Archive for August, 2012

Economic Disaster Beckons As Water-Hungry Investors Buy Up Africa’s Land

Courtesy of The Guardian, a report on how water drawn from rivers, dams or underground to irrigate new farms in Africa may severely affect users downstream: An employee at a rice farm in Gambella, Ethiopia. Many irrigation schemes are too reliant on ‘blue’ water, drawn from rivers, dams or underground sources. The rush of foreign […]

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Squeezing Africa Dry

Courtesy of GRAIN.org, a look at the scramble for water in Africa: Food cannot be grown without water. In Africa, one in three people endure water scarcity and climate change will make things worse. Building on Africa’s highly sophisticated indigenous water management systems could help resolve this growing crisis, but these very systems are being […]

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Land Inc.

Via the Terra Project, a look at the global fight for land control: Since the food crisis in 2008, food security and sovereignty had become a key target for many countries. A global growing demand for food, especially meat, and fuel, drives government and companies to invest in land, leasing or purchasing vast agricultural areas […]

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On The Trail Of Land Grabbers…

Via The Daily Mail, an interesting article on British imperialists snapping up large swathes of Africa: It is an odd retirement hobby. Britain’s top soldier, the former commander of British Land Forces and the man who capped his military career by presiding over the funeral of the Queen Mother, has been planting crops in the […]

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The Food Crisis Should Not Be Left To Cowboy Capitalists Or Pinstripe Farmers

Via The Financial Times, some commentary on the impact of drought and markets on food production & availability: The worst US drought in half a century is further evidence that we are in the midst of a global food crisis. In 2007-08, there were riots in more than 20 countries, as the cost of commodities […]

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Hunger Wars 2012 And Beyond

Via Mother Jones, an interesting article on how the drought and rising food costs may lead to global social unrest: The Great Drought of 2012 has yet to come to an end, but we already know that its consequences will be severe. With more than one-half of America’s counties designated as drought disaster areas, the […]

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About This Blog And Its Author
Seeds Of A Revolution is committed to defining the disruptive geopolitics of the global Farms Race.  Due to the convergence of a growing world population, increased water scarcity, and a decrease in arable land & nutrient-rich soil, a spike of international investment interest in agricultural is inevitable and apt to bring a heretofore domestic industry into a truly global realm.  Whether this transition involves global land leases or acquisitions, the fundamental need for food & the protectionist feelings this need can give rise to is highly likely to cause such transactions to move quickly into the geopolitical realm.  It is this disruptive change, and the potential for a global farms race, that Seeds Of A Revolution tracks, analyzes, and forecasts.

Educated at Yale University (Bachelor of Arts - History) and Harvard (Master in Public Policy - International Development), Monty Simus has long held a keen interest in natural resource policy and the geopolitical implications of anticipated stresses in the areas of freshwater scarcity, biodiversity reserves & parks, and farm land.  Monty has lived, worked, and traveled in more than forty countries spanning Africa, China, western Europe, the Middle East, South America, and Southeast & Central Asia, and his personal interests comprise economic development, policy, investment, technology, natural resources, and the environment, with a particular focus on globalization’s impact upon these subject areas.  Monty writes about freshwater scarcity issues at www.waterpolitics.com and frontier investment markets at www.wildcatsandblacksheep.com.