Our team mission is to promote agricultural policies and practices designed to provide abundant healthy food, fiber and other services for all communities while maintaining the fertility of the soil and protecting the Earth's climate and the native diversity of plants and animals. To achieve these goals we will
- Facilitate the active engagement of volunteer activists with complex issues related to agriculture and food.
- Familiarize Club members and the general public with the principles and recommendations contained in the recently adopted Agriculture and Food Policy
- Promote farming methods that maximize both cultural and biological diversity, benefit local communities, improve rural livelihoods and preserve natural resources.
- Support food policies, practices and habits that promote good health and minimize greenhouse gas generation and other adverse environmental impacts
- Support and assist Sierra Club members and entities in implementing the goals and recommendations of the Agriculture and Food Policy.
Please feel free to review our full policy statement here.
We encourage you to engage with us on Twitter or Instagram and/or join our team's email listserv here.
Team News & Views
News shared by team members in Dec '20
by Rachel Regan on Wednesday, January 27, 2021
Climate & Activism:
To save life on Earth, consult this new map by Maria Fernanda Lizcano for Mongabay, translated by Hayley Smith (shared by Darlene Schanfald)
Indian farmers challenge return of ‘Company Raj’ by Satya Sagar for Countercurrents (shared by Carl Arnold)
News shared by team members in Nov '20
by Rachel Regan on Wednesday, January 27, 2021
Climate & Activism:
To limit global warming, the global food system must be reimagined by Sonia Fernandez for Science Daily (shared by George Cunningham)
Once skeptics, Iowa farmers look to lead fight against global warming by Christopher King for CBS Iowa (shared by Klaus Mager)
News shared by team members in Oct '20
by Rachel Regan on Monday, November 16, 2020
Pollinators & Pesticides:
The U.S. still uses many pesticides banned in other countries by Pramod Acharya for Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting (shared by Carl Arnold)
Seafood:
Team Documents
Other Resources
by Rachel Regan on Thursday, January 30, 2020
Agrarian Trust (https://agrariantrust.org/)
Civil Eats (https://civileats.com/)
Cornucopia Institute (https://www.cornucopia.org/)
Food First, aka The Institute for Food and Development Policy (https://foodfirst.org/)
GRAIN (https://www.grain.org/)
Report prepared by Sierra Club Iowa Chapter's Agriculture Committee -- "Soil: Grounding Us in Transformative Systemic Change"
by Rachel Regan on Saturday, August 8, 2020
The Sierra Club Iowa Chapter's Agriculture Committee released a report on restoring Iowa's soils titled "Soil: Grounding Us in Transformative Systemic Change" in July 2020. See press release here. Patti Naylor, the chair of the committee, is a member of the Food & Ag team.
Say NO to the AQUAA Act (Friends of the Earth factsheets)
by Rachel Regan on Wednesday, May 6, 2020
In April 2020, Sierra Club agreed at the request of our federal policy subcommittee and our core team to oppose the reintroduced industrial agriculture act AQUAA.
https://foe.org/resources/aquaa-act-fact-sheet/