-doctorate fellow at University College London, who conducted the research at New York University.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2007/10/23/this-is-your-brain-on-optimism.html

On the Bad News Side, this optimism can also get us into trouble.  Also in the Daily Beast. Writer Sharon Begley asks, “Are Optimists Dumber?” She cites a study by the same researcher, Tali Sharot, suggesting that “unrealistic optimists” shut out information they don’t want to hear.

The teenager who thinks she can have unprotected sex without suffering any consequences. The alcoholic who thinks he can have one little drink without falling off the wagon. The politician who keeps compromising even though his opponents roll him every time. It’s called unrealistic optimism. (President Obama, whose base sometimes cringes at his readiness to compromise with opponents, is on record as an “eternal optimist.”)

In contrast to plain optimism, the unrealistic kind characterizes people who continue to believe there will be a rosy outcome despite clear evidence and even personal experience to the contrary. While reasonable optimism serves us well—it lowers stress and anxiety, and can even reduce the risk of developing various diseases and help us recover faster, according to studies like this one—the unrealistic kind can backfire badly….

The good news is that people were not completely incapable of learning: they revised their estimates of the probability that they would suffer life’s various pitfalls—but only if they had overestimated that probability. In other words, if they had predicted that their likelihood of developing cancer was 40 percent, but learned that the lifetime risk is in fact 30 percent, they adjusted their estimate to a more reasonable 32 percent. But if they had underestimated the chance of falling victim to one of these incidents—saying they had a 10 percent risk of being robbed when in fact the chance is 20 percent—they basically stuck with their original guess. The scientists ruled out the possibility that people simply forgot the probabilities they were shown. “They remembered the data equally well regardless if it was better or worse than expected,” says neuroscientist Tali Sharot of the Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, who led the study. “The difference was in whether they used the information to update their beliefs regarding their own likelihood of experiencing the negative events.”

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/10/09/optimism-science-study-shows-optimists-block-out-information.html

Playlist for Ecotopia #179: Beautiful and Abundant

1. Sacred Breath 5:39 MaMuse All The Way Folk

2. Anthem 6:00 Leonard Cohen The Essential Leonard

3. Life Uncommon 4:57 Jewel Spirit Rock

4. Blinuet 4:35 Zoot Sims

5. Weave Me the Sunshine 4:28 Peter, Paul And Mary The Very Best of Peter, Paul and

6. Talking Optimist Blues (Good Day Today) 2:55 Neil Diamond

7. Can’t Keep It In 3:05 Cat Stevens Greatest Hits Rock

Our topic for tonight’s program is the Fair Trade movement and sustainability. Fair Trade products are produced under a certification program that insists that workers in other countries get a living wage, that no child or sweatshop labor is involved, and that producers contribute back to their community.

In the first part of the program, we’ll talk with Zarah Patriana of Global Exchange in San Francisco. GX is a major supporter of Fair Trade and has a number of campaigns going on around the world to help spread the word about Fair Trade.

Then in the second half of the program, we’ll talk with Jim Henson, who was instrumental in getting Chico established as a Fair Trade town three years ago today. We’ll ask Jim about what is happening with Fair Trade in Chico and about what he sees as the connection between Fair Trade and sustainability.

Listen to the Program

Our Discussion with Zarah Patriana

On the phone with us is Zarah Patriana of Global Exchange in San Francisco. She has worked with the Global Exchange Fair Trade Store and writes for the GX Fair Trade blog. She’s also been a Fair Trade Fair Trade blogger for Change.org and is active in the Bay Area FairTrade projects.

–A great many of our listeners are familiar with Fair Trade (since Chico is a Fair Trade Town). But just to get clear, please tell us what “Fair Trade” is all about (and why it is not to be confused with “free trade”).

–At Global Exchange, you have a number of campaigns going, a major one focusing on the cocoa trade. Why did you and GX (and other Fair Trade organizations) choose chocolate as a target? What’s the focus of that campaign? You’ve had some successes with Cadbury (which is currently touting fair trade milk as well as chocolate). Can you tell us about the significance of that campaign? And what are you working on with Hersey’s chocolate?

–Please describe one or two of the other campaigns that you’re working on. And tell us about the current issues being addressed in the GX Fair Trade Blog.

–How do you know that the fair trade labeling organizations are doing their jobs? How much does that add to the cost of goods? (When we were in Costa Rica, we talked with a coffee grower who said he was using fair trade practices, but he couldn’t afford certification.)

–But Fair Trade goods often travel a long way to get to market. Do you see any conflict between that and the Buy Local/Grow Local movement?

–Global Exchange sponsors “reality tours,” where people get to visit other countries and look at political and social conditions up close. And you have reality tours associated with Fair Trade. Please tell us about these, including upcoming tours as well as your own experience on a GX Fair Trade tour to Nicaragua.

–Finally, how can listeners become involved in the Fair Trade movement generally and the campaigns of Global Exchange in particular. And how can they learn more about the reality tours?

Check out the GX Fair Trade website at http://www.globalexchange.org/programs/fairtrade

Our Conversation with Jim Henson

This is Ecotopia on KZFR, and tonight we have been talking about the Fair Trade movement and its impact. With us in the studio is Jim Henson, who has worked tirelessly on Fair Trade locally and helped establish Chico as a Fair Trade Town in 2009–only the second town in California to earn that designation. The anniversary of that event is being celebrated today, February 14.

–Please tell us a little about the Fair Trade Town movement. How did you get involved? What did it require for Chico to earn this certification? We know, too, that your work with Fair Trade Town did not end with the celebration three years ago. What have you and the Fair Trade Team been doing in recent months? What do you have planned for the future? How do you see Fair Trade as helping the local economy?

–Do you think the human race is a part of the earth’s ecosystem? Please tell us your vision of how Fair Trade is working to preserve the ecosystem. Does Fair Trade chocolate, for example, “make a difference”?

–We see that your brought along some Fair Trade craft items. Let’s go to visual radio and have you tell them about these items:  a thumb piano made by recycled human garbage,  a shaker that is made from natural, recycled stuff–bean shells, etc., paper made from elephant dung.

–You also argue that organic coffee and tea  benefit the farmer in far off lands as well as the consumer here at home. Please explain.

–Finally, Jim Henson, please tell our listeners–including both businesses and individuals–how they can get involved with the Fair Trade movement here in Chico, including coming events and activities.

Our topic for tonight’s program is the Fair Trade movement and sustainability. Fair Trade products are produced under a certification program that insists that workers in other countries get a living wage, that no child or sweatshop labor is involved, and that producers contribute back to their community.

In the first part of the program, we’ll talk with Zarah Patriana of Global Exchange in San Francisco. GX is a major supporter of Fair Trade and has a number of campaigns going on around the world to help spread the word about Fair Trade.

Then in the second part of the program, we’ll talk with Jim Henson, who was instrumental in getting Chico established as a Fair Trade town three years ago today. We’ll ask Jim about what is happening with Fair Trade in Chico and about what he sees as the connection between Fair Trade and sustainability.

Our Conversation with Zarah Patriana

This is Ecotopia on KZFR and tonight we are looking at the global and local Fair Trade Movement. On the phone with us is Zarah Patriana of Global Exchange in San Francisco. She has worked with the Global Exchange Fair Trade Store and writes for the GX Fair Trade blog. She’s also been a Fair Trade Fair Trade blogger for Change.org and is active in the Bay Area FairTrade projects. Welcome Zarah.

–A great many of our listeners are familiar with Fair Trade (since Chico is a Fair Trade Town). But just to get clear, please tell us what “Fair Trade” is all about (and why it is not to be confused with “free trade”).

–At Global Exchange, you have a number of campaigns going, a major one focusing on the cocoa trade. Why did you and GX (and other Fair Trade organizations) choose chocolate as a target? What’s the focus of that campaign? You’ve had some successes with Cadbury (which is currently touting fair trade milk as well as chocolate). Can you tell us about the significance of that campaign? And what are you working on with Hersey’s chocolate?

–Please describe one or two of the other campaigns that you’re working on. And tell us about the current issues being addressed in the GX Fair Trade Blog.

–How do you know that the fair trade labeling organizations are doing their jobs? How much does that add to the cost of goods? (When we were in Costa Rica, we talked with a coffee grower who said he was using fair trade practices, but he couldn’t afford certification.)

–But Fair Trade goods often travel a long way to get to market. Do you see any conflict between that and the Buy Local/Grow Local movement?

–Global Exchange sponsors “reality tours,” where people get to visit other countries and look at political and social conditions up close. And you have reality tours associated with Fair Trade. Please tell us about these, including upcoming tours as well as your own experience on a GX Fair Trade tour to Nicaragua.

–Finally, how can listeners become involved in the Fair Trade movement generally and the campaigns of Global Exchange in particular. And how can they learn more about the reality tours?

Our guest has been Zarah Patriana of Global Exchange in San Francisco, where she works on media, communications, and Fair Trade. Thanks for being with us on Ecotopia.

You can learn more about the GX Fair Trade program at www.globalexchange.org/programs/fairtrade

Our Discussion with Jim Henson

This is Ecotopia on KZFR, and tonight we have been talking about the Fair Trade movement and its impact. With us in the studio is Jim Henson, who has worked tirelessly on Fair Trade locally and helped establish Chico as a Fair Trade Town in 2009–only the second town in California to earn that designation. The anniversary of that event is being celebrated today. Welcome, Jim.

–Please tell us a little about the Fair Trade Town movement. How did you get involved? What did it require for Chico to earn this certification? We know, too, that your work with Fair Trade Town did not end with the celebration three years ago. What have you and the Fair Trade Team been doing in recent months? What do you have planned for the future? How do you see Fair Trade as helping the local economy?

–Do you think the human race is a part of the earth’s ecosystem? Please tell us your vision of how Fair Trade is working to preserve the ecosystem. Does Fair Trade chocolate, for example, “make a difference”?

–We see that your brought along some Fair Trade craft items. Let’s go to visual radio and have you tell them about these items:

…thumb piano made by recycled human garbage,
…shaker that is made from environment–bean shells etc.
…paper made from elephant dung.

–You also argue that organic coffee and tea and how this benefit the farmer in far off lands as well as the consumer here at home. Please explain.

–Finally, Jim Henson, please tell our listeners–including both businesses and individuals–how they can get involved with the Fair Trade movement here in Chico, including coming events and activities.

Many thanks to Jim Henson, Chico’s Fair Trade Guy, for being with us this evening.

This week our program is devoted to the Northstate Kids & Creeks project, which provides field trips to local parks and nature reserves to connect young citizens to their local environment while instilling a sense of stewardship through community involvement. Kids and Creeks has just launched a new radio show on KZFR, and you may have listened in to their inaugural program last Tuesday. They’ll be on the air every third Tuesday at 7 pm, immediately following Ecotopia, and we hope to do some joint programs with them. In the studio with us tonight will be the Kids and Creeks Executive Director, Jeremy Miller, and the Program Director, Scott Itamura. We’ll chat with them about their specific program and about the role that outdoor education can play in the lives of young people.

Our Conversation with Scott and Jeremy

This is Ecotopia on KZFR, and tonight we are talking about the Kids and Creeks educational program here in Chico and, more broadly about outdoor education and how it contributes and can contribute to quality education inside and outside our schools. With us in the studio are Jeremy Miller, the Director of Kids and Creeks and Scott Itamura, the Program Director. Welcome, Scott and Jeremy.

– Jeremy Miller: Let’s ask you to open by telling a little about Kids and Creeks. What is it? How long has it been around?

And tell us a little about yourself–you’ve been in outdoor education for almost two decades and have worked in Colorado, California, Oregon, New York, and Switzerland. How did you wind up in Chico with Kids and Creeks?

–Scott Itamura: You’re the curriculum and program director at Kids and Creeks, but you, too, have been involved in alternative education for over twenty years. What do you do at Kids and Creeks, and how did you first become involved?

Whomsoever:

–Before we get more into the Kids and Creeks programs, you have a fundraiser coming up this Saturday at the Women’s Club. Please give us the details.

–Let’s go into a little more about Kids and Creeks and how you operate. How many classes/students go through your program each year? Where do they come from? Do kids come once, twice, multiple times? What do the classes look like?

Where are the field sites?

–Scott: What is your “curriculum”? What do you want the kids to see, learn, do or achieve while they are with you? What are some examples of K&C lessons

–Jeremy: How are you funded? Do school districts pay to send kids to you? What’s the scope of your nonprofit fundraising efforts?

–Scott: One of your tasks is to align California State Standards to the K&C program. What does that entail? [Susan and Steve will probably have lots to say on this matter, having done alignment but being generally opposed to the standards-and-tests approach.] Do you only cover science standards?

What the #$%^^&*&* is ( Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Test Language?

–Outdoor education has been around for a while. Can you tell us a little about it and its various permutations. How do you see outdoor ed performing this function?

–Yours is an alternative program, with classes meeting outside of regular school classes. Have you ever thought about opening your own school that would be centered entirely on outdoor ed? Is that feasible? Could kids pursue an outdoor ed curriculum and still pass the standardized tests or get into Stanford?

–We’ve also been part of an organization called Science, Technology, and Society, that aims to get kids thinking about the unintended or unnoticed consequences of science and technology (e.g. automobile pollution, atomic waste, landfills). Are such concepts part of outdoor education?

–Let’s return for a few minutes to Kids and Creeks. What is Kids and Creeks planning for these days? What’s in the future for Kids and Creeks?

–How can interested listeners get involved as parents or volunteers?

–Please tell us again about your fundraiser this Saturday evening.

Thanks very much for being with us tonight: Jeremy Miller, Director of Kids and Creeks; Scott Itamura, Program Director. We also want to thank their Public Relations Director, Sammey Zangrilli, for arranging this interview.

This week our program carries the title, “The Rubber Dodo and Other Lobbyists.”

Our guest tonight is Philip Cafaro who is a professor of philosophy at Colorado State University. He is President Elect of the Society for Environmental Ethics and Chair of Progressives for Immigration Reform. He will talk with us about some issues in lobbying and something called the “rubber dodo award,” given annually to “to those who have done the most to drive endangered species extinct.”

Listen to the Program

The Story of the Dodo from the Center for Biological Diversity

In 1598, Dutch sailors landing on the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius discovered a flightless, three-foot-tall, extraordinarily friendly bird. Its original scientific name was Didus ineptus. (Contemporary scientists use the less defamatory Raphus cucullatus.) To the rest of the world, it’s the dodo — the most famous extinct species on Earth. It evolved over millions of years with no natural predators and eventually lost the ability to fly, becoming a land-based consumer of fruits, nuts and berries. Having never known predators, it showed no fear of humans or the menagerie of animals accompanying them to Mauritius.

[The Dodo's] trusting nature led to its rapid extinction. By 1681, the dodo was extinct, having been hunted and outcompeted by humans, dogs, cats, rats, macaques and pigs. Humans logged its forest cover and pigs uprooted and ate much of the understory vegetation.

The origin of the name dodo is unclear. It likely came from the Dutch word dodoor, meaning “sluggard,” the Portuguese word doudo, meaning “fool” or “crazy,” or the Dutch word dodaars meaning “plump-arse.”

The dodo’s reputation as a foolish, ungainly bird derives in part from its friendly naiveté and the very plump captives that were taken on tour across Europe. The animal’s reputation was cemented with the 1865 publication of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

Based on skeleton reconstructions and the discovery of early drawings, scientists now believe that the dodo was a much sleeker animal than commonly portrayed. The rotund European exhibitions were accidentally produced by overfeeding captive birds.

http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2011/rubber-dodo-10-14-2011.html

Why are we talking about the Dodo on Ecotopia? Partly we’d like to rescue the Dodo and the word “dodo” from their meaning as dumbheads. The real dumbheads in this story seem to be (who else?) the humans who exploited the island and destroyed an ancient an ecologically well-adapted bird.

Our Discussion with Philip Cafaro

Philip Cafaro is professor of philosophy at Colorado State University. He is President Elect of the Society for Environmental Ethics and is Chair of Progressives for Immigration Reform. He also is a former ranger with the U.S. National Park Service and an affiliated faculty member of CSU’s School of Global Ecological Sustainability. Welcome Philip Cafaro. Part I: The Rubber Dodo, Lobbying, and Ethics –The Center for Biological Diversity makes an annual award called The Rubber Dodo “to those who have done the most to drive endangered species extinct” Please tell us a little about the Rubber Dodo award. What’s the purpose of this award?

–And the winner (for 2011) was? [Drumroll!!] U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

–In a Press Release, the Center for Biological Diversity focused on the Chamber’s consistent opposition to climate control efforts and legislation. Could you please describe how the Chamber works against heading off climate change? How much money do they spend on this effort? How do they lobby to achieve their goals?

–Who were some of the other nominees for the award, and how does their “work” negatively affect biological diversity.

[Other official nominees were giant pesticide manufacturer Syngenta and Rep. Steve Pearce (R-N.M.), who’s launched a disinformation campaign opposing Endangered Species Act protections for the dunes sagebrush lizard. Hundreds of write-in votes were given to Congress, Monsanto, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, President Obama, Sarah Palin and Wall Street.]

[Previous winners of the Rubber Dodo include: former BP CEO Tony Hayward (2010), massive land speculator Michael Winer (2009), Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (2008) and Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne (2007)]

–In your comments about the Rubber Dodo Award, you emphasized the Chamber’s “quest for never ending U.S. population growth.” What is your take on the American (global) business model of “grow or die,” which essentially requires new customers and new markets to succeed?

–What level of population do you feel the earth can tolerate sustainably?

–What do you teach in your ethics classes at Colorado State? What’s your level of optimism that the grow-or-die/lobby-for-moolah attitudes toward the environment may change in the future?

–On this show, we often ask interviewees about what sorts of mechanisms can rein in climate change. Will it come about through legislation and compulsion? market economics? green industry? voluntary restraint? being driven to or over the brink? What do you think is required so that, in the future, it might not be necessary to make a Rubber Dodo Award?

–We’ll be taking a short break and come back to talk with philosopher and environmentalist Phil Cafano about another topic that concerns him: the effect of lobbying on anti-immigration policies. But before we do that, Phil, please tell us how listeners can learn more about the specifics of the Rubber Dodo Award and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. We’ll put some links on our website:

Center for Biological Diversity www.biologicaldiversity.org
U.S. Chamber Wins Rubber Dodo Award http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2011/rubber-dodo-10-14-2011.html

Part II: Population and Immigration Reform

–You are also Chairman of Progressives for Immigration Reform, which is committed to “examining the unintended consequences of mass migration.” Please tell us about this organization and its work. Mass migration from where to where? How does this relate to current U.S. (and other “developed” countries) attitudes toward immigration? What’s the problem with “give me your tired, your poor”?

–You link your concerns about population growth to what you see as an anti-immigrant stance by the U. S. Chamber and “other anti-environmental organizations like the Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc., National Restaurant Association and the American Meat Institute” [who] “spent over $15 million dollars this summer to lobby against a law that would require business to only hire workers legally eligible to be employed in the U.S. (House bill H.R.2885: Legal Workforce Act).”

–The First Street Research Group has issued a report that describes other lobbying efforts on immigration over the past decade. Could you provide us a few details about the breadth of lobbying on these issues?

[■1,733 immigration-related bills have been lobbied on.

■Over 1,000 organizations have lobbied on immigration issues.

■Over 7,500 lobbyists have lobbied on immigration issues including over 40 former Members of Congress and over 500 former congressional staffers.

http://firststreetresearch.cqpress.com/2011/11/30/extending-the-borders-in-the-immigration-debate/]

–The First Street report also talks about the DREAM Act that would allow the children of undocumented immigrants to attend college. Why are industry lobbyists opposed to the DREAM Act?

–How can activists counteract the effects of such massive lobbying efforts by industry, especially in a time when employment is down and lobbyists argue that their way is the only way that can rescue the economy?

–Do you and/or Progressives for Immigration Reform have specific recommendations for a reformed immigration policy? [What would you propose that the U.S. do about currently undocumented immigrants (estimated at about 12 million).]

–How can listeners become more involved in your work on immigration, population, and lobbying issues?

Progressives for Immigration Reform http://www.progressivesforimmigrationreform.org/

Thank you, Phil Cafaro of Colorado State for talking with us tonight. We appreciate all your great efforts on ethics, species diversity, population, and immigration.

Playlist:

1. Trophic Cascade 4:12 Ronn Fryer Endangered Animals (Environmental Jenga)

2. The Way of the Dodo 3:34 The Streets Everything Is Borrowed

3. Danger (Global Warming) – Radio Mix 3:35 Brick Casey Danger (Global Warming)

4. Supernova 4:42 Liquid Blue Supernova

5. Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) 3:16 Marvin Gaye What’s Going On

6. Weave Me the Sunshine 4:28 Peter, Paul And Mary The Very Best of Peter, Paul and Mary

7. Traffic Jam (Album Version) 2:13 James Taylor James Taylor Live 8. Global Warming Blues 3:42 Lenny Solomon Armando’s Pie