ENVIRONMENT

For millennia human beings lived in harmony with the natural cycles of the Earth. Since World War II, however, the industrialization of agriculture has led to a world precariously out of balance. No one has tracked industrial agriculture's threats to the environment more closely than Lester Brown of the Earth Policy Institute, who foresees the grave danger of global collapse due to climate change and the depletion of topsoil and water supplies.

A new organization, the Wild Farm Alliance, is seeking to redress the imbalance precipitated modern by agriculture by demonstrating the potential for farming in harmony with nature. There are dozens of environmental organizations in the Pacific Northwest, many of which are represented by the Washington Environmental Council.

Below are links to Washington-based organizations that include food and farming in their focus on the environment.

Earth Ministry (http://www.earthministry.org/)
Earth Ministry is at the heart of a growing national and international environmental movement within many Christian denominations. It provides leadership for churches across the country seeking to put into practice the Bible's admonitions to care for the earth through its Greening Congregations program and its many publications, including Food & Faith: Justice, Joy and Daily Bread, a masterful collection of essays on all aspects of food, farming and global community.

Stewardship Partners (http://www.stewardshippartners.org/programs/snoqualmie-stewardship/)
Stewardship Partners promotes cooperative, locally developed solutions to environmental problems. They work with farmers, ranchers, foresters, and other landowners to foster both environmental and economic sustainability. In their Lower Snoqualmie Valley Project Stewardship Partners is working with an organic farm on a prototype for habitat preservation and environmental education.

Washington Toxics Coalition (http://www.watoxics.org/)
A statewide advocacy group, the Washington Toxics Coalition promotes a toxic free environment. They lead campaigns to reduce the use of harmful chemicals in public areas and schools, and they advocate for the elimination of hazardous wastes from fertilizers. They also publish a wide variety of "Home Safe Home" fact sheets and invite homeowners to declare their yard a Pesticide Free Zone.