Last week I wrote about the soil stories told in the amazing winning entries in the Voices of the Soil essay contest, sponsored by NRDC and Lexicon of Sustainability.
I was lucky enough to have access to many other amazing stories told by other contestants who weren't highlighted last week. Now I would like to share a few of those with you. Lexicon of Sustainability has now added these "Honorable Mention" videos and essays to their website and you can view them now through the links throughout this blog.
Jeana Cadby writes about farming in Haleiwa, Hawaii, and the mythical roots of our connection to the land, and how it is time to revive that connection. She tells about working with children on the farm, and their love for dirt; investing in the soil is an investment in their future.
"Soil health is more than building our soils for our agricultural purposes. It's about seeking to understand a complex ecosystem that is unswervingly revealing its secrets. It's about building a community of land stewards and educators. When we accept that soil is a long term investment, we understand that we are not the only ones at stake when it comes to preserving our natural resources." - Jeana Cadby. Haleiwa, Hawaii
My primary role at NRDC is to promote sustainable agriculture practices that build carbon back into the soil, so I especially enjoyed an essay by Megan Pamperin from Clive, Iowa. Megan discusses sustainable practices like no-till farming and using more compost on agricultural fields to build organic matter.
"Among the biggest agricultural problems lies the disruption of soil carbon sequestration, but if sustainable agricultural practices are adopted to stop this disruption it could lead to great strides in regaining a healthy climate." - Megan Pamperin. Clive, Iowa.
Jack Gentempo's post-apocalyptic (or is it?) video about soil was also popular with our staff and judges. Jack is from Norway, Maine - the same state as the writer of The Stand...coincidence?
Chris Cano's video, "The Metaphor in the Soil," speaks to a couple of issues near and dear to NRDC's heart: composting and food waste.
"Some people look at the world in disappointment and see only decay. And yet what to some is decomposition, what to some is only waste, to others is opportunity for invention and ingenuity...The metaphor in the soil reveals a striking resemblance between our above and belowground communities... Compost, the work of millions of microbes, is the feedstock for soil life. Compost, too, is the basis of a community rethinking its relationship to food. As we engage, interact, and collaborate with each other, we build not only the soil but the community foodweb. It is this truth - that something so humble could hold so much potential - that is inspiring a movement to save the soil in Gainesville and beyond." - Chris Cano. Gainesville, Florida
Learn more about NRDC's work on Soil.
Learn more about NRDC's work on Water.
Lear more about NRDC's work on Food and Agriculture.
Image is a screenshot from Chris Cano's video, "The Metaphor in the Soil"