USC Canada

Interview with Raj Patel

In a new interview with the Worldwatch Institute, small-scale farming advocate and author Raj Patel makes his arguments about why he considers industrial, for-profit agriculture to be incompatible with food sovereignty. Read the full interview – and read more about USC’s work on Food Sovereignty in our 2010 issue of Jottings.

Youth: The Seeds of Change

August 12 was International Youth Day – a day of celebration for youth, but also a great opportunity for these future stewards of our fragile planet to take action to help make the planet a healthier place. But that doesn’t mean the rest of us get to take it easy. Read More…

World Bank Warns on ‘Farmland Grab’

A controversial leaked report by the World Bank exposes exploitation with programs that promote investment in agricultural lands, particularly in poorer nations. The report says investors are largely incapable or unwilling to use the land productively. Read More…

Challenging GM Crop Success

A new report from International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Application (ISAAA) suggests the global food crisis has prompted an expansion of genetically modified crops, especially in developing countries. But read on to the end of this story and you’ll learn of another report, released by Friends of the Earth on the same day. This second report challenges these claims of success and offers its own data. Read the full article here.

Tackling the Global Food Crisis

A new report, The High Food Price Challenge: A Review of Responses to Combat Hunger, released by the UK Hunger Alliance and the Oakland Institute, reveals that a major initiative on food security launched by the G8 a year ago has failed to address the global hunger crisis, which currently affects more than a billion people. Read the press release and download the report PDF here.

Signs of Transformation

Every day, we’re seeing more and more signs that the local food movement is well on its way; growing firm roots. This recent Globe & Mail story is another signal of a positive big-picture change: our food system is transforming – and for the better. Read More…

Word from the Wise

On a trip to Ethiopia in November 2009, journalist David Kattenburg visited one of the world’s great champions of farmers’ rights – and founder our Seeds of Survival Program – Melaku Worede. You can listen to a 30-minute interview with Melaku at Kattenburg’s website, Green Planet Monitor.

Buy Saving The Seed

Saving the Seed is a 20-minute film that explores the struggles of rural farmers in Honduras to control their food supplies and livelihoods, and on how USC Canada is lending support. Check out the film trailer and order your own copy on DVD by clicking here or on the link in the sidebar.

The Future of Food

Produced in 2000 for USC Canada by Kensington Communications, this great little video is getting lots of attention these days on the web – thousands of hits in the last year alone. Check it out!

Defending Diversity

For years, USC’s work has focused on rebuilding agricultural biodiversity to serve as an insurance policy for farmers. Watch our latest PSA about the role farmers have in defending this precious resource. And share it with your friends to help spread the message. Read More…