Seed Libraries
Seed Libraries

Author: Cindy Conner

Publisher: New Society Publishers

Published: 2015-02-01

Total Pages: 202

ISBN-13: 155092575X

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Community-based initiatives to preserve and protect our food supply Historically, seed companies were generally small, often family-run businesses. Because they were regionally based, they could focus on varieties well-suited to the local environment. A Pacific Northwest company, for example, would specialize in different cultivars than a company based in the Southeast. However the absorption of these small, independent seed businesses into large multinationals, combined with the advancement of biotechnology resulting in hybrids and GMO seeds, has led to a serious loss of genetic diversity. The public is now at the mercy of the corporations that control the seeds. In the past few years, gardeners have realized the inherent danger in this situation. A growing movement is striving to preserve and expand our stock of heritage and heirloom varieties through seed saving and sharing opportunities. Seed Libraries is a practical guide to saving seeds through community programs, including: Step-by-step instructions for setting up a seed library A wealth of ideas to help attract patrons and keep the momentum going Profiles of existing libraries and other types of seed saving partnerships Whoever controls the seeds controls the food supply. By empowering communities to preserve and protect the genetic diversity of their harvest, Seed Libraries is the first step towards reclaiming our self-reliance while enhancing food security and ensuring that the future of food is healthy, vibrant, tasty, and nutritious. Cindy Conner is a permaculture educator, founder of Homeplace Earth and producer of two popular instructional gardening DVDs. She is also the author of Grow a Sustainable Diet .

Community Seed Banks
Community Seed Banks

Author: Ronnie Vernooy

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2015-05-15

Total Pages: 313

ISBN-13: 1134608535

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Community seed banks first appeared towards the end of the 1980s, established with the support of international and national non-governmental organizations. This book is the first to provide a global review of their development and includes a wide range of case studies. Countries that pioneered various types of community seed banks include Bangladesh, Brazil, Ethiopia, India, Nepal, Nicaragua, the Philippines and Zimbabwe. In the North, a particular type of community seed bank emerged known as a seed-savers network. Such networks were first established in Australia, Canada, the UK and the USA before spreading to other countries. Over time, the number and diversity of seed banks has grown. In Nepal, for example, there are now more than 100 self-described community seed banks whose functions range from pure conservation to commercial seed production. In Brazil, community seed banks operate in various regions of the country. Surprisingly, despite 25 years of history and the rapid growth in number, organizational diversity and geographical coverage of community seed banks, recognition of their roles and contributions has remained scanty. The book reviews their history, evolution, experiences, successes and failures (and reasons why), challenges and prospects. It fills a significant gap in the literature on agricultural biodiversity and conservation, and their contribution to food sovereignty and security.

Audio Recorders to Zucchini Seeds
Audio Recorders to Zucchini Seeds

Author: Mark Robison

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2017-05-30

Total Pages: 208

ISBN-13:

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This exploration of the range of options for a "library of things" collection demonstrates what has been implemented successfully and offers practical insights regarding these nontraditional projects, from the development of concepts to the everyday realities of maintaining these collections. What services libraries provide and how they function in their communities is constantly being reconsidered and redefined. One example of this is the trend of experimenting with building circulating collections of nonliterary "things"—such as tools, seeds, cooking equipment, bicycles, household machinery, and educational materials—by drawing on traditional library functions and strengths of acquisition, organization, and circulation. Audio Recorders to Zucchini Seeds: Building a Library of Things enables you to consider the feasibility of creating a specific type of "thing" collection in your library and get practical advice about the processes necessary to successfully launch and maintain it, from planning and funding to circulation, promotion, and upkeep. This contributed volume provides a survey of "library of things" projects within the United States, from both public and academic libraries, offering real-world lessons learned from these early experiments with nontraditional collections. The authors offer practical insights from their projects, from the development of their initial ideas to the everyday realities of maintaining and circulating these collections, including cataloging, space needs, safety concerns, staff training, circulation, marketing, and assessment. The contributed chapters are organized thematically, covering "things" collections that encompass a wide variety of objects first, followed by collections with a community-building focus (seeds, recreation, tools) and those that serve an educational purpose, such as curriculum centers, children's toys, or collections that support a university curriculum. The last section addresses collections that support media production.

Administering and Managing the U.S. Food System
Administering and Managing the U.S. Food System

Author: A. Bryce Hoflund

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2021-06-11

Total Pages: 301

ISBN-13: 1793633347

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Food and the systems that produce, disrupt, prepare it are central to all human life. Yet, scholarly analysis of the food systems that support human life are highly fragmented across a variety of disciplines. Public administration, with its focus on the doing of public policy, would seem to be a logical home for analysis of food systems in action. However, food is largely ignored by public administration scholars, and scholars from other disciplines can unintentionally draw up established public administration literature. The chapters in this edited volume highlight where the lenses and languages of public administration can and should be used to analyze food systems. Viewed collectively, the editors argue that the lenses and languages of public administration can and should become a common ground for scholars and practitioners to discuss food systems.

Libraries and Sustainability
Libraries and Sustainability

Author: René Tanner

Publisher: American Library Association

Published: 2021-11-08

Total Pages: 200

ISBN-13: 0838936466

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Library workers at all types of organizations, as well as LIS students learning about this newest Core Value of Librarianship, will find this book an easy-to-digest introduction to what staff at a range of libraries have accomplished in incorporating sustainability into their decision making and professional practices. In addition, a discussion about the role of economics and sustainability will challenge readers to stretch in new ways to positively impact their communities. As a core value of librarianship, sustainability is not an end point but a mindset, a lens through which operational and outreach decisions can be made. And it extends beyond an awareness of the roles that libraries can play in educating and advocating for a sustainable future. As the programs and practices in this resource demonstrate, sustainability can also encompass engaging with communities in discussions about resilience, regeneration, and social justice. Inspiring yet assuredly pragmatic, the many topics explored in this book edited by members of ALA's Sustainability Round Table and ALA’s Special Task Force on Sustainability include a discussion of why sustainability matters to libraries and their user communities; real-life examples of sustainability programming, transformative community partnerships, collective responses for climate resilience, and green building practices; lessons learned and recommendations from library workers who have been active in putting sustainability into practice; the intersection of sustainability with the work of equity, diversity, and inclusion; suggestions regarding the revision of library and information science curriculum in light of the practical need to build community resilience; an examination of how libraries’ efforts to support Doughnut Economics can bolster the United Nations' work on the Sustainable Development Goals, which seek to address the global impacts of climate change; and potential collaborators for future sustainability-related initiatives.

Promoting Biodiversity in Food Systems
Promoting Biodiversity in Food Systems

Author: Irana W. Hawkins

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2018-10-25

Total Pages: 385

ISBN-13: 1351816306

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Describes the relationship between food systems and the planetary boundaries at risk. Delineates the importance of food system related issues including biodiversity loss, greenhouse gas emissions, environmental degradation, and human health. Assesses the benefits of biodiversity-promoting food systems and describes the importance of shifting national, regional, and global policy to support them. Identifies the public health impacts of conventional food systems on consumer health. Demonstrates how to put biodiversity-promoting food systems into professional practice.

The Food Activist Handbook
The Food Activist Handbook

Author: Ali Berlow

Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC

Published: 2015-06-13

Total Pages: 321

ISBN-13: 1603429298

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One person really can make a difference. From starting neighborhood kitchens to connecting food pantries with local family farms, Ali Berlow offers a variety of simple and practical strategies for improving your community’s food quality and security. Learn how your actions can keep money in the local economy, reduce the carbon footprint associated with food transportation, and preserve local landscapes. The Food Activist Handbook gives you the know-how and inspiration to create a better world, one meal at a time.

Innovation in Public Libraries
Innovation in Public Libraries

Author: Kirstie Nicholson

Publisher: Chandos Publishing

Published: 2017-02-23

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 0081012969

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Innovation in Public Libraries: Learning from International Library Practice examines the recent activities of successful and innovative libraries around the world, presenting their initiatives in areas including library design, events and programs, and creating customer experiences. This timely guide provides an overview of these libraries' successful experiences and identifies emerging global trends and themes. The author offers library practitioners guidance on how to pursue these trends in their own library environment, identifying achievable goals when planning building and design improvements, and developing customer interactions in order to emulate the experiences of international libraries. - Presents a range of successful and innovative practices in one book, covering library innovation in building design, programs and events, and in customer experience and approach - Provides an international perspective on library activities, with libraries in different countries discussed - Analyzes the experiences of various libraries to identify common trends and themes - Provides practical advice for librarians who wish to emulate the activities of the libraries discussed, with recommended goals to action - Examines both the big picture of emerging global trends and themes, as well as highlighting the daily experiences of individual libraries

What We Sow
What We Sow

Author: Jennifer Jewell

Publisher: Timber Press

Published: 2023-09-19

Total Pages: 284

ISBN-13: 1643263153

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An insightful, personal, and timely exploration into the wonderful world of seeds. In What We Sow, Jennifer Jewell brings readers on an insightful, year-long journey exploring the outsize impact one of nature's smallest manifestations—the simple seed. She examines our skewed notions where "organic" seeds are grown and sourced, reveals how giant multinational agribusiness has refined and patented the genomes of seeds we rely on for staples like corn and soy, and highlights the efforts of activists working to regain legal access to heirloom seeds that were stolen from Indigenous peoples and people of color. Throughout, readers are invited to share Jewell's personal observations as she marvels at the glory of nature in her Northern California hometown. She admires at the wild seeds she encounters on her short daily walks and is amazed at the range of seed forms, from cups and saucers to vases, candelabras, ocean-going vessels, and airliners. What We Sow is a tale of what we choose to see and what we haven't been taught to see, what we choose to seed and what we choose not to seed. It urgently proves that we must work hard to preserve and protect the great natural diversity of seed.

Save Our Seeds
Save Our Seeds

Author: Sheryl Normandeau

Publisher: Orca Book Publishers

Published: 2024-04-16

Total Pages: 117

ISBN-13: 1459836995

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Key Selling Points Learning about the importance of seeds and how to save and conserve them for the future is imperative to sustaining healthy life on the planet. Introduces young readers to STEM concepts, such as pollination, biodiversity, healthy ecosystems, food security, the climate crisis, GMO food and genetic engineering. Gives young readers the practical tools to take action to save seeds in their own lives and communities. The author is a certified master gardener and works with various gardening organizations in Alberta. She has a background in horticulture and urban agriculture and has written a number of nonfiction books for adults and kids.