|
 The
Violence of the Green Revolution
Third World Agriculture, Ecology and Politics
Vandana Shiva Third World Network and with ZED Books
ISBN; 983-99573-8-4 (Hb.) 983-99573-9-2 (Pb.) 264 pages, 14-21.5cm
Paperback:
US$15.00
Third World: US$10.00 (paperback)
Vandana
Shiva examines the impact of the first Green Revolution on the breadbasket
of India. In a cogent empirical argument, she shows how the "quick fix"
promise of large gains in output pushed aside serious pursuit of an alternative
agricultural strategy grounded in respect for the environmental wisdom
of peasant systems and building an egalitarian, needs-oriented agriculture
consistent with the village-based, endogenous political traditons of Gandhism.
Dr.
Shiva documents the destruction of genetic diversity and soil fertility
that resulted, and in highly orginal fashion shows how the Green Revolution
also contributed to the acute social and political conflicts now tearing
the Punjab apart.
"....If
you read only one book on agricultural policies this year, this should
be ...."
Michael Colby, Safe Food News
"....Her
analyses and predictions are all the more impressive considering that
there is an alarming concentration on fewer and fewer crops...."
Natalie D. Hahn Ceres
"....cogently
argued, information-backed thesis against the Green Revolution...."
Raju Kane Business India
CONTENTS
Introduction
- 1. Science and
Politics in the Green Revolution
-
-
The Green Revolution and the Conquest of Nature
The Green Revolution and the Control of Society
- 2. 'Miracle
Seeds' and the destruction of Genetic Diversity
-
-
How the Green Revolution makes Unfair Comparisons
The Myth of the High Yielding Variety
Genetic Uniformity and the Creation of New Pests
- 3. Chemical
Fertilizers and Soil Fertility
-
-
Voracious Varieties
Diseased and Dying Soils
The Return to Organic Inputs
- 4. Intensive
Irrigation, Large Dams and Water Conflicts
-
-
Thirsty Seeds
Large Dams and the Centralisation of Poltical Power
Inter-state Water Conflicts and the Elusive Search for Equity
- 5. The Political
and Cultural Costs of the Green Revolution
-
-
The Economic Costs: A narrow and shortlived prosperity
Communalising the Farmers'Protests
Development, Social Disintegration and Violence
- 6. Pepsico For
Peace? The Ecological and Political Risks of the Biotechnology Revolution
-
-
Pepsico for Peace?
Seeds of Ecological Vulnerability
Seeds and Dependency
Seeds of Insecurity, Seeds of Violence
- 7. The Seed
and the Spinning Wheel: The Political Ecology of Technological Change
-
-
Colonisation and the Spinning Wheel
The Colonisation of the Seed
Biotechnology Development and Biodiversity Conservation Patents, Intellectual
Property and the Politics of Knowledge
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