Farming as a Way of Life: Precarious and Complex

摘要

Economically speaking, industrial farming is a difficult, precarious, and expensive endeavor," note Gray and Gibson in their study (this issue) of the forces affecting farmer decisions in Kansas. Whether in Africa or the Americas, on U.S. network TV or in rituals in Zanzibar, the hardships and precariousness of farming of any kind, particularly in the face of increasing environmental, economic, and political risk, pervade most of the articles in this issue of CAFE.Sustainability, everyone's ideal, requires us to take a long-term view. It requires us to make decisions that preserve land resources and life systems; that retain and expand knowledge for resilience and adaptation; and that produce satisfying, stable livelihoods and sustenance for farmers and global populations alike. All things being equal, what farmer would not prefer to nurture land and community guided by this vision?