This collection reviews key recent research on developing urban and peri-urban agriculture. The first part of the book discusses ways of supporting urban agriculture, from policy and planning to building social networks for local food supply chains.
Source: ruralsociologywageningen.nl
Until a few years ago, farming in southern Iraq was “as lucrative as oil”, Qasim Abdul Wahad remembers, and his one-hectare farm plot in the governate of Basra produced enough to feed his family of eight. Now dust kicks up under his feet as he walks through his land, after worsening extreme heat and drought linked to climate change killed 90% of his winter crops, including all of his okra and eggplant. “Only a few years ago I would be able to sit here and relax. It was very green and beautiful. When I look at it now, I feel like a member of my family is gone,” the 50-year-old said. Abdul Wahad, who has spent his life farming in the village of Abu Al-Khaseeb – the names means “father of the fertile” – thinks he will soon have to abandon his land, to try to seek more fertile ground elsewhere.
As part of our Mission Possible campaign, edie brings you this weekly round-up of five of the best sustainability success stories of the week from across the globe.
Agreement further extends EGA’s cooperation with UAE cement industry to re-use by-products, in step forward for development of a circular economy.Supplying cement industry reduces read more >…
Yes, it’s true — astronauts share ‘underwear’ when they put on spacesuits to work outside of the International Space Station. This isn’t quite the same type of underwear you’re thinking of, as the astronauts first put on a disposable diaper, then the full-body underwear layer. Still, there are some downsides to this arrangement that the ESA is attempting to address with a new project.
Food and beverage giant Nestlé has committed £1.59bn to source food-grade recycled plastics to be used in its packaging, alongside a pledge to cut the amount of virgin plastics it sources by a third.
Maritime and air logistics are two different animals, with own processes and requirements, states Lufthansa Cargo CEO, Dorothea von Boxberg (DvB). Currently, it may well be attractive to Maersk, CMA/CGM, and others to lease freighters to overcome capacity constraints and offer their customers timely delivery of goods, she reasons. Yet, come market normalization, it will be a completely new ballgame for shipping lines, the executive forecasts in this exclusive interview. LH Cargo CEO Dorothea von Boxberg is skeptical that shipping companies will have long-term success operating cargo aircraft – CFG: Are shipping lines operating freighters seen as new and serious competitors for classic cargo airlines such as Lufthansa Cargo? DvB: That’s very questionable. Personally, I see little synergies between the two business segments of sea and air. The proponents probably underestimate what it takes to operate an airline profitably over a longer cycle. It requires a minimum fleet size and high commercial and operational competence to be financially successful. To me, it appears that shipping companies are chartering freighters in response to, and for the duration of, the current capacity squeeze.