The Family Farm and Sustainable Agriculture Act of 1995
By Donella Meadows
–June 7, 1990–
BOONE, IOWA, SEPTEMBER 15, 1995: In Dick Thompson’s farmyard, big red barn on one side, classic white farmhouse on the other, President Barbara Bush signed into law today the most revolutionary Farm Bill in U.S. history. “For sixty years this nation’s agricultural policy has been getting more expensive, more complex, and more unjust. At the same [...]
A New Materials System Arises in Fits and Starts
By Donella Meadows
–April 19, 1990–
Contrary to conventional wisdom, Americans are proving not only able but willing to separate their garbage. In fact we’re becoming such ferocious recyclers that old newspapers are piling up by the ton with no place to go.
As the market for used newsprint crashes, some recyclers are getting discouraged, and some purveyors of conventional wisdom are saying, [...]
The Third Great Revolution
By Donella Meadows
–April 12, 1990–
Earth Day is at its best at the neighborhood level with nature hikes and trash pickups — but it’s bigger than that. It features resounding speeches by politicians, some of them sincere, but it’s bigger than that too. Every school in Thailand is planting a tree; every church in Costa Rica is giving an earth sermon; [...]
The Great Disposable Diaper Debate
By Donella Meadows
–February 8, 1990–
What’s an environmentally conscious parent to do? To save the earth she or he forswears disposable diapers, finds a diaper service or does a lot of laundry, and feels righteous. Then along comes the shocking news that reusable diapers might be as bad for the environment as disposables.
I kid you not. When the idea first surfaced [...]
Harvesting One Hundredfold
On the whole, human beings are not managing this precious and productive planet very well. Many of the resources that sustain life and wealth are being overuses and abused. The basic needs of all people are not being met. The costs of the mismanagement in economic loss, environmental impoverishment, and human suffering are enormous. Yet the earth has more than enough [...]
