If We Want Farmers, We’ll Have to Pay
by Hal Hamilton
— April 1, 2002 —
We all know that farming is both important and endangered. It doesn’t have to be endangered.
From our farm in Hartland, VT we sell vegetables, “Ascutney Mountain Cheese” from the milk of our small herd of Jerseys, and maple syrup. The vegetable operation employs 3-4 people full time in the summer; the dairy and cheese [...]
Smarter Agriculture For the Sake of Land and People
by Hal Hamilton
— March 1, 2002 —
If you stand just outside the system of commodity agriculture and look in, the wasted opportunities are easy to see. Here at Sustainability Institute we use simulation models, but a drive down country roads is really all that’s needed. You see farmers investing in short-term productivity but rarely in long-term soil fertility. In the [...]
Why Does Farm Income Keep Disappearing?
by Hal Hamilton and Elizabeth Sawin
— January 1, 2002 —
Year after year we invest billions trying to support farmers without ever creating the conditions for farms to thrive without subsidies.
Here at Sustainability Institute, we develop computer simulation models to investigate such issues. Over the past couple of years we’ve worked with economists and farm leaders to model the corn economy. [...]
What Does It Take To Say, “Better Safe Than Sorry”?
by Elizabeth Sawin
— August, 2001 —
We were exploring an unfamiliar pond. My four-year-old daughter was out in the water, up to her knees, when I called her back to shore.
“It’s so muddy I can’t see if the pond gets deep quickly, and I couldn’t reach you if you fell in. Better safe than sorry.”
Parents try to give their kids room [...]
Dear Folks: January 27, 2001
Dear Folks,
I’m starting this letter late Saturday afternoon, with the last, tragic act of Aida playing live from the Met on the radio. Such calm, ethereal love music, sung by two people who have just been entombed together. Opera is either a real hoot, or a real soul-searer, depending on how deep you let it get into you. My guard [...]
