Norman Borlaug’s innovative plant breeding techniques—which he used to develop varieties of wheat resistant to stem rust—spawned the Green Revolution and earned him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970. An
article in MIT Technology Review (free registration required) discusses why the Green Revolution did not spread to Africa and which policies and techniques could strengthen African agriculture.
“In Mexico City, mass protests about the cost of tortillas. In West Bengal, disputes over food-rationing. In Senegal, Mauritania, and other parts of Africa, riots over grain prices.” An article from the World Bank explores the causes and consequences of—and solutions to—skyrocketing food prices.
Frequent ECSP contributor Richard Cincotta examines the links between population age structure and democracy in an article in Foreign Policy magazine (subscription required for full article).
“We must address the human consequences of climate change and environmental degradation,” said UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights Kyung-wa Kang at a February 19 conference on climate change and migration. Full transcript here.