Agriculture is the single activity that has most altered the surface of the Earth. Agriculture uses about a third of the land on the planet. More than a third of the entire world's population makes their living through agriculture--about 3 billion people. The proportion of the population involved in agriculture ranges from about 2% in the United States to about 80% in some parts of Asia and Africa. It's important to understand where our food comes from, how it developed, and how it affects the economies and landscapes of the world. (Boyer)

To begin to do this we will first look at how agriculture diffused throughout history. Go to this link for a brief overview of the Agricultural Revolution. For an example of a nomadic village in the modern world, see these photos of Darfur and Kordofan in Sudan. For a village dependent on the cultivation of unirrigated ("rainfed") agriculture, see Laos: Mekongside. Just for fun, check out the Food Museum and the Food Timeline to find the origin of your favorite foods. Cities and food go hand in hand, this TED Talk "How food shapes our city" explores that relationship. This relationship was first explained by J.H. Von Thunen, a German Farmer and amateur economist in the mid-1800s. 

Farming methods can be broken down into two types: Subsistence and commercial. Subsistence agriculture is often known as traditional farming. Commercial agriculture deals with specialized crops in large, heavily mechanized operations with high inputs (chemical fertilizers, etc.). It is characterized by low labor, high productivity, and almost all of the final harvest being sold. Agriculture in the United States is completely commercialized and reliant in many places on intensive irrigation schemes. Check out these photos I took flying over the Western US. Most are of the Central Valley of California, where some of highest value crops in the US are grown (eg.: almonds, avacados). Note how dry the region is and all the canals diverting water from the regions rivers and lakes. Do you think this is sustainable over the long run? National Geographic has tackled this issue in numerous articles you can find here. 

In Hungry Planet, photographer Peter Menzel photographed people around thew world and what they eat each week. In this video, he explains why he did what he did. Mr. Menzel also wrote a book called "What I eat" chronicling 80 people's diets around the world. He talks about it in this video. Food insecurity is a major threat to political stability worldwide. The looming problem for the world is feeding its expanding population. National Geographic focused on this during 2008-09. The articles are treasure of current information and, of course, great photos. 

Global Food Crisis links page

The Food Ark- Saving the worlds agricultural heritage.

It's not just on land that we are facing shortages. We are also depleting the global fish stocks. Fish are the major source of protein for almost half the world's population and they are disappearing at alarming rates. The BBC also has a series on the Food Crisis from 2010 that is full of great information.

If we manage to feed everyone it will most likely be because of mechanization and Agriscience. To learn about the Green Revolution, start with this video about Norman Borlaug from Penn & Teller (start around the 2 minute mark- language can be a bit harsh.). This revolu8tion is also taking place in the water. Watch this video from the NY Times on Tilapia Farming. In contrast, watch this TED talk "How I fell in love with a fish". Then, read this article The End of Plenty- from Nat Geo. This is probably the best article to read on the Green Revolution started by Mr. Borlaug. Also, here is a Powerpoint on the Green Revolution worth looking at. For a look at what modern mechanization means in the developed world, watch the frst five minutes of this video about John Deere Combines.