responsive to the needs of our dren in all subject areas through planetary home lest we destroy the medium of “ the garden ”, was it altogether . As each generation a resounding success . Many of progressively loses touch with the today ’ s mature , community leaders who continue to farm as well land , people think nothing of consuming and wasting more of the as advocate for the responsible use earth ’ s precious , finite resources of the land and the protection of for their own pleasure . our state ’ s natural resources , were
How do we go about creating participants in that very chapter of a new kind of society where we AmeriCorps . rely less on fossil fuels , where small In one dramatic episode , the overtakes big and where local food annual corn dance at Santa Clara production overtakes that which Pueblo was danced by hundreds is shipped from clear across the of indigenous dancers using fresh world ? What must we do to alter ears of corn which we grew . This the current paradigm of the wholesale exploitation of the earth to odd years since farming began to
was the first time in forty-some
one of more sensitive , responsible wane in the tribe , that this all-important ceremony was carried out and even loving stewardship while continuing to practice some form with the actual fruits of the land , of agriculture ?
( rather than with store-bought In 1992 , I led New Mexico ’ s ears ), which the ceremony is largest AmeriCorps program in the intended to honor . People also ate state consisting of 124 college-age well during the time of our Learning while Serving AmeriCorps pro- students . In exchange for members ’ service , each one received a gram . Best of all , people ate their modest stipend and guaranteed native foods while exercising local financial credits at an institution muscle to meet community needs . of higher learning . Not without its This kind of intensive local farming also educated their children problems , the program , with its stated goals of creating community gardens in fourteen different their traditional values of growing
in ways that were consistent with communities and tutoring chil- their own food and expressing a
Eco-farm corps preparing land for planting , Cuernavaca , Morelos , Mexico deep appreciation and thanksgiving to the earth .
At a later date , I had the good fortune of visiting a school of holistic medicine in Morelos , Mexico , where a similar corps of young agriculturalists was hard at work developing a community garden . Again , the same spirit of enthusiasm in working together on behalf of both people and the earth was apparent there . During one visit , a crew of about fifteen young people were breaking up soil and making furrows before planting . On another occasion , this eco-farm corps was busy watering its cherished plants . Their joy , connection to each other , and sense of purpose and satisfaction were palpable . So was their hunger and fatigue , to say nothing of their new appreciation of where food comes from .
In my estimation , our society can once again touch ground after years of floating in a fantasy world of its own creation . I believe that small groups of people can make a big difference in both the quality and ecological health of our food supply chain as well as in the ecological awareness of our youth and the population at large . I also believe that the development of eco-farm corps that address the need for ecological approaches to farming as well as to furthering an ecological understanding and sensitivity toward our planet are both de rigueur if we are to avert further societal and ecological collapse . Many such corps already exist . Others , will have to be developed through the agency of our representatives in Congress , through schools , colleges and universities , community and faith-based organizations , the business community
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