Mindful Sceptics Guide to Food, People and Soil
About this Guide
In a world where 8 billion people demand 22 trillion calories daily, the connection between food security and soil health has never been more critical. This guide challenges conventional wisdom about biodiversity, conservation, and food production, offering a provocative and evidence-based perspective on how humanity must transform its relationship with soil to ensure long-term survival.
What You'll Learn
Why soil biodiversity matters more than saving rare species
How agriculture must evolve beyond the fossil fuel energy subsidy
Why common species are more important than rare ones for ecosystem services
How to understand the critical link between soil health and global food security
Why This Matters Now
With global population increasing by 8,000 people per hour and soil degradation affecting 40% of agricultural lands, we face an unprecedented challenge in feeding humanity while maintaining the ecological processes that make food production possible. The conventional focus on rare species conservation and protected areas has diverted attention from the more crucial issue of maintaining soil health and biodiversity in agricultural landscapes.
The solutions lie not in choosing between food production and environmental protection, but in understanding how they're inextricably linked through soil health. This guide reveals why current approaches to conservation and agriculture must change to meet the challenges of feeding everyone well without destroying the ecological foundations that make it possible.
What's Inside
Section 1: The Reality of Biodiversity Loss
Discover why common species matter more than rare ones and how soil biodiversity underpins global food security
Section 2: The Food Production Challenge
Explore why current agricultural practices are unsustainable and how they must change to meet future food demands
Section 3: Solutions and Transformations
Learn about practical approaches to integrating biodiversity conservation with food production through soil health
Who This Guide Is For
Environmental professionals who want to understand the critical link between soil health and food security
Farmers and agricultural specialists seeking sustainable approaches to food production
Policy makers interested in evidence-based solutions to biodiversity loss and food security
Concerned citizens looking to understand why conventional conservation approaches are failing
About the Authors
Dr Mark Dangerfield and Christopher Scott bring decades of ecological expertise to this guide. Mark's experience spans academic research, commercial ventures, and government advisory roles across three continents, while Chris combines practical ecological restoration work with commercial nursery operations.
Their unique blend of theoretical understanding and hands-on experience brings practical wisdom and scientific rigour to this crucial topic.