Storying regenerative agriculture nine different ways
This is the final presentation for my PhD research with the Institute for Sustainable Futures, University of Technology Sydney.
It explores the discursive characteristics of regenerative agriculture and implications for agricultural transformation in the face of climate change, biodiversity loss and other converging crises.
In the presentation, I articulate nine discourses contributing to regenerative agriculture that I have been exploring over the course of my research.
These are:
Restoration for Profit: regenerative agriculture is restoring soil health to increase productivity and profitability, whilst also reversing climate change
Big Picture Holism: regenerative agriculture is looking at how everything is connected on the farm to make good management decisions and enhance quality of life
Regenerative Organic: regenerative agriculture is building on the tenets of organic agriculture to regenerate soil health, animal welfare and social fairness
Regrarian Permaculture: regenerative agriculture is an approach to designing integrated farm systems that regenerate the land
Regenerative Cultures: regenerative agriculture is a spiritually rich and emotionally fulfilling practice at the heart of regenerative, place-based cultures
Deep Holism: regenerative agriculture is a pathway for empathising with and experiencing ecosystems as inseparable from yourself
Agroecology and Food Sovereignty: regenerative agriculture is about regenerating communities and having people democratically involved in the food system
Subtle Energies: regenerative agriculture is a practice that works with the invisible or non-material dimensions of farming systems to connect with the intelligence of nature and restore energy imbalances
First Nations: regenerative agriculture is a new name for practices that First Nations people have been doing for tens of thousands of years
These are also discussed in his recent publication in Sustainability Science titled Regenerative agriculture: a potentially transformative storyline shared by nine discourses