Xtreme Farming respectfully
believes that this approach to solving world
hunger
is challenging
for three reasons:
1. The cost of genetically modified seeds
and the chemicals required to grow food are
way beyond the reach of most farmers, whose
annual income is only $400.
2. The cost of equipment required to work large, single crop farms is also
beyond the reach of most farmers. So is the fuel to power this equipment.
3. The infrastructure required for national or international distribution
doesn’t
exist in most of the developing world. And it won’t be available anytime
soon.
So, while we are sincerely trying to help,
we only help a few farmers – those lucky
enough to be part of the program. And because
these programs require capitalization beyond
the means of the vast majority of global farmers,
the best practices these programs generate
can only be used by a few farmers. Trying to
jumpstart agriculture has created an uneven
playing field with entitled players with access
to the latest technology and resources on one
side, and their less entitled neighbors in
the other.
We believe that one approach to solving world hunger is seen in
the big potential of small farms. Scientific American agrees: “With the
help of affordable irrigation and access to (local) markets, farmers in the
developing world can grow more food and climb out of poverty.” Teach farmers to farm, and
they’ll eat
for a lifetime. We already know how to make small farms work.
The sons and daughters of farmers who thrived
on 40-Acre farms years ago learned valuable
lessons in sustainable agriculture with a livestock
mix. These people remember how contour plowing,
crop rotation, livestock management, and helpful
neighbors contributed to their success. Agriculture
students are eager to share new technologies.
Agriculture students are eager to share new
technologies. In America, we have access to
the most experienced farmers in the world,
who, if asked, would gladly mentor farmers
in developing nations, helping them choose
the right seed, prepare soil, pull weeds, irrigate,
harvest, and sell crops for local distribution.
Would that kind of advice help farmers improve
their productivity, and represent a positive
impact on the local economy? We think so. Xtreme Farming represents a new war on hunger.
A war that empowers and motivates global farmers
to grow more food by demonstrating new ideas
and practices that lead to greater productivity
while connecting them to local capital to facilitate
the process. We seem to do our best when competing. Xtreme
Farming is ready to sponsor a totally new kind
of competition. If we can reward engineering
students for building a faster solar car, why
not challenge Americans to help farmers grow
the most food in a single season? We call our
competitions: Hunger Wars. Here’s how it works: Eight teams of
volunteers work with 16 local farmers on 40
Acres (16 Hectares) of farmland – the
global average – to grow as much food
as quickly as possible in a single season. Each nine-month competition challenges teams
of agriculture students, American farmers,
or any group willing to accept the challenge
to work side-by-side with our world’s
poorest farmers. The catch is that any strategy
must be able to be applied next season by any
farmer throughout the region. Farmers can only
use locally available resources, markets, and
financing. No strings attached. And participants
cannot affect the local environment or economy.
When the competition is over, competitors leave
no footprint behind. Teams can be organized through churches, golf
communities – any organization. Each
team consists of: American volunteers who agree to work for
one, two, or three - three month stints. 4
volunteers per team will work on location for
each of the 3 quarters. Online teammates in America, via email and
webcasts. Interpreters from the local agriculture school. 16 farmers, each working 40 Acres (16 Hectares)
of farmland.
Team members will be housed in a learning village, complete with healthcare,
foodservices, security, communications, and transportation. The government
of Tanzania has agreed to host our first competition. The village of Mngeta
is the site for our first competition. The competition is the perfect environment
for a new genre of reality TV that can engage
a new audience in a war on hunger. Imagine
YouTube broadcasts, original music downloads,
webcasts – all the forms technology can
offer coming together to show our world how
concerned people can actually impact world
hunger. That’s the spark that will ignite Hunger
Wars. It motivates Americans to support the
endeavor. It gives donors reasons to support
Xtreme Farming, because it generates real,
tangible results, representing a new kind of
non-profit accountability. But most important, it makes farming cool
for farmers in developing nations, who look
to the west for ways to be cool. Bono’s
RED AIDs campaign represents a new kind of
approach to philanthropy. RED is cool. And
that makes solving AIDs cool, for both donors
and recipients. We believe “cool” can
become the motivation will encourage our world’s
poorest farmers to improve their productivity
and boost local economies. That will motivate
farmer’s neighbors to do the same, armed
with new, simple, successful ideas and strategies
generated by the competition. What better way to try to solve world hunger
than by doing something completely different?
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