Climate Change, Agriculture, and the Right to Food
Agriculture and Climate: The Critical Connection
The agricultural sector accounts for a substantial portion of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Direct agriculture worldwide is responsible for 13.5 percent of GHG. In addition, deforestation accounts for another 17.4 percent of GHG, making agricultural activities accountable for almost 31 percent of GHG. This is of course substantial and a reason that agriculture needs to be part of the plan for reducing these emissions.
Jim Kleinschmit, Director of Rural Communities at the Institute for Trade and Agriculture Policy, reports on the multiple ways agriculture impacts and is impacted by climate change. He notes that achieving “climate-friendly” agriculture systems requires a shift in focus, research, and investment away from industrialized input and fossil-fuel dependent agricultural practices toward more resilient low-input systems that increase carbon sequestration in the soil and lessen output of greenhouse gases. Kleinschmit explains that the focus needs to be on the kinds of foods we produce and how we produce them because 50 to 83 percent of emissions are produced before food leaves the farm gate. Listen to highlights on Jim Kleinschmidt's six minute YouTube on Agriculture and Climate Change.
In June 2012, Think Again MN launched a history series that examines politics and policy-making in Minnesota during the last century from the immediate post World War II years up through the 1990s. That era witnessed fierce legislative battles at the State Capitol but it was also a time of shared values that cut across partisan lines.
MN's Leading Election System
MN's Leading Election System
With Secretary of State Steve Simon
Listen to Secretary of State Steve Simon's excellent presentation on MN's outstanding election system emulated by many other states at the Think Again Brooklyns forum January 19, 2016. Secretary Simon includes ways in which it can be improved, and he explains why it is important to vote. He concludes with a quote from a tee shirt: "Failure to vote is not an act of rebellion. It is an act of surrender."
Get details on how to vote at http://mnvotes.org
Oregon's Automatic Voter Registration
How Oregon Became the Easiest Place to Vote in the US
By Lornet Turnbull
YES! Magazine
October 8, 2016
In January, Oregon became the first state in the country to begin automatically registering eligible citizens to vote when they obtain or renew their driver's licenses or state IDs, completely shifting the burden of voter registration from the individual to the government.