May 2016 Green Fire Times

News & Views

from the

S u s t ai n ab l e S o u t h w e s t

Saving New Mexico’s Rare Seeds D eep S eeds and F irst F oods G ermplasm : T he C entralization of S eed T he L and I s the S ource C ompanion P lanting May 2016

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Vol. 8 No. 5

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RE-ELECT: EXPERIENCE • DEDICATION

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Green Fire Times • May 2016

Linda will always put our schools and children first. As former President of the Santa Fe School Board, Linda made early childhood education a priority and was named New Mexico School Board Member of the Year in 2014.

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Happenings at the

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Vol. 8, No. 5 • May 2016 Issue No. 85 Publisher Green Fire Publishing, LLC

Skip Whitson

Associate Publisher

Barbara E. Brown

Editor-in-chief

Seth Roffman

Art Director

Dakini Design, Anna C. Hansen Copy Editors Stephen Klinger, Susan Clair Webmaster: Karen Shepherd Contributing Writers

Emigdio Ballon, Benjamin Bartley, Kristen Davenport, Nelsy Dominguez, Josh Jasso, Japa K. Khalsa, Serafina Lombardi, Alejandro López, Travis McKenzie, Devon G. Peña, Rodrigo Rodriguez, Seth Roffman, Pam Roy, L. Acuña Sandoval, Miguel Santistevan, Beata Tsosie-Peña, Pilar Trujillo

Contributing Photographers Anna C. Hansen, Japa K. Khalsa, Alejandro López, Seth Roffman, Miguel Santistevan, Beata Tsosie-Peña

PUBLISHER’S ASSISTANT Cisco Whitson-Brown

Advertising Sales

John M. Nye 505.699.3492 John@GreenFireTimes.com Skip Whitson 505.471.5177 Skip@GreenFireTimes.com Anna C. Hansen 505.982.0155 DakiniDesign@newmexico.com Lisa Powers, 505.629.2655 Lisa@GreenFireTimes.com

News & Views

from the

Sustainable Southwest

Winner of the Sustainable Santa Fe Award for Outstanding Educational Project

Contents

Deep Seeds and First Foods. . ... . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 7 Fresh AIRE: From Seeds to Landraces. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 9 A Talk by Ken Greene of the Hudson Valley Seed Library . . .. . .. . .. . .. 11 Germplasm: The Centralization of Seed and Efforts to Conserve Seed Diversity. . ..13 Promoting Food Sovereignty through Seed Saving . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 17 Owingeh Ta Pueblos y Semillas Seed Exchange. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 20 Preserving Indigenous Seeds and Food Crops . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 21 Reflections on Seed Sovereignty. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 23 The Land Is the Source of our Identidad, Survival, Health, Strength and Happiness . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . . 25 Plants: Our Loyal Companions, Life-Givers and Teachers . . .. . .. . .. . .. 27 Partners Join to Strengthen Local Food Supply Chains. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 28 Investing in New Mexico Grown . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 29 Growing Health and Justice . . . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 30 Super Seeds: What Is All the Excitement About? . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . . 33 Newsbites . . .. . .. . .. . .. . . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 28, 29, 30, 37 What’s Going On. . .. . .. . ... . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 38

Gay Rathman, 505.670.4432 GayRathman@yahoo.com Kurt Young 505.913.0699 Kurt@GreenFireTimes.com

Distribution

Linda Ballard, Barbara Brown, Susan Clair, Coop Dist. Services, Nick García, Leo Knight, Niki Nicholson, Andy Otterstrom (Creative Couriers), PMI, Daniel Rapatz, Tony Rapatz, Wuilmer Rivera, Andrew Tafoya, Skip Whitson, John Woodie

Circulation: 30,000 copies Printed locally with 100% soy ink on 100% recycled, chlorine-free paper

Green Fire Times

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Green Fire Times is widely distributed throughout northcentral New Mexico as well as to a growing number of New Mexico cities, towns, pueblos and villages. Feedback, announcements, event listings, advertising and article submissions to be considered for publication are welcome.

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© Seth Roffman

© 2016 Green Fire Publishing, LLC

Green Fire Times provides useful information for community members, business people, students and visitors—anyone interested in discovering the wealth of opportunities and resources in the Southwest. In support of a more sustainable planet, topics covered range from green businesses, jobs, products, services, entrepreneurship, investing, design, building and energy—to native perspectives on history, arts & culture, ecotourism, education, sustainable agriculture, regional cuisine, water issues and the healing arts. To our publisher, a more sustainable planet also means maximizing environmental as well as personal health by minimizing consumption of meat and alcohol.

Traditional varieties of Native American corn (See article, page 21)

COVER: Santa Fe River blessing at the Village of Agua Fría on San Isidro Day Photo by Seth Roffman

Green Fire Times • May 2016

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Deep Seeds and First Foods Centers of Origin and Diversification of Maíz in the Río Arriba Bioregion and the Survival of Heritage Cuisines Devon G. Peña, Ph.D.

F

or several decades, farmers, eaters and resilience advocates have made impassioned calls to reorient our food systems toward local and slow foods.

From an indigenous vantage point, this also means remaining mindful of what I call “Deep Food” or what my friend and mentor, Delbert Miller, calls “First Foods,” by which we wish to designate the heritage cuisines that arise in a place-based manner as a result of a long-duration process of indigenous agroecological, ethnobotanical and ethnogastronomical knowledge and practices that are true sources of bioregional foodsheds.

Valuing this link between land, seed and food, in 2010 UNESCO designated the heritage cuisine of Michoacán, México, as a major contribution to world cultural heritage. The report notes that Michoacán and other indigenous communities in México are homes to heritage cuisines that have been… …preserved since ancient times through oral transmission of skills and knowledge between generations; through symbiosis among cookery, cosmogony and environment, and…in the complex cultural system encompassing rituals, ceremonies and celebrations…that is a powerful factor in social cohesion and…identity.

The symbiosis between “cookery, cosmogony and environment” mentioned in the UNESCO report is more than mere poetic language. It reflects an interest in and desire on the part of conservation advocates for us to understand how foodways and actual farming practices are inextricably connected and must therefore be protected together. The foundation of a unique heritage cuisine is, in the end, good healthy soil and a diverse inventory of native landrace crops. UNESCO outlines the inseparable links between land and cuisine in its exposition of the Michoacán paradigm: Traditional Mexican cuisine—and in this case, the Michoacán paradigm—is an integral part of the ancient cultural system based on corn, beans and chili… [and includes] unique farming methods like the milpa (self-sustainable field of corn and other crops) and chinampa (man-made farming islets in lake areas).

Besides its originality, [this system] is ancestral, collective and communitarian in nature…(2010, 3; brackets added) The Río Arriba or Upper Río Grande bioregion is also home to heritage cuisines that bear the marks of deep place-based origins. One especially iconic indigenous food of the Río Arriba is chicos del horno, listed by Slow Food USA in the Ark of Taste, a compendium of rare, endangered and disappearing foods and foodways.

A northern New Mexico acequia-irrigated farm that has been planted for many generations

Chicos are made from the roasting—and pressure-cooking—of native white flint maize in adobe ovens and are a good example of local, slow and deep food.

The acequia farmers of the southern San Luís Valley (SLV)—Costilla and Conejos counties, in Colorado—are among the heirs and successors of the oldest nontribal indigenous family farmers in the United States. They produce renowned placeadapted, heirloom landrace maize, bean and pumpkin/squash varieties. These crops are considered part of the extended Mesoamerican Center of Origin. The concept of “center of origin” was first developed by the Russian scientist, Nicolai Vavilov, who identified several distinct biogeographical regions across the globe that are home to the wild ancestors of crops domesticated and diversified by indigenous farmers over millennia and remain places where the co-evolution of crops and wild ancestors persists as a direct result of surviving indigenous cultural selection and agroecological practices [our emphasis].

Noted ethnobotanist Gary P. Nabhan followed Vavilov’s travels across vast stretches of northern México and the U.S. Southwest where Vavilov searched for and identified dozens of native landrace crops sustained by indigenous farmers and cultivated since well before European invasion and conquest (Nabhan 2011).

Centers of origin are also centers of diversity. Nabhan appears to include the Upper Sonoran Desert country of the SLV as a northern periphery subbasin of Aridoamerica (1988: 393). More recent scientific research involving new field accessions squarely places our valley within the center of origin and diversification of maize. See map in Fig. 1, Matsuoka, et al. (2002, 6081).

The foundation of a unique heritage cuisine is good healthy soil and a diverse inventory of native landrace crops.

© Seth Roffman (2)

As a center of origin and agrobiodiversity, the Culebra watershed acequia farms are recognized for contributions to heirloom maize diversity and for sustaining several vanishing artisan production methods and practices involving the use of native crops. This is especially true of a maize white flint variety known as “maíz de concho.” The Upper Río Grande Hispano Farms study (1995–99), supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH Grant RO-22707-94) and the Ford Foundation, included what is likely the first scientific field and lab research on the local white flint maize grown by acequia farmers in the Culebra watershed of Colorado. Maize geneticist Ralph Bertrand-García, of Colorado College, collaborated in the 1995 field study and found that the white flint maize Beans and amaranth growing on a northern New Mexico farm

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continued on page 8

Green Fire Times • May 2016

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Deep Seeds and First Foods cont. from page 7 produced by the Corpus A. Gallegos family in San Luís is a highly inbred parent line. This implies genetic purity and the absence of transgenes from commercial, conventional hybrid or genetically engineered (GE) maize. The 1995 field study was done before commercial plantings of genetically modified (GMO) maize in the United States when the associated transgenes were not yet a threat.

Bertrand-García once suggested to the author that Culebra concho may share morphological qualities and possibly genome qualities associated with ancient Anasazi corncob remnants found at sites across the desert Southwest including Mesa Verde, Chaco and Grand Gulch. This inquiry supports oral histories in Costilla County, which declare that concho originally came from Anasazi ancestral maize populations via modern-day Taos, San Juan, San Ildefonso, Picuris and other northern pueblos.1 Seed exchanges among indigenous farmers from these communities continue today. Some of the concho varieties may have also evolved out of seed stocks from northern México (Sonoran) populations, as an examination of the CIMMYT (Centro Internacionál de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo) online library of Mexican landraces appears to suggest.

In the Gallegos concho parent-line Bertrand-García identified three adaptive responses to conditions in high-altitude cold deserts characterized by short growing seasons and late spring and early fall frosts. These include 1) rapid development with average of 74–80 days to maturity (between sowing and harvesting); 2) resistance to desiccation and tissue damage from intense ultraviolet (UV) solar radiation at high altitude and early or late frosts; and 3) adaptation to diurnal temperature extremes with a daily average range between upper 30s to low 40°F and highs of 80°F during the growing season. These are significant traits in the context of today’s climate-change challenges and should qualify the genomic integrity of the Culebra bioregional landrace maize populations as a national agrobiodiversity conservation priority.

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Miguel Santistevan (2003) has also described the specific heirloom white flint used by acequia farmers as maíz de concho. Adopting the scientific name Zea mays clibanus for this population, he notes that the heirloom variety is grown in rotation or intercropped with maíz de diente, another local flint, so named because farmers describe the kernels as “horse’s teeth.”

There is a wide range of distinct inbred parent lines, as well as a constantly shifting mosaic of native chimera varieties incorporating adaptive morphological, forage/ biomass, nutritional and culinary qualities valued by acequia communities. Some chimeras of two or more parent lines from local landraces often have features expected separately in dent and flour corn landraces. One of our local heirloom varieties, gifted to The Acequia Institute, in 1998, by the late Corpus A. Gallegos, can be described as a “floury flint.” Depending on the timing of harvest, it can be used to produce chicos or pozol (hominy). But left on stalk to develop as seed corn, it can be used for making cornmeal or masa harina after nixtamalization.2

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Green Fire Times • May 2016

The Slow Food USA listing of chicos as an endangered food in the Ark of Taste project includes concern for disappearing artisan craft skills involved in constructing and maintaining the crucial adobe ovens and place-based knowledge required to prepare the oven-roasted chicos for consumption or sale. Despite the scarce number of producers, chicos remain a living icon of heritage cuisine and the center of acequiera/o foodways and farming practices. Like the Michoacán paradigm, the production of a heritage cuisine like chicos del horno requires the unity of land, water, continued on page 18 1 2

Corpus A. Gallegos interview with Devon G. Peña, July 18, 1996; archived at The Acequia Institute.

A process for the preparation of maize in which the grain is soaked and cooked in an alkaline solution, usually limewater, and hulled; the process makes the lysine and other essential amino acids available to the human digestive system, maximizing the nutritional value of maize consumption, a point overlooked by many scientific specialists studying maize who repeat the mythic refrain about the malnourished state of so-called maize-dependent consumers.

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Fresh AIRE

From Seeds to Landraces A Story of Reconnection and Understanding

Article and photos by Miguel Santistevan

O

ne of the greatest achievements of humankind is the domestication of crops over thousands of years. Our crops of today came from wild plants of different families, domesticated by cultures around the globe for a multitude of uses. Over time, cultures came to be characterized by— among other things—foods from the crops they developed that were specialized to particular agricultural practices and environments. These specialized crops withstood countless generations of good and bad years and came to have genetic traits that allowed survival through a myriad of agricultural problems. Termed “landraces,” these crops can be considered humankind’s foundational half in a mutual relationship that joined the plant and animal kingdoms in a collective evolution. Most aspects of human cultures developed through this union, and the plants proliferated to many corners of the globe.

Locally adapted seeds are important for the greatest survival and food production potential during adverse conditions.

In many parts of the world, landraces are still maintained in the ways and places of their origin. These practices are in the decline, however, as many people who once had connections to

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agriculture are shifting livelihoods and leaving their homelands in search of opportunity or safety. In the modern world, most people have no connection to the source of the food and nourishment that sustains them beyond a monetary exchange.

As the population grows, increases in efficiency and food supply are sought by agricultural corporations that have consolidated almost every aspect of production. While it is incredible to think of the scale of agricultural production worldwide, it is even more mindboggling to think of the scale of seed production required to support that scale of production.

In the face of these facts, a mindful person will try to develop a more intimate relationship with food and the people who grow it by shopping organic, at local farmers’ markets or by participation in food co-ops or CSAs. A person who wants to actualize a more direct relationship to food while connecting with nature may turn to gardening.

Eventually, an interest can develop in reconnecting with the seeds, which are a necessary part of the gardening process.

This is how it happened for me more than 20 years ago.

In planting and harvesting my first field of the sacred blue corn of the Río Grande region, I became captivated by the infinite possibilities of the color blue. My taste and need for green chile also motivated my interest and search for a relationship with this foundational crop of bioregional

culinary significance. The search for maize-based foods of my youth like chicos, chaquegüe, posole and tamales also drove my quest.

Over the years I farmed in a variety of contexts and locations in New Mexico, from Albuquerque to Chimayó to Taos. With my growing relationship to seeds and agriculture, I became interested in the identities and stories of all these seeds, the histories of their

conventional counterparts, which require a stable range of environmental conditions along with chemical and mechanical inputs. There must be some biological indication that offers perspective into the functioning of landraces over time, such as the amount of yield, the number and mass of seeds produced per plant, and the amount of resources allocated for seed production versus other parts of the plant such as roots, stems, leaves or flowers.

AIRE research farm in Taos, New Mexico

origins and their experiences in new lands, soils and farming contexts. All of the seeds originated as landraces, but I wondered if planting them in new locations by new farmers affected their identity. And what would it mean to their biology?

Landraces are known by sustained yields or the ability to produce crops in less than optimal conditions. The yields are less abundant than their

As I try new varieties, I am intrigued by the growth patterns of plants, their cultural histories and their culinary uses.

Many times, these seeds are identified as heirlooms, open-pollinated and/ or organic. I became interested in the gradient of experience in a seed that would take it from an open-pollinated, or organic, seed to an heirloom and eventually a landrace. Heirlooms continued on page 22

Green Fire Times • May 2016

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New Mexico’s History Is Alive at El Rancho de las Golondrinas

El Rancho de las Golondrinas, “The Ranch of the Swallows,” was founded 300 years ago as a paraje — stopping place — on El Camino Real, the Royal Road to Mexico City. Today, it is a one-of-a-kind destination where the past comes to life and weekend programs are fun for the whole family! open Wednesday– sunday, 10am– 4pm, June 1– o ctober 2, 2016 u p c o m i n g W e e k e n d e v e n ts Fiesta de la Familia | may 14 & 15 Have fun with the whole family at an event filled with crafts, games, good food and entertainment.

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A Talk by Ken Greene of the Hudson Valley Seed Library

Kristen Davenport

Nonetheless, there is a real uprising in the United States of growers who want more choices. Ken Greene, founder of Hudson Valley Seed Library (www.seedlibrary. org), based in upstate New York, came to Santa Fe in March to talk about seed sovereignty, seed saving and the general state of the seed universe with the public and Santa Fe Farmers’ Market vendors. The event was sponsored by the Santa Fe Farmers’ Market Institute, the nonprofit fundraising arm of our local farmers’ market.

In time, the seed library simply took over his life, Greene said. Thus was born Hudson Valley Seed Library, designed to cultivate, improve, nurture and sustain some of the world’s disappearing vegetable varieties. While Monsanto’s genetically modified (GMO) corn has names like “MON 802,” a lively discussion was held at Greene’s workshop about a new organic corn variety—a non-hybrid—called “Who Gets Kissed?”

The variety, developed under organic conditions by High Mowing Seed Company, was named based on a game played at corn-husking bees across early America. “All corn was OP (open-pollinated) back then and very diverse,” the High Mowing site states.

“When a person found an ear with red, instead of yellow kernels (a very rare occurrence), they could choose whom to kiss! While you won’t find any red ears, OP variability is a signature of ‘Who Gets Kissed?’ and provided the inspiration for its name.”

Library customers are invited to “check out” seeds in the spring, grow-out the vegetables, and return seeds after harvest in the fall.

Greene was working in a library in Gardiner, N.Y., more than a decade ago when he first became interested in seeds.

Soon he started seeking out old seed catalogues,poring over pages of tomato and pepper and other listings from the 1800s, filing away information on old varieties and organizing a “seed library” to accompany his book library. Library customers were invited to “check out” seeds in the spring, grow-out the vegetables, and return seeds after harvest in the fall—forming the first model for a seed library in the nation in 2005. (Many more exist today.)

Greene, too, can tell tales about his OP vegetables—the librarian who brought her father’s baking bean back into production; the “Bridge to Paris” pepper developed by some New York small farmers after their favorite hybrid pepper was dropped by seed companies; the Lacy Phacelia flowers bred by New York orchardists for growing under their trees.

Nationally and globally, consolidation in the seed market increased dramatically from the 1990s to 2013, as Greene showed in a visual chart that chemical companies, including Monsanto, Syngenta (which Monsanto is attempting to buy), Dow and DuPont actually own a large percentage of the world’s seed companies.In other words, in 2013, chemical companies—those that peddle pesticides and herbicides—owned the seed companies selling most of the world’s seeds.

Most of those seeds are hybrids, Greene says, and not GMO. Many people don’t realize that hybrids can be patented, and even some basic varieties

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Ken Greene’s presentation to New Mexico farmers

common in all seed catalogues are patents owned by Monsanto and other major agrochemical corporations. For example, Sierra Blanca onion, while not GMO, is an F-1 hybrid, the patent of which is owned by a company owned by Monsanto.

thing as a place to buy seeds—people simply planted their own.

Companies such as Hudson Valley, Adaptive Seeds, Uprising Seeds, Victory Heirloom Seeds, Turtle Tree, Wild Garden Seed, Baker Creek and others

© Seth Roffman (3)

T

he statistics are depressing: agrochemical giant Monsanto owns 26 percent of all the seeds sold in the United States. Recently, a $130 billion merger between DuPont and Dow means that company now owns 18.2 percent of the seed market share.

Roughly three companies, in other words, sell half of all the seeds in the country.

Farmers discuss seeds at Ken Greene’s workshop

For home gardeners and small farmers, it is becoming increasingly important to save your own seed, as we lose the biodiversity of vegetable seeds that our grandparents grew. And hybrid seed does not reproduce true, so many seed companies are increasingly encouraging growers to plant nonhybrid, heirloom and OP seed. Greene talks about his explorations of old seed catalogues from the 1800s and early 1900s, when nearly every region had a local seed company that carried seeds that would work in that region. Before that, he said, it seems there was no such

are springing up across the country as more farmers begin to value the old varieties that are often more suited to some climates, Greene notes. In New Mexico, look to more local companies such as Farm Direct Organic Seed, based in Colorado, which breeds varieties that might work best for our Rocky Mountain and Southwestern climates.

Big companies are breeding tomatoes for, say, market shelf life, while old varieties were bred for taste or production under certain circumstances. When deciding where to buy seed, Greene suggested continued on page 24

Green Fire Times • May 2016

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Germplasm: The Centralization of Seed and Efforts to Conserve Seed Diversity L. Acuña Sandoval

G

ermplasm: The Seed and germplasm are a reservoir of genetic information that at times seem so small and, to some, unimportant. Seed contains vast information about a plant’s history and evolution. It is difficult to describe how vital this is. This year, I am growing seed for a conservation farm; it is seed that used to be in Thomas Jefferson’s collection. It is not going well. I know nothing of the history of the seed except that its yield has declined. I grow many varieties of peppers every season, including landrace peppers that have been in areas of New Mexico for hundreds of years. The seed I am growing for the conservation farm is slow to germinate, is not vigorous, and grows very slowly.

Other peppers planted later pass it by. I am doting on it, but I do not think it is going to make it. Without knowing how the previous grower cultivated it or how big the population was from which the seed was collected, I am working blindly. Exponentially multiply this experience, and in the future there is a very real possibility of not having access to viable seed to grow enough food to meet the needs of our expanding population of people and animals.

The question is, how do the few biotech seed companies controlling seed impact nature—and us? How is it impacting farmers? Here is a science fiction-like metaphor I think is fitting regarding the pollen from genetically engineered (GE) seed: What if a few huge industries controlled oxygen and only allowed others to breathe if they pay for it?

Those who pay are given a little oxygen but are required to sign a contract that bars the use of the company’s oxygen to create their own; instead, they must return each year to fill their tank and cannot get oxygen from anywhere else. If others try to produce and supply oxygen, their labs are contaminated with the company’s altered oxygen, which is floating around, so now your clean oxygen may have unknown chemicals in it that may be harmful to breathe. And then the company comes back, and, if you happen to have some of the company’s altered oxygen mixed into yours, the company will claim you stole it and will do everything in its power to destroy you, even take your lab away so

A handful of biotech companies now control a major percentage of the seed that we humans depend on.

Seed is so important and valuable that multinational seed companies have centralized its ownership and control. A handful of the world’s biotech companies now control a major percentage of the seed that we humans depend on. The “Big

Petoseed (1995)

Genecorp (1994)

Hungnong Seminis ChoongAng

Agroceres

Monsanto

Holdens PBIC

CDMMandiyu

Poloni

CustomFarmSeed

Beeologics Limagrain Canada

Sensako

Paras Daehnfeldt

EmergentGenetics Agroeste

Indusem

CornStatesIntl

WilsonSeeds

Trisler

Crows

CornBelt

CampbellSeed LewisHybrids

Kyowa

wheat joint venture

Thurston

HubnerSeed

AdvantaEUVegetable

Becker Underwood

Courtesy of Dr. Philip H. Howard

KoipesolAgrosemAgra

Maisadour

Zimmerman

Fischer

Sandoz SturdyGrow

AstraZeneca Zeneca

Mogen

Maribo

Astra MayAgro's vegetable breeding

LongReach

AWB

Warner

Devgen CircleOne Global

Monsanto's global hybrid sunflower seeds

ZeraimGedera

Size proportional to global seed market share

www.GreenFireTimes.com

Pannar

Swaghat

Riber

PasteuriaBioscience

Sunseeds

Pioneer

ShandongDenghaiPioneer GreenLeafGenetics

Link

NickersonVerneuil Sudwestsaat Northwest PlantBreeding

DairylandSeed

Brodbeck

PfisterHybrids

BioPlantResearch

Verdia

Agromen

IllinoisFoundation DuoMaize

MTI

BiogeneticaDeMilho

Mycogen

HibridosColorado

JGBoswell

Cal/West

RenzeHybrids

UnitedAgriseeds

Phytogen

Phil Howard, Associate Professor, Michigan State University http://www.msu.edu/~howardp

Dow

Floragenex

CurrySeed

Dunhuang

HRZWheats

AdvancedAgriTraits

GrandValleyHybrids

AgVenture

DunhuangPioneer Denghai

FarmlandIndustries

CooperativeBusinessIntl

Nagarjuna's cotton germplasm

OptimumQualityGrains

HarvestStates

SpecialtyGrains

Avesthagen

Hoegemeyer Hybrids

CenexHarvest

Agriliance

Land O'Lakes

Atash

Nandi's cotton business

DoisMarcos

Cenex

ABIAlfalfa

Hytest

SOYGENETICS

Solae (ProteinTech. Int.)

AgSource

GreatLakes CerealGrains

Genective

Triumph

DuPont

LochowPetkus (1967) SunbeamExtract

ProducersHybrids

Hybrinova

Terral

NuTech

GoldenHarvest

Sanbei

KWS

FFRCoop

SuTarim

SeedConsultants

DiaEngei

Syngenta

Synergene

Doebler's Pennsylvania Hybrids

AgriPro

Pybas

Novartis

Agritrading

PSAGenetics

Garst

AdvantaNACornSoybeans

ResourceSeeds NorthrupKing

CibaGeigy

InterstatePayco

Danisco

CPBTwyford

Wensman

HarrisMoran

Anadolu

DeltaPesquisa

KenfengKWS

AgReliant

Genetica Agricola

VandenBerg

Gutwein

Sunfield

Dahlco

YuanLongping

Mikado

Metabolon

Kenfeng

SemíliaGenética Melhoramento

Westhove

Innoseeds

CropDesign

Jung

SPS

ConradFafard

Sunseeds

CarlSperling

Brasmilho's corn & sorghum seed

ExSeed Genetics BASF

PlanTecBiotech

Sementes Fartura

RhonePoulenc

Clause

Limagrain -Vilmorin

Century

Goldsmith

Domagri

AustralianGrainTech

Hawkeye

EridaniaBeghinSay/ Koipe

SementesRibeiral

CeeKay

BoCa

Sieben

StoneSeeds

MitlaPesquisa GeneXSorghum

AgrEvo

Nidera

AnhuiHengji

BioSeeds

HeartlandHybrids

AgrEvoCotton Granja4Irmaos

NideraSemillas

Eurodur

Maïcentre

BiscoBioSciences

joint research & development

FieldersChoice

REA

Fontanelle

ClovisMatton

Hazera

K&BDevpt's onion business

SpecialtyHybrids

ASI

StewartSeeds

HeritageSeeds

AgriProWheat

iCORN

NCPlusHybrids

NebraskaIrrigated

LSL

MoweaquaSeeds

TrelaySeeds

PGS

Proagro

Schering

RhoBio

Biogemma HybriTech (1995)

CampbellSoupCo's vegetable seed

GoldCountry

Hoechst

(1995)

DonMario Kruger

CottonSeedIntl RioColorado

PauEuralis

SementesAgroceres

Diener

ChannelBio

HybriTechEurope

FirstLine

Mahyco

CornStatesHybrid

MidwestSeedGenetics

Synthetic Genomics Inc.

InterGrain

Mahendra

BrownfieldSeedDelinting

JacobHartz (1995)

AlyParticipacoes (CanaVialis; Alellyx)

Cotton States

Athenix

HelenaCotton

HollandCottonseed

Renessen Cargill's intl. seed division

DeKalb (1995)

Roussel -Uclaf

SeedEx LeenDeMos

Nunza (1986)

Aventis Stoneville

GermainsCotton

Cargill

Agrauxine

Reliance Genetics California PlantingCotton

Paragon Nunhems (1995)

Gustafson

Bayer

Prophyta

Ciagro

Seminium

AgroGreen's BioNem

Melhoramento Agropastoril's soy germplasm

SoyTech

AssocFarmersDelinting

Terrazawa

Ecogen

DeKalbAyala

Unilever

RaNA Therapeutics

Wehrtec

SORT

ProSoyGenetics' germplasm

Syngenta's Global Cotton Division

EIDParryRallis

Precision Planting

InterstateCanola

DeltaPineLand

Marmot

Pannon

Grassroots Biotechnology

Abbot&Cobb's melon seed business

Agracetus

Calgene

Asgrow

RoyalSluis (1995)

Ayala

Peotec

ISG

DeRuiter

AgraQuest Hornbeck

EUROSORT

RapsGBR's canola business

Western

Carnia

WestBred

Horticeres

Semillas Cristiani Burkard

Advanta Canola

Rosetta Green

Barham

Divergence

CNDK

Monsoy

Bruinsma (1994)

Seed Industry Structure 1996 - 2013

ChinaSeed

FTSementes

continued on page 14

EmpresaBrasileira

Morgan

DinamilhoCarol

CargillNorthAmerica

Hyland

PrairieBrandSeeds

Seed Companies Chemical Companies

Other Companies

Full Ownership Partial Ownership

Green Fire Times • May 2016

13

© Seth Roffman

Six,” as they are known, seem more like Darth Vader characters, rolling around the universe in big steel balls that have, in the last few decades, insidiously and systematically taken control of the world’s seed. Some now even own smaller organic seed companies, perhaps as an attempt to buy legitimacy.

Germplasm: The Centralization of Seed 13

you cannot breathe. Anything that interferes with the company’s oxygen—even bees or plants—will also be sprayed and destroyed, so all that remains is the industries’ oxygen. This example may seem surreal, but it is closer to the truth than you may imagine.

on and writing about the idea long before Thomas Edison’s invention.”

I do not see that as an appropriate analogy for our time.

Recently, I was contacted by someone from an institution that was originally established to help farmers. This individual wanted to buy some of the landrace pepper seed I have in my collection, ostensibly for a demonstration garden. I have been conserving and saving this seed for more than 10 years, using organic methods to improve and stabilize the seed bank. This specific variety of pepper has been grown in one field since Abraham Lincoln was in office. This seed is so rare that it contains genetically diverse information that hybrids or recently bred peppers do not have. This genetic information is invaluable because, if anything changes in the environment, the peppers, through many years of hard-won evolution, have the memory to withstand stress—such as drought conditions, disease, or low fertility—and still produce high yields.

A second request to obtain the information the institution’s grant was supposed to provide to help us conserve the northern New Mexico landrace peppers and assist farmers yielded this answer from its lawyer: “Until published, this is considered proprietary research not subject to disclosure. This is to protect... copyright and claim of ownership to this written material.” Information on this study published in this institution’s bulletin may yet become publicly available in the coming months, but the institution was under no obligation to answer the questions I was asking about its publicly funded research.

So it was curious to me that this person was asking me to donate this rare seed and congratulating me for maintaining seed banks. Why was this person attempting to collect our seed? After a few weeks of research, I discovered that some previously published conservation work I had done on northern New Mexico landrace peppers with area farmers was now being researched as well by this institution. There is no law against using others’ published ideas. If you are continuing their work, that is perfectly acceptable. But important ethical issues must be considered.

When I read this institution’s publicly funded study, I realized the information it was supposed to publish and all the lofty commitments it made to assist farmer stakeholders had not been done in the few years after the grant had closed, except for a few lectures. Most of its effort was concentrated on ranking the seed banks and presenting this information to plant breeders, both inside and outside of the United States. This institution’s newsletter included a lot of self-congratulation, highlighting its efforts to “save” the landrace peppers. There was no bulletin, no information, no workshops, no boards created with farmers as specified in its grant to conserve this specific seed material. Ranking seed by traits is basically an inventory to understand the outstanding qualities that they may possess. For example, the seed may have genetic information on how to manufacture large quantities of antioxidants or a disease resistance that other seeds may no longer possess because their genes have been manipulated too much. With current, cutting-edge quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping, scientists can locate exactly where traits are located within germplasm.

There is a very real possibility of not having access to viable seed to grow enough food to meet the needs of our expanding population.

Why is this important? If I wanted to find out if a specific seed bank was valuable, I would want to understand how it is unique. If I could pull out these qualities and patent them, then no one could use these traits without paying me—similar to my example about not allowing people to breathe if they don’t pay. It is that simple.

If you are doing almost exactly the same research as someone else, you would want to know about them. But this person/institution asking me for the seed did not want to work with us; they just wanted our seed. Incidentally, their grant was awarded while mine was still actively collecting data.

As soon as unprotected seed crosses another’s threshold, especially if potentially funded by a biotech company, they own the seed, free and clear. So I decided I was not going to sell the seed to an institution with this many unknowns of where the seed would end up. I then fought a losing battle just trying to access the information that was generated from this institution’s publicly funded grant. The battle finally ended, but not before one of its lawyers told me, after I questioned the similar ideas contained in both grants, “We might not have the light bulb if researchers were not free to build upon the ideas of others, since British researchers began working

14

Green Fire Times • May 2016

Rather than continuing to engage in pointless arguments, become marginalized by government institutions and have doors slammed in my face, I went in another direction.

A program started a couple of years ago, called the Open Source Seed Initiative (OSSI, http://osseeds.org), is an effort to free seed of patents. OSSI has created a cooperative of plant breeders who have pledged that their seed-breeding work and varieties be made available exclusively under the OSSI Pledge: “You have the freedom to use these OSSI-pledged seeds in any way you choose. In return, you pledge not to restrict others’ use of these seeds or their derivatives by patents or other means, and to include this pledge with any transfer of these seeds or their derivatives.” The pledge warrants this commitment to keep seed free, follows the seed with any distribution and includes new varieties bred from it. OSSI then proactively conserves “any exchange of plant germplasm for breeding purposes and guarantees the rights of farmers and gardeners to save and replant seed.”

What an experience this was for me! I lost trust in institutions that were formed to help me as a farmer. But I was also encouraged when I realized that a whole new philosophy and initiatives exist out there to decentralize seed. The best organic plant breeders and geneticists in the country are trying to counter someone exclusively owning our seed. Varieties that I have collected and conserved are going to be submitted to OSSI. The Cañoncito Field 7 landrace pepper has already been accepted into the program. I’m hopeful that this will deter others wanting to covet seed and will support the current rebirth of farmer-led research in agriculture and plant breeding not funded by biotech.

As I told the individual who wanted the seed for an institutional “demonstration garden,” this seed does not belong to them, and they are not entitled to it. It belongs to the landrace pepper farmers who nurtured it generation after generation and cared for it all these years; it belongs to people, not institutions. As Gary Nabhan so simply put it, “Institutions do not save seed. Humans with hearts do.” I will continue to protect this seed as if it were my own flesh and blood. And I will keep breathing my own oxygen. i L. Acuña Sandoval is a seed conservationist and organic farmer based in Dixon, New Mexico. She also supports families that use northern New Mexico acequias in Cañoncito by donating seed historically grown that is conserved in seed banks, including corn, peppers, melons and other locally adapted varieties.

Reference information: https://msu.edu/~howardp/seedindustry.html Howard,Philip H.2009.Visualizing Consolidation in the Global Seed Industry: 1996–2008. Sustainability, 1(4), 1266-1287.

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© Seth Roffman

continued from page

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Promoting Food Sovereignty Through Seed Saving

Josh Jasso

M

“I want the schools to eat and take pride in

what they grow and, eventually, share seeds from the crops that do well in their gardens with the other schools—creating both a sense of pride and of community.”

Native Seed/SEARCH, a nonprofit seed-conservation organization, biannually holds an introductory course on seed saving at its conservation center in Tucson, Arizona. The course covers seed-saving traditions and the modern seed industry, as well as botany, flowering and pollination, seed biology and germination, basic genetics, planning your garden for quality seed production, wet and dry seed processing methods and simple seed storage. I attended this course, as well as an additional, day-long workshop that offered a more in-depth look at creating and maintaining a seed library or seed bank.

The workshop was introductory and drew a diverse crowd of gardeners, educators, nonprofit workers, community workers and organizers, and environmentalists with varying degrees of experience. For some, the sections of the workshop covering sexual reproduction of plants, pollination, parts of a seed, genus types, and genetics may have just been a review, but the hands-on portions that involved the wet and dry processing of seed was clearly exciting to all. To create a space in which 20 to 30 adults are all engaged and enthused in the simple but sometimes tedious threshing and removing chaff from seed is no easy task. The education team at Native Seed/SEARCH can be proud of that. It was through these actions that I learned the most—experiencing

© Seth Roffman

y interest in seed saving is relatively new compared to my interest in growing food, which may seem counterintuitive. How can you grow food without seed? Why haven’t I been interested or been practicing seed saving and seed conservation throughout my years of growing food? Maybe it’s reflective of my previously transient lifestyle—growing for a season here, working on a farm for a season there, but never spending the required time in a place to appreciate the adaptiveness of a crop to an area. Now, as I find myself doing work that I feel matters, and having settled in an area that requires a certain hardiness or adaptiveness of plants to grow well, I am realizing the importance of saving seed to promote the health and adaptability of food grown in the Chihuahuan Desert.

A seed exchange in Las Vegas, New Mexico

the equipment, the various ways of threshing and realizing the scale at which I can implement these practices in my work with La Semilla Food Center.

The work La Semilla is doing at the schools in El Paso del Norte region is expanding. As our program grows, it makes sense to me to begin to utilize the accumulating garden space and teacher/student work-power to add more dimensions to the program. Next year, we will have functional gardens at roughly 20 schools. Although we already discuss and promote local, regional or culturally relevant foods and the seed-to-table cycle in our curriculum, the idea of saving seeds that are adapted to our environment and make sense ecologically and culturally can only reinforce these notions to the students. I plan on using what I learned at the workshop to introduce seed saving and, eventually, a functional seed library.

Seed saving can be a tricky prospect, especially for some crops. But with a bit of experimentation and practice, I think that this is a project the schools could take on and get interested in, especially as they begin to look for ways to sustain their farm-to-school and garden programs. i Josh Jasso has a B.A. in anthropology from Vassar College. He is a first-year service member at La Semilla Food Center in Anthony, New Mexico. Farm to Table and UNM’s Community Engagement Center serve as FoodCorps New Mexico’s host sites. www. farmtotablenm.org/programs/foodcorps-americorps/

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17

Deep Seeds and First Foods continued from page 8 seed and cookery. It also involves our religious heritage and spirituality, as evidenced by continuing observance of the Feast Day of San Isidro across northern New Mexico and southern Colorado, when chicos are still traditionally served along with other bioregional foods.

family parent line of Culebra maíz de concho and was collected during the 2010 harvest at Almunyah de las Dos Acequias Farm, in Viejo San Acacio. Comparing this mutation with Beadle’s 1979 diagram suggests that the occurrence depicted in here is an example of the regression/mutation of a local landrace to an intermediate wild stage. This is substantive evidence of the legitimacy of center-of-origin landrace status for Costilla County maize varieties like the CulebraGallegos maíz de concho because this can occur only in landrace, inbred parent lines with close wild ancestors.

The maíz de concho varieties sown by acequia farmers bear living evidence of genetic affinity with wild ancestral forms. During the 2010 harvest cycle of maíz de concho at Almunyah de las Dos Acequias, the home of The Acequia Institute, we sowed a seventh generation of Gallegos heirloom white flint from the same parent line studied

by Bertrand-García. We found two stalks produced the tunicate florescence instead of whole cob alignment of maize kernels.

Two images: First is a diagram depicted in Figure 1 f rom the study by Noble Laureate geneticist George W. Beadle (1979) on “The Ancestry of Corn.” In Beadle’s Figure 1 diagram, (a) and (b) are designated “teocintle”; (c) is designated as a “tunicate,” that is, a mutation in which individual kernels remain aligned in separate single- or double-file formation, instead of clustered on a cob; (d) is designated as a “primitive” ear; and (e) is designated as “modern” maize.

Protection has never been more urgent than in the era of GE corn like the “transgenic” events being imposed willy-nilly across indigenous, cultural, ecological landscapes.

Second is a photograph of a tunicate florescence that we keyed as an example of a tendency in our own maíz de concho to revert back to wild ancestral forms. These occurrences are indicative of the close genomic affinity the local inbred landrace varieties have with wild and intermediary relatives. The photograph in Figure 2 shows the tunicate white flint mutation from our accession of the Gallegos

Figure 2

UNESCO policy seeks to protect the “intangible” cultural heritage of humanity including the conservation of food, foodways and farming practices as unified wholes. Acequia farmers, including Native Americans and Chicanas/os, are among those who integrate farming practices like permaculture, soil biodynamics, seed saving and exchange and plant breeding with culinary and gastronomical traditions comprising our heritage cuisine. Protecting acequia water and land rights; conserving the genomic integrity of the diverse seed stocks of native corn and other crops; respecting the artisan knowledge of culinary recipes and ethnobotany handed down over generations; remaining committed to mindful farming through indigenous regenerative practices—all are critical to the resilience and flourishing of a unique heritage cuisine based on the cultural and ecological integrity of the homelands. Such protection has never been more urgent than in the era of GE corn like the “transgenic” and “gene-edited” events being imposed willy-nilly across indigenous, cultural, ecological landscapes by settler colonial farmers buying into invasive, risky and harmful technologies sold

by Monsanto, Syngenta and their accomplices. i Devon G. Peña, Ph.D., is founder and president of The Acequia Institute, a nonprof it research and education foundation dedicated to the protection and preservation of the acequia way of life. He is also professor of anthropology and American ethnic studies at the University of Washington. His next book is Mexican-Origin Foods, Foodways, and Social Movements: A Decolonial Reader, forthcoming from the Univ. of Arkansas Press in October 2016.

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Owingeh Ta Pueblos

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“Remedios de la Tierra: Agua, Comida, Plantas Nânkwiyo Wo, Po, Kohgi, Phé Yâvi Medicines of the Earth: Water, Food, Plants”

Semillas Seed Exchange

By the New Mexico Food and Seed Sovereignty Alliance

T

he 11th Annual Owingeh Ta Seed Exchange, “Remedios de la Tierra/Medicines of the Earth,” was a healing and festive gathering of family, seeds, prayer, music and unity among land-based people of New Mexico. On April 9, we came together at the Nambé Pueblo Wellness Center as seed savers, farmers, friends and allies.

Sharing seeds and land-based strategies will help us survive.

The event was organized by the New Mexico Food and Seed Sovereignty Alliance (NMFSSA), a collaboration of traditional farmers from acequia communities, pueblos and tribes, who share the goals of protecting heirloom seeds, increasing cultivation of native crops and developing strategies that will help them survive and thrive as caretakers of the land, water and seeds. The NMFSSA was formed by the New Mexico Acequia Association, Honor Our Pueblo Existence, Traditional Native American Farmers Association,Tewa Women United and other pueblo and acequia farmers and leaders. In 2006, these organizations drafted a Seed Sovereignty Declaration recognizing the importance of protecting their ancestral and spiritual connections to maize and other heirloom crops from genetic engineering (GE). To read the declaration, visit www.lasacequias.org/food-and-agriculture/ seed-alliance/seed-declaration.

The gathering was a day full of blessings, starting with a ceremony in which farmers were recognized by their name, their seed variety and the name of their village or pueblo. Los Hermanos Penitentes, from several local moradas, opened the ceremony with special alabados (songs of worship) to San Ysidro and Santa Inez del Campo (patron saints of farmers) and prayers for the recently departed. Dancers from Santa Clara Pueblo finished the ceremony with the Rain Dance, calling on the help of the natural world to bless the seeds with a season of abundance and enough water. The ceremony was followed by a seed exchange of native and heirloom seeds from villages near and far. The NMFSSA awarded Raymond and Lila Naranjo the Anciano Se:daa Lifeways Award for their outstanding contributions and commitment to teaching their family, community and others about the sacredness of seeds and cultural lifeways.

The event included presentations on plant medicines, food as medicine and the Nambé Pueblo Agriculture and Wellness program. Taos Real Food (Margaret García) provided a delicious, local lunch, and musicians David García and Jeremias Martínez led attendees in singing and dancing.

20

Green Fire Times • May 2016

© Seth Roffman

It has been 11 years since these groups started the gathering, which has successfully brought together hundreds of farmers and seed savers each year. With drought becoming common, the groups know that it is more important than ever to plant, save and exchange the native seeds that have adapted to the region’s climate. For the past four years, the gathering has rotated locations to give local communities the opportunity to host.This year, Nambé Pueblo co-hosted the gathering with the NMFSSA.

Top (l-r): Seeds grown in Chimayó; making seed balls; corn and other seeds grown at Santa Clara Pueblo; Monica Vigil talks about Nambé Pueblo’s agriculture and wellness programs; awardees Raymond and Lila Naranjo and family; Nambé Gov. Phillip Pérez welcomes the attendees; elders look at one of the exhibits

One hundred and seventeen seed bundles were made for the Peace and Dignity Runners (www.peaceanddignityjourneys.com), who, in May, will journey from Alaska to Panama in honor of the sacredness of seeds. The bundles, which the runners will tie onto their staffs for the duration of their run, were made using seeds that had been blessed during the ceremony.

We are honored and thankful for this gathering and want to give great thanks to those who made the journey to celebrate the sacredness of our seeds, our land-based traditions and culture. i

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Preserving Indigenous Seeds and Food Crops

Emigdio Ballón

The Quechua are descendants of the Incan people. They spent years developing ancient technologies for irrigation and growing systems. Machu Picchu and Ollantaytambo are perfect examples of this. Using natural resources, the lay of the land, simple principles of physics and shear human strength, they built an intricate irrigation system that, to this day, still functions. On terraced gardens up to 14,000 feet in altitude, our ancestors experimented to determine which crops grow best at various altitudes, weather conditions and water availability. Thanks to the Incan people, we now have more than 12,000 genotypes of potatoes and several thousand genotypes of beans and corn. This history inspired me to pursue my educational degrees in plant genetics.

Indigenous heritage includes not only seeds and food crops but also traditional planting and storage techniques. For example, the Hopi Tribe in Arizona grows corn, beans and other crops on dry land, the same way that the Quechua in southern Bolivia grow quinoa on dry land.

It is essential to control the genetic erosion of indigenous seeds.

There are thousands of indigenous communities throughout our Mother Earth fighting the good fight to protect their inherent rights to grow their traditional seeds and practice their traditions. The primary purpose of this article is to stress the importance of these overlooked crops so that the seeds and foods of these communities are not forgotten or destroyed by genetic engineering.

These crops are not truly lost; indeed, in many areas of the world, many are well

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known, especially among indigenous groups. And there is an international effort by agronomists and ethnobotanists to protect the indigenous crops that remain by making their names known and cataloging them.

It is essential to keep these seeds under the watchful eye of the people and to protect the biodiversity of each community’s ecosy stem. The loss of agricultural biodiversity has drastically reduced the capability of present and future generations to face unpredictable environmental changes and accommodate human needs.

A handful of dedicated indigenous researchers have struggled for decades to promote the traditional food crops to people in countries of their origin in the face of deeply ingrained prejudices in favor of European foods.

These efforts have sparked interest outside of those countries. Some of these seeds have shown promise Avanu (water serpent) protects Tesuque Pueblo Farms’ in exploratory trials. For seed bank. Solar panels power geothermal air-heated example, cultivation of greenhouses; a germination test; Frank Moquino of Acoma Pueblo speaks at a seed growers gathering. quinoa has been going on Emigdo Ballon (l) and Gailey Morgan; Tesuque Pueblo in the United States with blue corn; seed exchange at the growers gathering some success. Amaranth, a We are struggling in New Mexico grain of the Aztecs that was burned and its to protect chile and blue corn against use forbidden by the Spanish conquistadors, this threat. Organizations such as the is today considered a “superfood.”

Four Bridges Traveling Permaculture Activism has also helped strengthen and Institute (4bridges.org) have formed protect community-based seed systems. the Northern New Mexico Coalition Winona LaDuke, an Anishinaabe Against GMOs to counter efforts to move (Objibwe) who lives on the White Earth seeds from indigenous communities to be Reservation in Minnesota, struggled for genetically engineered and patented by years to protect her tribe’s sacred wild rice corporations. I have witnessed this struggle that “tastes like a lake.” Her group’s effort in many communities such as the Quechua, won the fight against GMOs (genetically Aymara, Aztec, Mayan, Hopi, the Pueblos modified organisms). Hawaiians recently and the Iroquois Confederation (Mohawk, won their struggle to keep their traditional Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca and poy from being genetically engineered.

Tuscarora nations).

© Seth Roffman

A

s an indigenous Boliviano of Quechua descent, I grew up learning about my traditional seeds, foods and medicines, thanks to the knowledge of my mother and grandparents.

At a very young age, I learned to appreciate the importance of our seeds,which have been planted,cultivated and saved for centuries.It was the indigenous tribes who, by the time of the Conquest, had brought these plants to their highest state of development and, in many cases, had spread them throughout other indigenous communities.

To assist efforts such as these, community initiatives that need funding include projects to collect local seeds, the exchange of seeds among indigenous communities and the creation of local seed libraries. It is essential to control the genetic erosion of indigenous seeds. i Emigdio Ballón is the Pueblo of Tesuque’s agricultural resources director.

Green Fire Times • May 2016

21

Fresh Aire continued from page 9 were usually termed as such from seed suppliers that recognized their uniqueness, but what does “heirloom” say about its relationship to the land? And what information does the term hold for its biological proximity to a landrace?

Now that I have farmed the same crops on the same land for the past 13 years, I can reflect on the experience of having both good (incredible) and bad (devastating) years for the production of different crops. Most of my crops come from other areas of the region, from the eastern and western slopes of the northern and central Sangre de Cristo mountain range to the river valleys below.

All of these seeds could originally be considered landraces, but I was interested in knowing the effect of planting seed on a new piece of land with new cultivation techniques.

How long would it take for the plant to feel “comfortable,” “secure” and “confident” on a new piece of land? Is

Table 1

diminished yields, and other times I’m rewarded with surprisingly abundant yields. Through this experience, I began to feel as if I am a participant in the process of creating a landrace and to wonder about the interplay between genetics, practice and fate in a landrace’s development. As I started to conceptualize these dynamics

In honor of their origin, I call this introductory generation “Vadito.” The crop was established and almost to flower in early June when irrigation became an impossibility. Rains never came, and the plants slowly shriveled and turned black under the hot July sun. I remembered that sometimes a farmer has to experience loss and

I began to wonder about the interplay between genetics, practice and fate in a landrace’s development.

Young fava bean plants

it even fair to characterize the seed in this way, or are these feelings I need to develop as a farmer? I looked for a means to answer these questions.

occurring in my seeds and fields, I was “blessed” with an extreme drought event that gave me the means to test my ideas and measure interest.

One year, I planted a plot of habas, or fava beans, from the village of Vadito.

I farm a piece of land that is irrigated from a local river through a gravity-fed, earthen-lined acequia system. It has been my only source of irrigation, and I look to every winter with hopes of deep snows to feed the river system as long as possible over the summer. On several occasions, drought has created the experience of diminishing waters that creep toward but never reach our thirsty crops. In these years, the water source is completely dry by July, and I can only hope for intermittent rain and monsoons to carry us through the remainder of the season.

When the acequia goes dry, I employ a variety of techniques to help my crops survive to the next rain. My efforts sometimes result in drastically

22

Table 2

Green Fire Times • May 2016

submit to nature; it is part of the deal.

But as I was clearing the field in the fall, I noticed a few plants had produced seed. In a plot that should have yielded over 30 pounds of beans, I harvested a little over an ounce. The survivors of this drought I called “Taos.”

The next year, a research plot was created to compare the production of my Taos fava bean seeds that survived through the drought to the Vadito parent-generation that had no experience with Taos or the drought.

The plot experienced another year of drought, with irrigation again ceasing at the middle of June. The small sample of plants was still able to survive, and 15 plants from each of the two generations yielded interesting results: the Taos generation experienced a 21 percent increase in yield relative to the Vadito generation, with 80 percent of that increase directed toward an increase in seed production. Overall, the Taos generation was able to allocate almost 30 percent of its biomass to seed production, whereas the Vadito generation fell under 20 percent.

(See Table 1.)

To further investigate the dynamics of adaptation, a research plot was planted with lentils. Some lentils were obtained from a seed exchange, the owner of which told me they were originally from Lebanon. I called this original seed “Leb” lentils. I planted Leb with sufficient water during a good irrigation year, got good yields and saved seeds from the descendent generation, now called Taos lentils. The following year, I planted some seeds from the original Leb seed stock interspaced with Taos seeds. This was the same drought with no water available past mid-June, with the crops having to rely on minimal management, genetic tolerance to drought, experience and luck to survive. The crops struggled on, but the lentil plants of the Taos generation were taller, produced flowers and even produced some legumes in the face of drought, where the Leb generation produced no flowers or legumes. Interestingly, as illustrated in the last measurement of the study, six Leb plants persisted until the killing frost without ever producing flowers or seed, whereas the Taos plants had already produced seed or whose flowering process was terminated by lack of water or fortitude. (See Table 2.)

The results of these investigations are preliminary and the sample sizes small, but the implications for resiliency in yields, drought and generation times are interesting nonetheless. I now have greater interest and more questions as I continue the study. The implications continued on page 24

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Reflections on Seed Sovereignty

By Students from Santa Fe Indian School’s Agriscience Class after a Field Trip to Tesuque Pueblo Farms Dominic Nieto:

In my pueblo of Santo Domingo we face threats of cross-pollination. We do not know if the farmers in Peña Blanca, a small town between Santo Domingo and Cochiti pueblos, are using genetically modified seeds. That is what I am concerned about because most of the farmers in Santo Domingo are not well educated on GMOs. Seed sovereignty is very important to us Pueblos because we use many of these seeds or crops in traditional ceremonies or dances and we do not want to lose the seeds we have had for centuries that were passed down to us by our ancestors.

Eldon Crespin:

When you save your heirloom seeds you are protecting the integrity of the seed.

By preserving the integrity of the seed you are saving thousands of years of history.

There are different styles of farming that we use now, as opposed to the style our ancestors used, which was waffle-beds. We now use the box-style, which varies in size. The box-style of farming is a modification of the waffle-bed farming.

Drucilla Aguilar:

I know for a fact that in my family, my father has been saving seeds from long ago when he was a child. Now today my little brothers are doing the same to save our heirloom seeds that were here long before we were. Where I come from, which is Santo Domingo, we have been saving corn seeds for many years because of our Pueblo plants. If we don’t save our seeds, what will this world come to? Our future generations won’t be able to know what a real grown corn plant tastes like or how they even planted the seed.

When I was a child, I used to go with my father to the field to irrigate or plant seeds.

But today’s generation, everyone is stuck on electronics and we are not realizing that we are losing our ways of life as Pueblo people. Everything has changed with just going to the supermarket to buy our crops. It should be the other way, for us to be farming our own crops and be involved with our future, to make a better change.

We don’t want the industrial agriculture to take away what we can do ourselves.

Joseph Aguilar:

Nowadays, Western farmers are getting lazy and just using these pesticides that harm your plants.

As a Pueblo person (Santo Domingo), we have been saving seeds for many years because that’s what we’ve been living on, our Pueblo plants. As our generation goes on, if we were to not have the Pueblo seeds we used back then, we wouldn’t know what Pueblo corn, squash and melon taste like. So it’s up to us Pueblo kids if we want to step up and take action in our fields to start planting and saving these seeds.

Agriscience students at the Santa Fe Indian School. The class is taught by Anthony Dorame of Tesuque Pueblo.

Many people think that seed sovereignty is a game and think it’s easy to plant.

It’s really not that easy. You have to put in work and actually pick up a shovel and plant stuff. We have to care for our seeds just like our ancestors have been doing for many years. So with that, pick up a shovel and grow some plants. Let’s be real farmers now!

Bethany M. Romero:

My great-grandfather…he rarely had money. To him, his money was his crops…If Monsanto ever got ahold of the seeds that have been in our family for year after year, that would be a slap in the face to my great-grandfather and to his father, and so on because they worked diligently.

Throughout the year we have songs and dances that we participate in to pray for rain and a good harvest, and that is also why it is very important to save seeds; it is a tradition for many Pueblo people here, as well as other American Indian groups across the U.S. Seeds are like children to many of us, and if we do not take care of them, what will become of them, and what will that make us?

Tyrell Westika:

The importance of seed sovereignty is that we as a people are entitled to the safety of our traditional way of life through food.

We protect the seeds the best we can from the outside world because even though the other seeds that are out there nowadays have their merit many are in fact genetically modified seeds from crops that are used for mass producing and have traits that are made to handle many pesticides.

© Seth Roffman

Many Pueblos used pottery, mainly in the form of seed pots. Through this, the seeds are safe from moisture. From these seed pots we have a time capsule, a window into the past, and hopefully a window into a future where there are still many heirloom crops, so we can continue the traditions and instill the principles of the past into the future kids and generations to come. We need to sometimes step back and see what has been working for many years and strive for sustainability and to continue what we know as a people and to never forget.

Frank Pacheco Santa Fe Indian School Agriscience students’ presentation at the Traditional Agriculture & Sustainable Living Conference at Tesuque Pueblo. L-R: Marley DryWater, Damian Aguilar, Frank Pacheco, Rayann Analla, Eldon Crespin

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Emigdio Ballon taught our agriscience class a lot about seeds…He said that in every culture in North, South and Central America, you find corn. That shows that the cultures in the Americas are all connected in some way…In the Pueblo culture, we sing songs to the seed so they can grow and continue to have a good crop when it comes time to harvest. i

Green Fire Times • May 2016

23

Fresh Aire continued from page 22

Supporting Local Business in Southern New Mexico

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point to the importance of having locally adapted varieties of seeds for greatest survival and food-production potential during adverse agricultural production conditions. Adaptation to drought appears to be a trait that can be identified and developed through seed selection using extreme environmental pressure to identify the members of the seed population with exceptional resilience.

I believe that an investment in opportunities to reconnect with seed and agriculture and establish localized, resilient varieties will alleviate some concerns about food security in the face of climate change and a growing population.

An investment in our communities and

ourselves will be more fruitful in the long term than continuing to allow food corporations to produce the food and ideas that supposedly sustain us. I hope this article serves as food for thought in your journey to reconnect with nature through seed-saving agriculture. i Miguel Santistevan is an educator, researcher and farmer. He maintains a small farm with his wife and family in Taos, New Mexico. For more information about Santistevan and his nonprofit organization, AIRE (Agriculture Implementation Research & Education), visit www.growfarmers.org

Ken Greene

continued from page

Is it true PNM recycles old refrigerators?

What about freezers?

Do you pick it up for free?

11

looking for companies that have taken the Safe Seed Pledge, which states that the companies will not knowingly sell GMO varieties. But to take it a step farther, look for companies that sell only OP or heirloom varieties—with few or no hybrids included. Greene also clarified the differences between hybrid, GMO, OP and heirloom seeds. And he encouraged local farmers to begin thinking about growing seed as a way to expand their sales, and to create more food and farm security in our region.

For those who are interested in seed saving or learning how to save seed, Seed Savers Exchange is a good resource online and includes a forum you can join to ask questions. Several good books are available on the market, as well, such as Suzanne Ashworth’s Seed to Seed. i

Have a question about our Refrigerator Recycling Program?

Talk to us.

Kristen Davenport is a former journalist and current farmer who operates Boxcar Farm with her husband and their two kids. They grow garlic for seed , as well as many veggies and herbs for the Santa Fe Farmers’ Market.

PNM will recycle your old, working refrigerator or freezer and pay you $50. We’ll pick it up for free, keeping materials like metal, glass and plastic out of the landfill – and greenhouse gasses out of the environment. Learn more at PNM.com/answers.

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Green Fire Times • May 2016

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The Land is the Source of our Identidad, Survival, Health, Strength and Happiness Article and photos by Alejandro López

I

f the popular outcry of the Mexican Revolution of 1910 was “Give us land, or be done with us!” perhaps the cry of the Nuevo Méxicano people of 2016 ought to be “The land is the source of our identitad, survival, health, strength and happiness. Let us reclaim her!”

Undoubtedly, when New Mexico’s land is cultivated, it is capable of generating life, health and an economy. For centuries, this land—though perhaps spartan in outward appearance—allowed its inhabitants to be both self-sufficient and healthy.

Its people depended almost exclusively on the sustenance that surged from its soil, a soil consecrated across generations by the offerings and ceremonial dances of its native Pueblo peoples, as well as by the prayers and supplications of the humble, hard-working Mexicano people, who, after centuries of toil, conflict and amalgamation, also became heirs to the sacred and beloved tierra.

Because of this history, even today there is an abundance of arable plots of land throughout northern New Mexico. Although most are modest in size and lie fallow, they still constitute an important available resource for recovery of the health, vitality, economy and cultural viability of the region. This is also possible because of a tightly woven network of rivers, streams and acequias that ensures the region’s fairly reliable water supply that is fundamental to growing food.

Despite the pulverizing effects of the forces of materialism, drugs, alcohol and imprisonment, as well as a continuous exodus of talented native people, it is conceivable that northern New Mexico could develop the sort of workforce a resurgence of sustainable agriculture would require. Although difficult, many of those afflicted by these scourges could recover, particularly if they were to return to the rhythms of nature, creatively engage the land and work among a robust community of healthy people.

Reinforcements for this much-needed revolution of training and retraining people to reclaim the land are already here among us. They are la gente, who, in recent times, have arrived en masse f rom México and other parts of the world with the will to work la tierra and see it become productive. This is already happening in many places.

After languishing for a long time, the centuriesold, traditional smallscale agriculture of northern New Mexico finally met its demise by the late 20th century for several reasons.

Chief among them were the low prices that agricultural products fetched in regional and national markets. This was the fate of all Third World countries and regions. Reinforced by modern education with its emphasis on An acequia-irrigated farm in Santa Cruz, near Española, in commercial, industrial and technological northern New Mexico

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pursuits, industries such as Los Alamos National Laboratory and huge mining and timber operations diverted the workforce away f rom farms.

With the collapse of the agricultural way of life that gave a certain meaning, beauty and coherence to life,huge numbers of people from rural communities relocated to New Mexico’s larger cities, where today they live out the frenzy of the cash economy and urban sprawl.

Recent changes indicate that it may be a positive thing for northern New Mexico’s people to return to cultivating Rosa María Alcantar of Rocio Produce surveys a field the land, to whatever before planting. extent possible. Those in possession of land and the will to work it are now in a favorable position rather than at a disadvantage. The market has made an about-face. Large numbers of people, businesses and institutions are willing to pay a fair price for fresh, local and organic produce. Restaurants, public schools, wealthy and medium-income people value the rich flavor of locally grown frutas y verduras and their higher nutritional value. Well-established farmers’ markets in many communities can provide a tremendous boost to farmers and buyers.

Arable land throughout northern New Mexico is still an available resource for recovery of health, vitality, economy and cultural viability.

Recent technological innovations have also contributed to the feasibility of smallscale farming. These days, it is possible to grow broccoli, kale, cauliflower, spinach, beets, turnips and other vegetables for eight or nine months out of the year if one takes advantage of the heat- and water-conservation qualities of cold frames and greenhouses. Moreover, as of late, government programs are making it simpler and cheaper to do so. Indeed, individuals in many communities are taking advantage of such programs.

Drip irrigation systems have dispensed with the need to use large quantities of water or to irrigate anything other than the plant itself. In addition to proven local heirloom varieties, the availability of seeds from around the world for common foods such as tomatoes, squash, melons, beans or wheat and access to plants such as blackberries or kale, largely unknown in this area, has added to the interest and profitability of regional small-scale farming.

The reclamation of land for growing food for local consumption and for the local market is bound to strengthen the economy, cultures and communities in a multitude of interconnected ways. Reclaiming fallow land overrun with invasive species, though arduous, may also prove to be catalytic to forging strong and wellrounded youth and familias. continued on page 30

Green Fire Times • May 2016

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Plants: Our Loyal Companions, Life-givers and Teachers

Beata Tsosie-Peña

A

s preparation for seasonal abundance begins, and the need for adapting to a changing climate continues, we must consider the lessons humankind has had access to since our beginnings, lessons from the Plant People. When in nature, observing the growing green beauty and diversity that we are dependent on for our breath and nourishment, what are ways we can emulate and learn from nature about how to grow food and medicine?

When I look out at the layers of plants—from the tallest tree to the smallest blade of grass—I can see the layers that exist in harmony and codependence. In our mountains, the upper canopy is the foundation and protector of our watershed cycle, a producer of oxygen through photosynthesis, food and shelter for animal kin and, thanks to a mix of deciduous and evergreen species, a year-round provider of shelter and nutrients for plants below, while nurturing healthy soils.

Companion planting and holistic food production

It is possible for us to develop sustainable systems that not only provide food but also nurture the harmony that we were once in relationship with, sustainable systems that can help us find that balance once again. “Food forests” are a sustainable solution to healthy land management that also supports our ability to feed ourselves.

When I observe plants growing, even in the lower desert valley, I see that they are not growing alone, contrary to the monoculture planting style Big Ag (industrial farming) would have us buy into. There is always a cluster of plants growing together in community. The metaphor and life lessons for humanity are clear: We need each other to survive; the strengths of the individual contribute to the wellbeing of our survival as a whole; and, as peoples, our diversity and ability to respect and honor differences are part of our strength and resilience.

Long ago, indigenous agriculture understood what science has confirmed and is now widely known in the example of Three Sisters gardens. Taller plants that need extra nutrients (corn) are best planted with nitrogen-fixing ones (beans) that can climb on the taller ones for support, while low-growing sprawlers (melons and squash) provide plant competition control and help hold moisture as a living mulch. Not only does this planting combination help maintain soil nutrients and plant health but, also, eating these (non-GMO) foods in combination with each other provides healthy, complete nutrition. It is interesting to note that this example of companion planting represents all three forms of pollination: cross pollination, self-pollination and insect pollination.

For the last, many add a fourth sister: bee balm, sunflowers, or other beefriendly plants.

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together. A good place to start is by observing which plants are already growing together where you live and learning the properties of those plants. It is also a good idea to plant varieties that help resist and deter destructive pests and insects in close proximity with those plants that need protection.

Growing “ Fr uit Tree Guilds” is also a good way to experiment and nurture holistic food production. Companion planting requires looking at the relationship of living systems as a whole, and the niches particular plants inhabit that serve multiple functions that aren’t in competition and are mutually beneficial.

Chokecherry and (dormant) locust companion planting.

They are planted in a swale on a slope to harvest rainwater. The locust provides nitrogen fixing for soil enhancement. The chokecherry, which need nutrients, benefits by being planted in close proximity. Both provide shade, organic mulch, and act as a windbreak.

These days, as we are exploring and continuing these traditions in our yards and fields, we need to nurture a healthy relationship with water once again. Sustainable practice in honoring this gift means that, if we are already using this resource in our gardens, let’s make sure we plant perennial foods and medicines alongside our annuals, so our water is also contributing to the longterm generational growth and health of our landscapes. Let’s make sure it is not wasted, that it is held to our fertile hearts like a slow embrace held in our soils before it is returned to its living cycle.

Nurture the plants and seeds that already are adapted to growing in our desert climate and environments. Learn their nutritional and medicinal values so that our harvesting is balanced in a relationship between wildcrafting/ gathering, acequia agriculture and dry-land farming. Our resilience lies in these relationships, and our oldest teachers are all around us, loving us and offering what we need to continue existing in our shared home. i Beata Tsosie-Peña works for Tewa Women United’s Environmental Health and Justice Program. She is a permaculture designer, seed saver, poet and mother and is currently helping grow the Española Healing Foods Oasis demonstration garden. beata@tewawomenunited.org

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Partners Join to Strengthen Local Food Supply Chains “Food LINC” to Boost Farm Sales, Grow Local Foods Sector

Benjamin Bartley

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) officials have joined 15 national and regional philanthropic partners for a new initiative to bolster the supply chain for local food systems around 10 key U.S. cities. The project, dubbed “Food LINC,” will connect demand for local food in 10 urban areas with supply components from farmers and ranchers, strengthening each region’s local food business sector and also increasing consumer access to healthy, local food.

“O ur investments in local food infrastructure have the most success in communities with strong coordination between producers, food purchasers and access to shared resources,” said U.S.

Left: Preferred Produce greenhouse in Deming. Above: Anthony Youth Farm

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack.

“Food LINC aims to create market opportunities for the areas’ producers and create or sustain jobs along that local supply chain. With the help from our

USDA Officials Visit La Montañita Co-op and Release Food Hub Report

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development State Director Terry Brunner, along with USDA Rural Business and Cooperative Service administrator Sam Rikkers, from Washington, D.C., visited La Montañita Cooperative in Albuquerque on April 21 to get some insight on how the co-op has been so successful over the years and to shine a light on the efforts of food hubs through the release of the USDA’s “Running a Food Hub” report.

Brunner said, “ The National Grocers Association and National Restaurant Association have identified local food as one of the top trends in their industries and La Montañita is part of that trend. Their efforts create new opportunities for producers while making the cooperative more sustainable.” Brunner L-R: La Montañita Cooperative administrators Dennis and Rikkers presented a Hanley, Robin Seydel, Steve Warshawer and Michelle certificate of appreciation Franklin accept the report and a certificate of appreciation from the USDA to La from Terry Brunner and Sam Rikkers of the USDA Montañita for its 40 years of providing fresh, locally grown produce. The business is the largest of its kind in New Mexico.

“Running a Food Hub” highlights numerous best practices designed to help businesses that distribute food to cooperatives and other markets be more sustainable. There are two main food hub businesses. The ‘Wholesale Food Hub’ is more focused on retailers, as their customer base and does not rely on volunteer labor. The ‘Direct-to-Consumer Food Hub’ sells its groceries to the end consumer and is operated by a mix of full-time and volunteer labor.

Brunner and Rikkers also presented a Value-Added Producer (VAP) grant certificate of obligation to Silverleaf Family Farms of Corrales, New Mexico.

Silverleaf is receiving $44,068 to market its produce at additional farmers’ markets around the state. USDA VAP grants are intended to support local and regional food systems. They can be used to develop new products or additional uses from existing ones, and support marketing opportunities for veterans, members of socially disadvantaged groups, beginning farmers and ranchers, and operators of small- and medium-sized family farms and ranches.

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Green Fire Times • May 2016

Ed Ogaz of Seco Spice

partners, USDA can ‘supercharge’ our resources to create lasting impacts for farmers, ranchers and rural communities as a whole.”

Nearly $3 million in combined private and federal funding will support coordination by a host organization in each city. A full-time Food LINC coordinator will be embedded in each host organization for up to three years. The knowledge gained through their experiences will help the partnership determine next steps to link producers and entrepreneurs with families and institutional consumers to develop more robust local and regional food systems. The initiatives in each region will be documented to share best practices with other organizations working to grow similar opportunities in their communities nationwide.

New Mexico’s host organization is La Montañita Co-op. The Thornburg Foundation is the philanthropic partner.

Beginning in 2007, La Montañita established its cooperative distribution center and Regional Foodshed Initiative to expand purchases by the co-op’s stores of sustainably grown products and to assist regional producers in accessing additional wholesale market channels.

The initiative is developing “value chains,” through which collaborative partnerships

are formed. Value chains are different from traditional food-supply chains in that there’s a shared mission and operational values among the partners involved. It’s as much or more about relationships as infrastructure.The goal is to enhance the growers’ financial returns.

Under Food LINC, La Montañita’s Value Chain team will be working with diverse farm operations to find new markets for locally grown products including pumpkins, apples, carrots, peeled garlic and cucumbers, as well as working to scale, brand and market value-added products such as chile ristras, yogurt, cheese and milled corn.Through producer convenings, technical assistance and enterprise development, La Montañita staff are exploring the feasibility of increasing local chicken, egg and buffalo production.They are also actively working with the co-op’s network of growers to explore new products that producers are interested in adding to their business or items for which they know there is an unmet market demand. i Benjamin Bartley recently joined La Montañita as a Value Chain specialist, working on local food procurement. He was previously the Food Access director at the Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food & Agriculture in Washington, D.C.

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Investing in New Mexico Grown Nelsy Dominguez and Pam Roy Courtesy La Semilla Food Center, Anthony, NM

T

hanks to the efforts of teachers, school nutrition professionals, farmers, agriculture professionals, parents, students and nonprofit advocates, Farm to School programs throughout the nation are booming. Based on recently released national data by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Farm to School activities have grown from a handful of schools in the late 1990s to 23.6 million students nationwide. A total of 42,587 schools across all 50 states and Washington, D.C., participate in farm-to-school activities such as serving local food in the cafeteria, holding taste tests, planting and caring for school gardens and taking students on field trips to farms and orchards.

For more than a decade, New Mexico organizations and agencies have made a concerted effort to develop the New Mexico Grown Fresh Fruits and Vegetables for School Meals initiative to create opportunities for farmers to diversify their markets. For schools, this means being able to buy locally while meeting federal school-meal rules and enhancing the diets of schoolchildren while promoting healthy lifestyles and academic achievement.

Fresh local fruit and vegetables in schools benefit children, farmers and the regional economy. Plus, our carbon footprint is decreased substantially.

Since 2007, the New Mexico Legislature has appropriated funding for the New Mexico Grown Fresh Fruits and Vegetables for School Meals program, now called NM Grown. Since then, interest in the program has increased. During the 2016 New Mexico Legislative Session, New Mexico Grown was appropriated $250,000—a reduction from $364,300 the previous year. The funds, administered by the Public Education Department, are made accessible to school food authorities (SFAs) toward the purchase of fresh local produce. The program was utilized by many of the 218 SFAs and served 364,902 students in the 2015/2016 school year. In addition, the New Mexico Department of Agriculture (NMDA) separately administers $85,000 in support of purchasing local produce designated for a set of Albuquerque Public Schools. Between both allocations, New Mexico schools will have close to $335,000 to spend on New Mexico-grown fresh fruits and vegetables for school meals during the 2016/2017 school year.

Farm to Table, in partnership with the NMDA, New Mexico Cooperative Extension Service, New Mexico School Nutrition Association, New Mexico Food and Agriculture

Mobile Farmers’ Market: Improving Health Equity

The Mobile Farmers’ Market is a collaborative initiative intended to help improve health equity for lowincome individuals and families in Bernalillo County. The market on wheels supports local farmers and provides Albuquerque’s International District and South Valley with healthy, affordable, organically grown fruits and vegetables, and educational resources on how to prepare them. The effort is part of the Healthy Here initiative that includes Presbyterian Healthcare Services, Bernalillo County Community Health Council and 14 other community partners. It is made possible with funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Between June 6 and Oct. 25, the Mobile Farmers’ Market will make stops at various health clinics, middle schools and community centers on Mondays and Tuesdays. The market accepts all forms of payment, including WIC and Senior Farmers’ Market Checks, SNAP/EBT and Double Up Food Bucks (twice as much produce for the same price). For more information, contact Natalie Donnelly at 505.841.1357 or ndonnelly@phs.org.

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Policy Council and others look to address many of the operational challenges inherent in developing a complex initiative involving many partners. Some of the most perplexing challenges relate to the need to invest in New Mexico’s small- to mid-scale farmers, the procurement process for New Mexico Grown foods and their distribution to schools.

To ensure that the New Mexico Grown program is a win-win for farmers and schoolchildren, nearly 50 participants joined Farm to Table and the New Mexico Food and Agriculture Policy Council for a one-day strategic session aimed at developing the program in the coming years. Farmers, educators, school food-service administrators, agriculture agents, nonprofit advocates and public officials discussed ways to coordinate and align efforts. Together, they produced a vision, developed actionable strategies and mobilized committees to carry out and engage others in support for localizing schoolfood procurement.

Investing in asset-based, community economic development is a way to strengthen and diversify regional economic activity—activity that is traditionally cultural—so that communities can achieve self-determined wellness and improve their relationship with fresh, high-quality food, especially those who are not usually able to experience such food daily.

To learn more, contact pam@farmtotablenm.org or nelsy@farmtotablenm.org. View the 2015 USDA Farm to School Census at https://farmtoschoolcensus.fns.usda.gov/ and visit National Farm to School Network at http://www.farmtoschool.org/newsand-articles/census-says-farm-to-school-is-booming. i Nelsy Domínguez is deputy director/COO, and Pam Roy is executive director, Farm to Table.

SeedBroadcast During 2016 and 2017, SeedBroadcast, a collaborative project, is partnering with Native Seeds/SEARCH and far mers across New Mexico to creatively document bioregional seeds and climate-appropriate agriculture.

The project is guided by the belief that it is a human right to save seeds and share their gifts, to grow food and share its abundance, and to cultivate and share grassroots wisdom.

Through seasonal photo essays and interviews, SeedBroadcast is working with farmers to share their stories about growing food in a changing climate while cultivating ecological resiliency. The stories are published in the SeedBroadcast Blog (http://seedbroadcast.blogspot.com/) and in the SeedBroadcast agri-Culture Journal (www.seedbroadcast.org/SeedBroadcast/SeedBroadcast_agriCulture_ Journal.html).

For more information, visit www.seedbroadcast.org or www.facebook.com/seedshare

Green Fire Times • May 2016

29

Growing Health and Justice

Travis McKenzie and Rodrigo Rodríguez

S

pring is here, and that means it’s planting time. But this year we’re not just growing healthy organic food; we’re “Growing Health and Justice!” We are excited to announce a partnership of Project Feed the Hood, Farm to Table New Mexico and Presbyterian Health Service’s Healthy Here initiative. Since its founding in 2009, Project Feed the Hood, an initiative of the SouthWest Organizing Project (SWOP), has helped install dozens of school community gardens and has worked alongside hundreds of families, teachers and school staffers to transform our community’s role in New Mexico’s food systems, especially school foods. Project Feed the Hood works to educate, organize and empower communities to transform our food systems to reflect the visions and values of our communities.

New Mexico has rich and ancient agricultural traditions, but in recent years those traditions have taken a back seat to Big Ag. New Mexico is currently home to one of the nation’s largest Dora Pacias mentors students from the South Valley Academy dairy industries but also tops the nation in childhood hunger, with nearly one in three kids going hungry.

Agricultural industries in the state make billions of dollars each year, but one in five New Mexicans is not getting enough to eat. New Mexico is also home to some of the largest cattle herds in the United States and also has some of the largest “food deserts.” Food deserts are often low-income census tracts where a substantial number of residents have little access to a large grocery store.

Project Feed the Hood is also working to revitalize traditional growing methods and lifeways and to reintroduce culturally significant foods by engaging with diverse communities and stakeholders. The project is addressing the root causes of hunger in

The Land is the Source continued from page 25

Preferring glitzy virtual reality and the hypnotic magnetism of round-the-clock communication and entertainment over ordinary reality, many young people are no longer able to perform basic tasks such as preparing a meal or executing a simple carpentry project. In the electronic age, the average American has become even more isolated from both el mundo and, ironically, otra gente. Because of this, it is not uncommon to come across young people who lack a deep feeling toward other human beings, as well as all other life forms.

Reinforcements for reclaiming the land are already here among us.

Some who have studied this disturbing trend are convinced that the only way out of this dead-end situation is for young people to creatively reengage with nature—our original teacher—together with a community of active people. Unlike the computer, nature is free of preconceived, finite programming. Instead, at every turn, nature can fully engage the body, mind and spirit with unfolding phenomena of infinite complexity. Interacting vigorously with nature, plants and animals, as one does on a farm, people come alive and respond to the things that need to be done such as the preparation of soil, sowing of seeds, irrigation, weeding, thinning, protection of plants from pests, mulching, harvesting, food processing and much more. Each of these processes can strengthen the body, sharpen the senses, inform the mind and inspire the spirit. When carried out in community, these activities foster sharing and cooperation, stimulate authentic communication and help build solid relationships.

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Green Fire Times • May 2016

New Mexico by connecting farms and schools, engaging young people in changing the food system, and educating and advocating for policies at local, state and federal levels.

We hope to expand our efforts at Albuquerque Public Schools and form a partnership with a handful of pilot schools—elementary, middle and high schools—across the district.

There is a specific focus on the Southeast Heights and South Valley areas. We will be working throughout the year to host gardening workshops and cooking and seed-saving classes. Project Feed the Hood will be hosting school assemblies, working in classrooms and after school to build gardens, grow, cook and eat food to help transform students and build school food systems rooted in principles of justice, culture and health. Please join us. Learn more at http://www.bchealthcouncil.org. i The project’s Community Garden Spring Fiesta is May 7. (See calendar, pg. 38) Travis McKenzie is with Project Feed the Hood (growthefuture@yahoo.com). Rodrigo Rodríguez is with the SouthWest Organizing Project (Rodrigo@swop.net).

Healthy Here is a collective impact initiative in Albuquerque/Bernalillo County committed to reducing chronic disease in the Hispanic/Latino and Native American populations in the International District and South Valley through environmental and systems changes that increase access to healthy food, physical activity and self-management of chronic disease. Funded through the CDC’s Racial & Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) grant to Presbyterian Healthcare Services with coalition support from the Bernalillo County Community Health Council. For more information, contact Leigh Caswell at lcaswell@phs.org or Marsha McMurray-Avila at mcavila.bcchc@comcast.net Farm to Table, a partner in the Healthy Here initiative, is working to co-create spaces for farm-to-school practitioners to learn from one another through gatherings, workshops and other trainings. FtT’s goals include supporting community partners within Albuquerque to develop and sustain diverse schoolgarden projects, increase knowledge and skills to support farm-to-school education, increase integration of local foods within Albuquerque schools and advocate for public and institutional support of projects. For more information, contact Nelsy Domínguez at nelsy@farmtotablenm.org

When people of any age take on the challenge of planting a garden, unless they are the victims of circumstances such as drought or flooding, they will be immensely rewarded, not only by the outpouring of an abundance of produce at the end of the growing season but, also, at each stage of the plants’ development. Even if one claims to understand the workings of science, these experiences will transport the imagination—together with other human faculties—to the very heart and source of life itself. On a given day, a corn plant may not yet have produced a tassel; then, on the following day, one begins to appear, and, on the third day, it fully and gloriously proclaims to all creation its magnificence and ability to pollinate.

In time, acts of witnessing and participating in nature’s amazing workings become the building blocks of the wisdom that we hope to attain—the sort of wisdom many of our viejitos had. And so it is that by cultivating our beloved tierra we can be transformed into happier, more caring, sensitive and aware human beings. ¿Qué más queremos? What more do we want? i Alejandro López, writer, photographer and educator, grew up farming. He has spent many years helping restore his family’s 75-year-old farm in northern New Mexico. alej@cybermesa.com

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SUPER SEEDS: What Is All the Excitement About?

Japa K. Khalsa

W

hy is there such excitement about seeds as health food these days?

Chía seeds, soba seeds, flax seeds: Why are these little nutritional gems called superfoods?

Seeds carry the future plant’s potential energy in a concentrated form. Most seeds have high amounts of micronutrients and special, unique kinds of fats. All of the enzymes, protein, fat and minerals needed to grow the plant are contained within each tiny seed. Most importantly, though, for foodies, certain kinds of seeds, when mixed in with food, can be incredibly delicious. Some special seeds that grow locally in New Mexico have unique healing properties.

Seeds, when mixed in with food, can be incredibly delicious.

A key to good health is to constantly find ways to awaken our inner healing drive.

Life is not easy. It takes effort to keep ourselves light, happy and in a self-care healing mindset in the face of the unexpected curveballs and challenges that come our way. Plant foods like vegetables and seeds give us their consciousness when we eat them. Not only do we take the physical life force from them; their inner vitality feeds us at the level of the spirit/body/mind connection. The special energy of a plant’s seeds helps us stay flexible and awakens the internal energy of self-healing.

Good for Something Goatheads

If you’ve spent time in your own backyard or barefoot on a hiking trail, you may have encountered the dreaded goathead. A common weed with thorny fruits, goatheads are the bane of anyone unfortunate enough to step on one. But surprisingly, these irritating weeds are an excellent medicinal plant, famous in Ayurvedic and Chinese medicine. They are used traditionally to encourage fertility, potency and to prevent and soothe bladder or urinary tract irritation. The best time to harvest them is right after the tiny white or yellow flowers bloom and a prickly pod has developed on the plant. Once dried, they can be an amazing tea that builds and restores energy to the body. They can also be bought as a premade tea, sometimes called horny goat weed or gokshura. An Albuquerque-based business, Banyan Botanicals, carries it in bulk.

Gokshura Tea

Bring 1 tablespoon of gokshura to a boil in 2 cups of water; then, simmer uncovered for 30 to 45 minutes. Drink this tea daily. For a tastier treat and to support prostate health, simmer the strained tea with goat milk, and then blend in some sesame seeds and raw honey to taste (adapted from Dr. Nadkarni, India Materia Medica).

Piñón Nuts: A Jewel of Local New Mexico Foods

The hard-shelled nut from the piñón tree grows encased inside pine cones and is a treasure trove of healing nutrients. Piñones supply amino acids, phosphorous and healthy fats. Join the farm-to-table movement, and be sure to always purchase locally harvested piñón nuts. Our New Mexico nut has a harder shell than other varieties and a distinctive, crisp, rich flavor. Eating foods like this with plenty of monounsaturated (plant) fats can help satisfy the body and cut back on cravings for junk or processed foods.

Sesame Seeds

The sesame seed has long been touted as an elixir of life. These tiny gems are full of nutrients like copper, magnesium, calcium and healthy fats. Rich in fatty acids, the sesame seed also supports the cardiovascular system, boosts immunity, reduces

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inflammation, balances hormones and nourishes eyes, skin and hair. There are many ways to get this seed into your body: Sprinkle toasted sesame onto salads or in soups, blend it into spreads or milks or spread tahini on bread as a nut butter substitute. Tahini is the delicious seed-spread from blended sesame seeds. You can make it yourself by blending sesame seeds and oil. It adds so much flavor to Middle Eastern cooking and is a key ingredient in hummus.

Hummus

Hummus must certainly be the most delicious, healthful dip on the planet!

Life without hummus would just NOT be the same, and it’s so easy to make. Just blend a can of garbanzo beans, a clove of garlic, the juice of one lemon and a few heaping tablespoons of tahini. Blend in olive oil and maybe a little water to the desired texture, and add some salt and pepper if you wish. Just five main ingredients, and yet it always tastes creamy and tangy. Add some basil or chopped-up olives and serve on crackers or pita bread.

Seeds of Healing

A wonderful way to plant the internal seed of self-healing is to do a springtime cleanse. Just add one healthful habit like a fresh juice in the morning or water with lemon to kick-start your body’s internal detox systems. Support the health of your immune system, lungs and liver to release congestion and stagnation and help you feel healthy and light for the summertime. You can try simple remedies, like three days of broth and vegetables or my favorite, the “Cleanse of Santa Fe” (http://devahealth.com/the-cleanse/). This is a 10-day process of eating whole foods, juicing and taking special supplements. The food during this cleanse is so nurturing that, even though you are cleansing and detoxing, you feel cared for so that your body can heal itself.

Devas Seed Milk for the Cleanse of Santa Fe

• 2 cups of water • 2–3 Tbsp of sesame seeds • A few dates, pits removed • A pinch of cinnamon or 1/8 tsp of vanilla • J uice and insides of one young coconut (optional) Blend all of these ingredients and heat the drink if preferred warm

Nurture yourself with simple foods, and try putting more seeds into your mouth. Chew well and be healthy. i Japa K. Khalsa, Doctor of Oriental Medicine (DOM), is coauthor of Enlightened Bodies: Exploring Physical and Subtle Human Anatomy (enlightenedbodies.com). She teaches a weekly yoga class for people with chronic pain at Sacred Kundalini, in Santa Fe. She completed her Master of Oriental Medicine degree at the Midwest College of Oriental Medicine, in Chicago. She combines traditional acupuncture with herbal and nutritional medicine, injection therapy and energy healing. Her work with patients and students emphasizes optimal health and personal transformation through self-care and awareness of the interconnectedness of all life. www.drjapa.com

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NEWSBITEs Río Grande Agricultural Land Trust Earns National Recognition

The nonprofit Río Grande Agricultural Land Trust (RGALT, www.rgalt.org), an organization dedicated to preserving working farms, wildlife habitat, open space and scenic vistas, has achieved accreditation by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission, a mark of honor in land conservation, signifying the commission’s confidence that RGALT lands will be protected forever.

The accreditation comes on the heels of another RGALT success: five conservation easements that protect a total of 546 acres of habitat along the Río Grande in central New Mexico, benefiting migratory bird and other wildlife corridors and contributing to scenic vistas and open space. Voluntary conservation easements on farms and ranches bind land and water together, ensuring their continued use as agricultural land and wildlife habitat.

“As a small organization with relatively few resources, RGALT’s accomplishments are on par with those of much larger land trusts,” said John Leeper, RGALT board treasurer. “It is my hope that the accreditation seal will give us the credibility to reach a wider philanthropic circle to assist us in preserving the rich natural and agricultural environment that makes our state such a great place to live,” said board secretary, Bill Hume.

Several entities are piloting the High Five Certification program. They include properties owned by the Historic District Improvement Co. (HDIC); CNM, Presbyterian; Hotel Andaluz; Hotel Parq Central; and Hartman & Majewski.

ABQ’s new interim executive director, Rick Rennie, asset manager for HDIC, expects to expand the program to other areas of Albuquerque. For more info, visit www.2030districts.org/albuquerque.

Navajo Nation Breaks Ground on First Utility-Scale Solar Farm

On April 23, the Navajo Nation broke ground on its first utility-scale solar-energy production plant. Deenise Biscenti, public affairs director for the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA), says that the solar farm is the tribe’s first move in a longterm strategy to establish a green economy. The Navajo Nation has not previously generated its own power. The Navajo Nation decided to build the solar farm itself rather than hire an outside company.

The Kayenta Solar Facility, located on 300 acres of tribal land south of Monument Valley, Arizona, will offer “some of the lowest consumer electric rates in the region,” a press release states. The $64 million, 27.5-megawatt (MW) project is being funded partly through federal loans and tax credits. Salt River Project, a Tempe, Arizonabased utility, is partnering with NTUA in a power purchasing agreement.

Accredited land trusts across the country have permanently conserved more than 15 million acres of farms, forests and natural areas that are considered vital to healthy, vibrant communities.

When completed by the end of 2016, the facility will be able to serve about 7,700 homes in New Mexico, Arizona and Utah. An estimated 18,000 Navajo homes are still not connected to the grid.

Farms, Films, Food: A Santa Fe Celebration – May 11 Center for Contemporary Arts, Farmers’ Market Institute and Street Food Institute Event Series

Another project, the Paragon-Bisti solar ranch, on 10,000 acres in New Mexico, is in the preconstruction phase, which includes recruiting solar developers, surveying and performing an environmental assessment. That project is on five sites that have been deemed suitable to host 2,100 MW of photovoltaic (PV) power.

Three institutions are teaming up to offer a series of events designed to celebrate Santa Fe’s love of great food and cinema. Farms, Films, Food: A Santa Fe Celebration will offer $5 meals from the Street Food Institute and other food trucks from 5-8 pm, free samples from a cooking demonstration of seasonal local foods by local chefs, gallery tours and presentations from community partners, along with two free screenings.

The first event, on May 11, includes a demonstration at 6 pm by Chef Greg Menke from The Beestro. The screenings start at 6:30, with Symphony of Soil by Deborah Koons García, who will take questions from the audience by Skype. The Oscarnominated The Boy and the World, an acclaimed animated feature from Brazil, will be shown at 6:45.

The other events in the series will take place on Aug. 31 and Nov. 2. All are free, thanks to underwriting in part by the Simon Charitable Foundation. The events are designed to create a context for prominent food and health issues facing New Mexicans and to facilitate dialogue on these issues. “We are offering these events as our gift to the Santa Fe community, as a chance to eat together, learn together and watch some wonderful films together,” said Jason Silverman, Cinematheque director at the Center for Contemporary Arts. “In this age of fast-food diets and corporate, market-tested storytelling, we feel incredibly fortunate to live in a city with real pride in community and love of all things local, artisanal and independent.”

ABQ 2030 District’s New Program to Improve Buildings

In 2015, Albuquerque was named a 2030 District, the 10th city to commit to becoming an urban sustainability leader by reducing buildings’ environmental impacts.

Reducing energy and water consumption also saves money. So far, 27 property owners have voluntarily committed to high-performance buildings.

“High Five Certification” is a new strategy that building owners will be asked to use to help the district achieve its goals. Property owners are asked to evaluate their buildings in energy, transportation, water, waste and economic development.

The 2030 District is hosted by the Downtown ABQ MainStreet Initiative. The District’s advisory council includes Amy Coburn, director of the University of New Mexico’s planning, design and construction department; Doug Majewski of Hartman & Majewski Design Group; Darin Sand with Goodman Realty Group; and representatives from Presbyterian Healthcare Services, Central New Mexico Community College, Sandia National Laboratories and Public Service Company of New Mexico, among others.

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Since 1998, through a rental program, the NTUA has installed 263 residential PV solar systems for Navajo families. NTUA has also begun offering solar-wind hybrid systems, financed at $75 per month toward the purchase price. The hybrid system includes an 800-watt PV solar array, a 400-watt wind turbine and a battery for excess storage.

SFCC Plans to Develop ‘Micro-REEF’ Center

Santa Fe Community College, in partnership with a New Mexico company called Ecoponex Systems, plans to build a small-scale, renewable-energy farming technology center, known as “Micro-REEF.” SFCC will host the center in association with the biofuels lab in its Trades and Advanced Technology Center. The college will offer internships to students.

Ecoponex CEO Benjamin Brandt said that the college’s national reputation for programming in green technologies was part of the deciding factor in locating the project there.

The Micro-REEF (Renewable Energy Efficient Farming) is expected to make enough vegetable and fish protein to feed more than 16,000 people. It will be fueled by solar energy and biogas from food and green waste. A local company, Reunity Resources, will provide some of those fuels. Water, carbon and nutrients will be recycled to help grow vegetables, herbs and fish that will be supplied to the college, schools, restaurants and grocery stores. Micro-algae will also be grown and supplied to Pevig, a joint-venture company in Mexico, that will produce omega-3 as a nutritional supplement.

Besides saving millions of gallons of water, compared to conventional agriculture, the Micro-REEF facility will reduce carbon emissions and eliminate organic waste that now goes to a landfill.

The project will allow SFCC to partner with businesses that are developing and trying out new technologies. It is expected to create 14 jobs for those with degrees such as SFCC offers.

Ecoponex is still in the process of raising money for the $6.5 million project. The school hopes to launch the initial phase of the project this summer. The state Board of Finance needs to approve the lease of the land to the company. State money will not be requested for the project.

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What's Going On! Events / Announcements May 26, 9 am start Santolina Master Plan Hearings City/County Government Building, 1 Civic Plaza NW

County Planning Commission. 5/26: Land use and zoning. 6/23: Environment and Open Space; 7/21: Conclusion.

ALBUQUERQUE May 7, 10 am–2 pm Community Garden Opening 1410 Wellesley SE

Project Feed the Hood’s Spring Fiesta. Activities for all ages. Planting, composting, seed workshops & distribution. Lunch provided. Speakers will address the importance of school and community gardens. Projectfeedthehood.org

May 9–11 Native American Economic Summit Hotel ABQ at Old Town

10th annual conference, panel discussions, small business awards, trade fair. American Indian Chamber of Commerce of NM. Info/ registration: 505.766.9545, www.nmnaec.com

May 10 Small Business Week Awards Celebration Hotel ABQ at Old Town

Info: 505.428.1624, 505.766.9545, adriene. gallegos@sfcc.edu, rfpedro@aiccnm.com.

Registration: www.nmnaec.com

May 10, 10–11 am Value-Added Procurer Grant Workshop USDA Rural Dev. State Office 6200 Jefferson NE

Grant funds farmers/ranchers seeking to develop value-added products and market raw agricultural food commodities. Electronic application deadline: June 24; Paper applications: July 1. 505.761.4952, jesse.bopp@nm.usda.gov

May 14, 9 am–12 pm Backyard Farming Series Gutiérrez-Hubbell House 6029 Isleta SW

Recycled and Natural Building Materials in the Garden and Complete Garden Design. Plan and design your home garden landscape guided by sustainability, permaculture and wise use of our limited natural resources. Info/registration: 505.314.0398, www.berncom.gov/openspace

May 19-20, 8:30 am–5 pm Economic Town Hall ABQ Marriott Pyramid

New Mexico First will hold a statewide town hall on NM’s economic security and vitality, to develop practical recommendations for policymakers. $100. (Participants and observers) Registration: www.nmfirst.org

May 21, 5 pm NDI Annual ABQ Gala Hiland Theater, 4800 Central SE

National Dance Institute gala. 505.340.0208, www.ndi-nm.org/galas

May 24, 6–7:30 pm NM Solar Energy Assn ABQ Meeting REI, 1550 Mercantile NE

Learn how to transition to a more sustainable lifestyle. Meets bimonthly on the fourth Tuesday of May, July, Sept. and Nov. j.desjardins@ hotmail.com, www.NMSolar.org

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June 15, 10 am–2 pm Sen. Michael Padilla Job Fair Harrison Middle School 3912 Isleta SW 4th annual. 505.977.6247

Daily Our Land, Our Culture, Our Story Indian Pueblo Cultural Center 2401 12th St. NW

Historical overview of the Pueblo world and contemporary artwork and craftsmanship of each of the 19 pueblos; 866.855.7902, www.indianpueblo.org

First Sundays NM Museum of Natural History 1801 Mountain Road

Museum admission is free to NM residents on the first Sunday of every month.

505.841.2800

Through 2016 Las Huertas Farming Training Bernalillo County Ext. Office 1510 Menaul NW

Intro to Horticulture in Aridlands covers basics of farming in NM’s varied climate and seasons. Other classes offered include Growing Techniques, Summer Growing Season (farm visits), Business management and planning. sean@riograndefarm.org, http://riogrande farm.org/farmer-training-farm-incubator/

SANTA FE

May 1, 12–4 pm Opening Lowriders, Hoppers and Hot Rods NM History Museum, 113 Lincoln Ave. Car Culture of Northern NM. Exhibit’s opening events include 2 pm lecture by Travis Ruiz. Through March 5, 2017. 505.476.5019, www.nmhistorymuseum.org

May 4 Start Herbal Medicine Intensive

Six weeks of hands-on learning with local plants. Taught by Tomás Enos and Stefan Link of the Milagro School of Herbal Medicine. Limited to 10 people. 505.820.6321.

May 4, 9–9:30 am Bike to School Day Ride SFCC Fitness Education Center

Celebrate a new extension of SF’s “Grand Unified Trails System” starting from 3 locations. www.sfcc.edu/news_and_events/bike_day

May 4, 9–11 am Managing Communication Assets SF Community Foundation 501 Halona St.

An overview of storage solutions and best practices for file management with MediaDesk staff. For nonprofit organizations.

Sliding scale: $50/$35/$20. https://www. santafecf.org/registration?

May 6, 4–6 pm Opening The Ecozoic Era: Plant/Seed/Soil State Capitol

Art, ideas, seed exchange, refreshments. bobbebird@gmail.com

Green Fire Times • May 2016

May 7, 8:30 am–4:30 pm NM’s Opioid and Overdose Epidemic Santa Fe Convention Center

Conference for clinical and behavioral health providers. Hosted by the SF Prevention Alliance. Info: 505.470.9072, SantaFePre ventionAlliance@gmail.com, Registration: https://southwestcare.ejoinmen.org/SOS

May 10, 5:30–7 pm Trends in the Arts & Cultural Sector NM History Museum Auditorium 113 Lincoln

Presentation by Robert L. Lynch, president/ CEO of Americans for the Arts. Free but tickets must be obtained online. 505.955.6707

May 7, 9 am–3 pm 12th Annual Garden Fair SF County Fairgrounds, 3229 Rodeo Rd.

May 11, 11:30 am–1 pm Cultural Trends in Marketing SF Business Incubator, 3900 Paseo del Sol

May 7, 10 am–12 pm Drip Irrigation Railyard Community Rm.

May 11, 5–8:30 pm Farms, Films, Food CCA, 1050 Old Pecos Trail

May 7–8, 10 am–4 pm Kindred Spirits Open House

May 13, 6 pm Wild & Free El Dorado Community School

Speakers, clinics, demos, exhibits, plant sale, kids corner. Presented by SF Master Gardeners. Free. Sfmga.org

Presentation by Bob Wood, SF water conservation specialist, on design, types and how to make the systems effective. Free.

505.316.3516, www.railyardpark.org

Annual spring open house/party for senior dogs, horses and poultry. Educational talks and demonstrations by wellness caregivers. Free.

505.471.5366, www.kindredspirtsnm.org

May 7, 7 pm How to Let Go of the World CCA, 1050 Old Pecos Trail

New film from the award-winning “Gasland” director Josh Fox, who will be present. $20. Benefits New Energy Economy.

505.989.7262, www.NewEnergyEconomy.org

May 7, 7 pm Lifesongs in Concert The Lensic

The culmination of months of collaboration among elders, artists, community members, youth and people in hospice. $10/12 & under free. Ticketssantafe.org, Info: 505.995.1860, www.aloveoflearning.org

May 8, 1–4 pm Barrio de Analco Tour Meet at SF Properties 1000 Paseo de Peralta

Historic SF Foundation’s walking tour of 4 properties. Park in PERA lot. $7-$12 adv./$10-$15. Children under 16 free with accompanying adult. 505.983.2567, Jacqueline@historicsantafe.org, www.historicsantafe.org/news.html

May 8, 2 pm Santa Fe Concert Band Federal Park lawn Free annual concert.

May 8, 7 pm City of Dreamers The Lensic

Student-produced short films. Littleglobe’s culminating event from a year’s work with student, families and residents of SFs Southside. Plus live music performance. Tickets: 505.988.1234, Ticketssantafe.org

May 10, 9 am Water Quality Control Commission Meeting State Capitol, Rm. 309 Public meeting.

Fuel your small business. Lunch-n-Learn from a panel of marketing experts. Free.

505.474.6556, rperea@wesst.org

Food trucks, food demos, 6:30 pm screening of Symphony of the Soil and Boy and the World, followed by Skype interview with filmmaker Deborah Koons García

Performance explores endangered species, their habitats and care for the Earth. Free. 505.231.5869

May 14, 8 am–3 pm Santa Fe Green Festival El Museo at the SF Railyard

Green building design & home technology.

Electric plug-in vehicles, renewable energy technologies, green products & services, water conservation & harvesting, exhibits for kids, organic foods, fair-trade art. Presentations on all things green and sustainable. SF Green Chamber of Commerce: 505.428.9123, glenn@nmgreen chamberocom, santafegreenchamber.org

May 14, 9–10 am Community Cruise 2nd St. to the Plaza

Bike to Work Week is May 14-19. This is a slow bike ride along old and new urban trails. http://santafempo.org/bicycle-master-plan/ bike-to-work-week/

May 14, 10 am–10 pm CommUNITY Day Santa Fe Plaza

Local entertainment, food truck vendors, nonprofit and government agency exhibits. Application deadline: May 6, noon. 505.955.2146, cmsan chez@ci.santa-fe.nm.us, www.santafenm.gov

May 14, 10 am–12 pm Citizens Climate Lobby La Montañita Co-op Community Rm., 913 W. Alameda

Working for climate change solutions that bridge the partisan divide like Carbon Fee/ Dividend, which gives back to households.

Lisas.ccl@gmail.com

May 14, 10 am–12 pm Native Bee Walk and Bee House Tour Railyard Community Rm. Free. 505.316.3596, www.railyardpark.org

May 14, 11 am–5 pm 1st Annual Yogathon Railyard Park

Kundalini yoga, music, dance, food, educational activities, children’s class. 7–8:30 pm: concert by DJ Liquid Bloom at the Railyard Performance Center. $25. Fundraiser for Community Meditation Garden at Yoga Santa Fe. 432.270.3431, purestpotentialfundraiser.com

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May 15 and 22 Intro to Apiculture Plants of the SW, Agua Fría

Beekeeping in NM part 2. $65.

505.901.2102, www.ziaqueenbees.com/zia

May 18, 6–7:30 pm NM Solar Energy Assn.

Amenergy, 1202 Parkway Dr.

Sustainable Everything Advocates (NMSEA Chapter) meets third Weds. each month. claudia@solarlogicllc.com

May 28, 7–11:30 pm Culture vol3 Warehouse 21

Multicultural event for all ages featuring poets, dancers, live painters, live music. Sweet mammajama@gmail.com, $5-$10 suggested donation.

June 3, Aug. 5, 10 am–1 pm Free Legal Clinics First Judicial Court 225 Montezuma Ave.

Finding a Contemporary Voice. Works by Institute of American Indian Arts faculty and alumni. Free public reception.

For low-income New Mexicans. First Friday every other month. Attorneys provide free legal advice on civil matters only (no family law, no criminal law) on a first-come, first-served basis limited to the first 25 people. Bring relevant paperwork for attorney to review. NM Legal Aid’s Volunteer Attorney Program.

505.814.5033, ajab@nmlegalaid.org

May 21, 8 am–12 pm World Bicycle Relief SpinDoc, 628 Old Las Vegas Hwy.

June 4, 1–5 pm Reuseapalooza Railyard Park

May 20, 5:30 pm The Legacy of Lloyd Kiva New and IAIA NM Museum of Art, 107 W. Palace

Indoor cycling fundraiser. WBR give bikes to people in underdeveloped nations. $10/ hr. suggested donation. 505.603.6112, chandler@spindoc.com, www.spindoc.com

Pop-up carnival of games and activities created from reused materials. A day of funfilled resourcefuless. 505.695.1005, Juliana@ reunityresources.com

May 21, 10 am–12 pm Garden Pest Management Railyard Park Community Room (behind Site SF)

June 11–12 SAnta Fe National Forest Endurance Ride

Integrated Pest Management program director Victor Lucero will discuss common NM pests, and how to protect your garden and trees.

Free. 505.316.3596, www.railyardpark.org

Benefits nonprofit Listening Horse Therapeutic Riding Program, which serves most disabled participants free of charge. $110/$90/$50. 505.670.3577, laurie@listen inghorse.org, www.listeninghorse.org

May 21, 10 am–1 pm Legal Clinic for Artists/Creatives SF Business Incubator, 3900 Paseo del Sol

July 24–31 2016 UNM Summer Writers’ Conf.

Drury Plaza Hotel

Get answers from legal professionals.

505.474.6556, rperea@wesst.org. Register

by May 13: https://www.wesst.org/trainingevent/legal-clinic-for-artists-and-creatives-2/

May 22, 10 am–4 pm Lowrider Day Santa Fe Plaza

10 am procession of cars from Ft. Marcy to the Plaza. Displays, demos and awards. Free.

May 23, 6 pm Jaguar Petroglyphs Hotel Santa Fe, 1501 Paseo de Peralta

SW Seminars lecture series. Jornada Research Institute associate Joan E. Price will present her findings with a PowerPoint presentation on the Mimbres style Three Rivers Petroglyph Site. $12. 505.466.2775

May 24 Business Marketing Intensive SF Higher Education Center 1950 Siringo Rd.

9–11 am: Measure Your Marketing Campaign ($25); 1–3 pm: 60 Ways to Grow Your Contact List ($25). $40 for both. Presented by Lynne Markus. Sponsored by the SF Small Business Development Center.

505.428.1343, julianna.gutierrez@sfcc.edu

May 28, 10 am–4 pm High Desert Gardening

Learn timing for starting seeds indoor and surviving spring winds, pests and sun. Soil preparation, staged plantings, intercropping, Permaculture strategies. Ampersandproject.org

May 28–29 Native Treasures SF Convention Center

Indian Arts Festival. Museum-quality work.

Over 200 artists. 5/27, 5:30–7:30: Pre-show celebration ($125), 5/28, 9–10 am: Early birds ($25), 10 am–5 pm: General admission ($10), 5/29, 10 am–5 pm: free. http://nativetreasures.org

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18th annual gathering. Formerly held in Taos.

Named as one of the top ten writers’ conferences in the U.S. Weeklong and weekend workshops in fiction, poetry, nonfiction and more. Keynote reading by Sandra Cisneros. 505.277.5572, https://unmwritersconf.unm.edu

Through July Community Workshop Series Railyard Park Community Room behind Site SF

Learn relevant gardening techniques from a team of experts. All ages welcome. Free.

505.316.3596, Jason@railyardpark.org, www. railyardpark.org/programs/

1st and 3rd Tuesdays, 5:30–7 pm Design Lab for Sustainable Neighborhoods Higher Education Center 1950 Siringo Rd., Rm. 139

Affordable living in SF? Join in to design and build mixed-use Santa Fe infill. Topics examples: Flexible 350 microunits, clusters with shared facilities, cooperative ownership. Info/RSVP: http://bit.ly/1ibd3LN

Saturdays, 8 am–1 pm Santa Fe Farmers’ Market 1607 Paseo de Peralta (& Guadalupe)

Northern NM farmers & ranchers offer fresh greenhouse tomatoes, greens, root veggies, cheese, teas, herbs, spices, honey, baked goods, body care products and much more. www.santafefarmersmarket.com

Saturdays, Sundays El Museo Winter Market El Museo Cultural 555 Camino de la Familia

Handmade crafts, jewelry, collectibles and antiques. Sat: 9 am-4 pm; Sun: 8 am-3 pm.

Elmuseoculturalwintermarket.org

Sundays, 11 am Journey Santa Fe Conversations Collected Works Books, 202 Galisteo

Conversations. 5/8: Inez Russell Gomez, Editorial Editor of the SF New Mexican; 5/22: Simon Brackley, SF Chamber of Commerce; 5/29: Sen. Jerry Ortiz y Pino on the behavioral health crisis and health care politics. www.journeysantafe.com

Through Dec. 30 A New Century: The Life and Legacy of Lloyd Kiva New Museum of Indian Arts and Culture 710 Camino Lejo

Fashion designs, art, photos and archival documents. 505.476.1269, indianartsandculture.org

May 13–15, 8 am–10 pm Hot Springs Festival Truth or Consequences

Focused on Healthy Lifestyles, Alternative Medicine and Sustainable Living. Speakers, workshops. Handmade and natural products. Music. www.hotspringsfestival.com/ (See ad, page 2)

May 14, 9 am–4 pm Heritage Day Casa San Ysidro, Old Church Rd. Corrales, NM

TAOS

Sandoval County Master Gardeners will help children plant as they learn about the agricultural heritage of the village. Demonstrations by traditional artisans. Free.

505.259.0203, JkBlair@swcp.com

First Saturday of each month through Sept. www.lettucegrowfarm.com

May 14, 9 am–4 pm Placitas Garden Tour Placitas, NM

May 7 Bee Family Classes Taos, NM

May 14 and 28, 10 am–2 pm Intro to Apiculture Tierra Drala Farm, El Prado, NM

Beekeeping in NM. $65. 505.901.2102, ziaqueen bees@hotmail.com, www.ziaqueenbees.com/zia

July 11–14 Integrative Medicine Professionals Symposium Sagebrush Inn

7th Biennial symposium on integrative health featuring many distinguished speakers and local practitioners. Presented by the UNM School of Medicine’s Section of Integrative Medicine, Continuing Medical Education & Professional Development, Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine and Gaples Institute for Integrative Cardiology.

505.272.3942, http://som.unm.edu/cme

Six beautiful gardens highlight sustainable landscape maintenance. Presented by the Sandoval County Master Gardeners and the Placitas Community Library. $10. Maps available. placitasgardentour@gmail.com, www.placitasgardentour.com

May 16–18 2016 AgriFuture Educational Inst.

Las Cruces, NM

Conference open to anyone interested in being part of the future of agriculture. Tours of food & agricultural companies, educational speakers, networking opportunities. www. nmda.nmsu.edu

May 20–22 Ecological Restoration Project Near Las Vegas, NM

Third Weds. Monthly Taos Entrepreneurial Network Taos County Courthouse Mural Room, Taos Plaza

Join the ABQ Wildlife Federation for a weekend in the Río Mora National Wildlife Refuge. Volunteers will build erosion-control structures to improve wildlife habitat. abqwildlifefederation@gmail.com, http:// abq.nmwildlife.org/

HERE & THERE

May 20–22 Chaco Canyon Journey

Networking, presentations and discussion. Free.

May 4, 11, 18 at 10 am Green Hour Hikes Los Alamos Nature Center Los Alamos, NM

Kid-centered hikes. Free. Losalamosnature.org

May 6, 10 am–3 pm Río Arriba County Health Fair Río Arriba Health Commons Española, NM

Annual health fair. Congressman Ben Ray Luján will dialogue on ending gun violence. Morning Jazzercise, youth tumbling demo, Wellness Cooking with Kids, farmers’ market, food booths, spoken word poetry, break dance and more. 240 students will attend. rogermontoya@gmail.com

May 7, 10 am–5 pm Zuni MainStreet Festival Zuni Pueblo, NM

4th annual celebration of traditional arts, cuisine, dance. Activities for all ages. Nominal entrance fee. 505.782.7238, http:// zunipueblomainstreet.org

May 7, 2–4 pm Mural Dedication Dixon Cooperative Market, Dixon, NM

Mural will be dedicated to Estévan Arellano.

Enrique LaMadrid and Levi Romero will speak. Music by David García.

May 8, 10 am–5 pm Lavender Farm Purple Adobe Lavender Farm, Hwy. 84, Abiquiú, NM

Led by a Pueblo family and Earth Walks, this 2-night camping experience will explore the history, mystery and stories of this World Heritage site. Info/cost: earthwalks1@yahoo.com

May 21 RSVP Deadline Tree and Shrub Planting Valles Caldera Preserve, NM

Help restore damaged landscape and fragile wildlife habitat along the Jaramillo Creek on June 4, 9:30 am–4 pm. Snacks and tools provided. apaloranta@wildearthguardians.org

May 24, 31: Abiquiú May 26, June 2: Alcalde Beekeeping Series

Presented by the Río Arriba County Extension and NMSU Alcalde Sustainable Agriculture Science Center.

June 19–25 Earth-Honoring Faith: Climate Justice Ghost Ranch Conference Center

Promotes interfaith efforts on common earth issues. 505.685.1019, sarah@GhostRanch.org

Weds., 6–8 pm Gallup Solar Community Meetings 113 E. Logan Ave., Gallup, NM

The nonprofit Gallup Solar hosts educational presentations and potential solutions for all things solar. Questions, ideas and expertise are welcome. 505.728.9246, gallup solar@gmail.com, www.gallupsolar.org

Mother’s Day event. Food, deserts. 505.685.0082, www.purpleadobelavenderfarm.com

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Farmers and Ranchers Would you like to have some free money to help you plan or develop a v alue added product or market your produce locally?

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development is now taking applications for the Value Added Producer Grant (VAPG).

The VAPG will pay for (among other things): business plans; feasibility studies; marketing plans; packaging (bottles, labels); marketing costs, including inexpensive sales racks, advertising, website creation and maintenance; and sales costs to pay someone to sell your produce at local farmers’ markets.

So, if you’re interested in free money to expand your agbusiness products, contact: USDA Rural Development in Albuquerque at: 505-761-4952

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Green Fire Times • May 2016

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