assignment on green revolution was a blunder not a solution

• Agriculture

Green Revolution: History, Technologies, and Impact

This transformative agriculture movement both solved and created problems.

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The Green Revolution refers to a transformative 20th-century agricultural project that utilized plant genetics, modern irrigation systems, and chemical fertilizers and pesticides to increase food production and reduce poverty and hunger in developing countries. The Green Revolution began in Mexico, where scientists developed a hybrid wheat variety that dramatically expanded yields. Following its introduction, hunger and malnutrition there dropped significantly. 

The model was subsequently extended to Asia, Latin America, and later Africa to increase food production for growing populations without consuming significantly more land. Over time, however, the techniques and policies of the Green Revolution were questioned as they led to inequality and environmental degradation. 

The Green Revolution transformed rural economies using industrial food production systems already widespread in wealthy western countries, but with new plant varieties. In the 1940s, an Iowa-born agronomist named Norman Borlaug began working with Mexican scientists on a more disease-resistant, high-yield wheat . Many Mexican farmers at the time struggled with depleted soil, plant pathogens, and low yields. 

The scientists developed smaller, fast-growing wheat that required less land to produce more grain. It had a dramatic effect: Between 1940 and the mid-1960s, Mexico achieved agricultural self-sufficiency . The results were heralded as an agricultural miracle, and the techniques were extended to other crops and regions grappling with food insecurity. 

By the 1960s, India and Pakistan were experiencing population booms and food shortages that threatened millions with starvation. The countries adopted the Mexican wheat program and the new varieties flourished, with harvests increasing considerably by the late 1960s.

Rice, a staple crop for millions, was another target. Research in the Philippines dramatically improved rice productivity and the new varieties and techniques spread across Asia. China undertook its own rice research and application of Green Revolution techniques on a massive scale to feed its growing population. Between the 1970s and 1990s, rice and wheat yields in Asia increased 50%. The poverty rate halved and nutrition improved even as the population more than doubled.

In Brazil, the vast Cerrado savanna region had been regarded as a wasteland due to its acidic soil, but by fortifying the soil with lime, researchers discovered it could be quite productive for growing commodity crops. New varieties of soy were developed that could withstand the harsh growing conditions. This shift toward agricultural intensification and expansion of monoculture crops was repeated throughout Latin America.

In 1970, Borlaug was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and lauded for his work to decrease food insecurity, poverty, and conflict. But over time, a growing chorus of voices would call into question the practices that facilitated the Green Revolution.

In addition to plant genetics, the basis for this agricultural revolution was a package of interventions to supercharge crop productivity, based largely on American industrialized techniques that had made places like California a global agricultural leader. This included enriching soil by applying powerful chemical fertilizers and combating plant pathogens and pests with chemical pesticides. Coupled with modern irrigation methods and farm equipment, the techniques doubled and tripled yields.

Several interests converged following World War II to help facilitate this emphasis on agricultural technologies. The United States had stockpiles of chemicals and pesticides like DDT , which had been widely used during the war to prevent the spread of malaria, lice, and bubonic plague. Borlaug’s plant experiments dovetailed with efforts of the U.S. government, leading philanthropies, and corporations to expand markets for fertilizers, pesticides, and farm equipment on which the high-yield crops depended.

Beyond these tools, the Green Revolution encompassed an array of development projects that supported agricultural modernization in poor countries and more efficiently connected them with larger markets. The United States vigorously took up this work as part of a Cold War foreign policy agenda to build inroads in countries deemed “vulnerable” to communist ideology, including those suffering food insecurity.

In India, for example, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) facilitated foreign investment, while the World Bank and organizations like the Ford Foundation and Rockefeller Foundation provided support for building roads, rural electrification projects to power groundwater pumping and irrigation, and mechanized farming equipment to improve efficiency. 

For a while, the interventions worked, increasing yields, reducing food insecurity, and allowing some farmers to prosper. Those successes became the public image of the Green Revolution. The reality was much more complicated.

Even early on, critics warned of potential ecological and socioeconomic consequences and began questioning whether this agricultural transformation was really helping smallholder farmers and rural communities. And the nascent environmental movement, particularly after the publication of Rachel Carson’s groundbreaking 1962 book Silent Spring , raised concerns about the impacts of agricultural chemicals. 

Environmental Degradation

Borlaug had sought to develop more productive grain varieties requiring less land to produce the same yields. But in fact, the success of these crops led to more land being plowed under for agricultural production. In addition, increased water consumption, soil degradation, and chemical runoff did significant environmental damage. Fertilizers and pesticides polluted soil, air, and water far beyond the agricultural lands themselves, including the world’s oceans .  

The Green Revolution transformed not only the farming system, but local foodways and culture as farmers swapped traditional seeds and growing practices for the new varieties of corn, wheat, and rice that came with this package of technologies. Over time, the loss of traditional crops and growing techniques decreased resilience in the food system and eroded valuable cultural knowledge.

As climate change accelerates, further vulnerabilities of the modern food system have been exposed. Carbon emissions associated with industrial agriculture are helping push humanity toward a climate tipping point.

Socioeconomic Disparities

By the late 1970s, the limitations of the Green Revolution were apparent. Many of its policies favored large landowners and producers, creating hardship for smallholders passed over for research opportunities and subsidies.   

After a period of rapid population growth and diminishing agricultural productivity, Mexico entered another period of food insecurity and began importing basic grains. This reversal of fortunes occurred in other countries as well. In India and Pakistan, the Punjab region became another Green Revolution success story but disproportionately benefited larger producers. Production tools—including irrigation systems, mechanized equipment, and requisite chemicals—were too expensive for small farmers to compete, driving them further into poverty and debt, and causing them to lose landholdings.

Such challenges led to changes in how Green Revolution programs were implemented, with more attention to the needs of smallholders and the environmental and economic conditions in which they worked. But interventions have had uneven results. 

The Green Revolution laid the foundation for a subsequent era of genetically modified crops, globalization of agriculture, and even greater dominance of agribusiness giants in the food system. Today, consumers are often disconnected from the people who grow their food and how it is grown. And while production has increased, so has the number of undernourished people and those with diet-related diseases as processed foods continue to replace fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

The dominance of agribusiness has concentrated more land in the hands of large corporations, often leading to rural displacement. Many smallholders, no longer able to make a living off of farming, migrate to urban areas. Many rural communities remain in poverty and suffer the effects of chemical exposure as pesticide-resistant crop pests and soil degradation demand ever stronger chemical inputs.

The world now faces another looming food crisis. By 2050, the global population is projected to reach 9.8 billion people. Can a new Green Revolution feed them all? Perhaps, but it will require interventions quite different from the first. Today, there are increasingly urgent concerns about climate change and biodiversity loss and the impacts of converting even more forests, grasslands, wetlands, and other carbon sinks for agriculture.

Technological Solutions

Paths to meeting the world’s food needs diverge considerably. There are new technological tools to help reduce waste and limit carbon emissions. Data systems can determine everything from which kinds of crops to grow in different climatic and soil conditions to the optimal planting, irrigation, and harvest times. 

Some support making tweaks to the current “gene” revolution to increase its sustainability: biotechnology, the genetic modification of plants and beneficial microbes to increase yields without consuming more land, reduce pesticides and chemical fertilizers, and design plants more resilient to climate impacts.

Agroecology

Others are calling for a completely different agricultural revolution. With an eye toward ecological restoration and equity, proponents of regenerative and agroecological practices envision a food system that shifts away from industrial agriculture and toward traditional methods that gained momentum as a response to the Green Revolution.

These methods embrace traditional and Indigenous farming practices as alternatives to the chemical-intensive, monoculture farming. They include natural resource conservation, building soil health, and improving biodiversity, along with restoring traditional land tenure and re-centering human rights and wellbeing in agricultural systems. 

Agroecology is gaining popularity as the world confronts climate change and biodiversity loss and seeks a more just food system, but the dominance of industrial agriculture makes large-scale implementation challenging. Responses to the next looming food crisis will most likely incorporate both new technological approaches and agroecological methods .

John, Daisy A., and Giridhara R. Babu. " Lessons From the Aftermaths of Green Revolution on Food System and Health ." Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems , vol. 5, 2021, pp. 644559., doi:10.3389/fsufs.2021.644559

Gollin, Douglas, et al. " Two Blades of Grass: The Impact of the Green Revolution ." National Bureau of Economic Research , 2018.

Hazell, Peter B.R. " The Asian Green Revolution ." International Food Policy Research Institute , 2020.

Garrett, Rachael D., and Lisa L. Rausch, " Green for Gold: Social and Ecological Tradeoffs Influencing the Sustainability of the Brazilian Soy Industry ." The Journal of Peasant Studies , vol. 43, no. 2, 2016, pp. 461-493., doi:10.1080/03066150.2015.1010077

Patel, Raj. " The Long Green Revolution ." The Journal of Peasant Studies , vol. 40, no. 1, 2013, pp. 1-63., doi:10.1080/03066150.2012.719224

Pingali, Prabhu L. " Green Revolution: Impacts, Limits, and the Path Ahead ." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , vol. 109, no. 31, 2012, pp. 12302-12308., doi:10.1073/pnas.0912953109

Nelson, Ann Raeboline Lincy Eliazer, et al. " The Impact of the Green Revolution on Indigenous Crops of India ." Journal of Ethnic Foods , vol. 6, 2019, pp. 8., doi:10.1186/s42779-019-0011-9

Lynch, John, et al. " Agriculture's Contribution to Climate Change and Role in Mitigation Is Distinct From Predominantly Fossil CO2-Emitting Sectors ." Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems , vol. 4, 2021, pp. 300., doi:10.3389/fsufs.2020.518039

Harwood, Jonathan. " The Green Revolution as a Process of Global Circulation: Plants, People and Practices ." Historia Agraria , vol. 75, 2018, pp. 7-31., doi:10.26882/histagrar.075e01h

" World Population Projected to Reach 9.8 Billion in 2050, and 11.2 Billion in 2100 ." United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs .

Lambin, Eric F., and Patrick Meyfroidt. " Global Land Use Change, Economic Globalization, and Looming Land Scarcity ." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , vol. 108, no. 9, 2011, pp. 3465-3472., doi:10.1073/pnas.1100480108

Brankov, Tatjana, et al. " Gene Revolution in Agriculture: 20 Years of Controversy ." Genetic Engineering —An Insight Into the Strategies and Applications , 2016, pp. 1-22., doi:10.5772/65876

Wezel, A., et al. " Agroecology as a Science, a Movement and a Practice ." Agronomy for Sustainable Development , vol. 29, no. 4, 2009, pp. 503-515., doi:10.1051/agro/2009004

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Agricultural Literacy Curriculum Matrix

Lesson plan, grade levels, type of companion resource, content area standards, agricultural literacy outcomes, common core, the green revolution, grade level.

Evaluate the agricultural advances of the Green Revolution, discover the contributions of Norman Borlaug, and discuss the impacts of this era from an economic, social, political, and environmental perspective. Grades 9-12

Estimated Time

Materials needed.

• Early Influencers slide deck
• Early Influencers clues page , 1 copy per student

Activity 1: ESPeN Impacts

• ESPeN Impact Circles

Activity 2: The Man Who Tried to Feed the World

• The full documentary is available for rent or purchase on Amazon Prime .
• Green Revolution Decision Matrix  handout and teacher key

Evaluation:

• ESPeN Impact Circles (from Activity 1)
• ESPeN Impact Statement cards , 1 copy per class

Green Revolution: beginning in the mid-20th century, a large increase in crop production in developing countries achieved by the use of fertilizers, pesticides, and high-yield crop varieties

selective breeding: process by which humans control the breeding of plants or animals in order to exhibit or eliminate a particular characteristic

Did You Know?

• Between 1960 and 2000, yields for all developing countries rose 208% for wheat, 109% for rice, 157% for maize, 78% for potatoes, and 36% for cassava. 1
• The Green Revolution was used as a tool to help fight communism in the Cold War by decreasing rural poverty and hunger because "no one becomes a communist on a full belly." 2
• The inventions of the Green Revolution turned the United States from an importer of wheat to an exporter of wheat. 3
• India Rice 8, known as IR8 changed so many lives in India by preventing famine that some parents named their sons after this variety of rice. 3

Background Agricultural Connections

Following the wars of the 1940s, food was scarce in many parts of the world. There were famines and droughts along with growing numbers in the world population. These world events presented a need to produce more food for a hungry world. The Green Revolution took place between 1950 and the late 1960s. It is a period of time that research and technology increased agricultural production to address hunger and food insecurity. 

Norman Borlaug was a key leader and is now known as the "Father of the Green Revolution." Borlaug was an agricultural scientist whose goal was to eliminate hunger. He used selective breeding practices to develop a variety of wheat that resisted a devastating disease called stem rust. His new wheat varieties also produced more grain per plant and were shorter than previous varieties making them less susceptible to wind damage. In addition to the high-yield wheat variety, Borlaug also researched the use of synthetic fertilizers, irrigation, and pesticides to dramatically increase the final harvest.

The Green Revolution contributed to a reduction of poverty, averted hunger for millions, raised incomes in some places, and reduced land use for agriculture. Norman Borlaug was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Congressional Gold Medal for his work. While the positive benefits of the Green Revolution are evident, some critics have raised concerns about the environmental and economic impacts of the agricultural practices Borlaug developed. While wheat harvests more than doubled, the inputs of soil nutrients (synthetic fertilizer) and water were greater. 

Studying the Green Revolution gives students an opportunity to evaluate from these agricultural innovations from a social, economic, environmental and political perspective to recognize the complexity of feeding the world.

• Display slide number one of the Early Influencers slide deck . 
• Ask students if they recognize any of the individuals numbered 1-10. Write any guesses on the board. 
• Display the second slide of the Early Influencers slide deck that includes each of the individuals’ colored photo “badge” next to their photo. Explain to students that these badges give a hint for how that individual has influenced or impacted society (then and now). Determine if any of the badges help students identify these individuals. Include additional guesses on the board as you go. 
• Pass out an Early Influencers clues page to each student or pair of students. 
• Allow students to match each of the photos on the board with the clues on the page by writing the number next to the clue. 
• Reveal the answers to students using slide number three. 
• Allow students to write the names of each person next to their clue. 
• If this person did not accomplish what they did, and we didn’t live with their influence, discovery, or invention today, where would we be? 
• Can someone’s positive influence, invention, or discovery also have a negative impact? Why or why not? 
• Explain to students that we will focus on one of these individuals whose innovation and work had tremendous positive impacts globally, but also faced extreme criticism. 
• Ask students, “Who do you think this is?” (Norman Borlaug) 

Explore and Explain

• Prior to class, print out the ESPeN Impact Circles on separate sheets of paper. 
• Explain to students that when discussing historical events, discoveries, inventions, revolutions, or movements, there are four different impacts to consider. (Economic, Social, Political, and Environmental.) What are the economic impacts of a particular discovery? What social impacts did it have? What political impacts came from this movement? Did a movement positively or negatively impact the environment? 
• Is it possible for something to have a positive impact in all four ESPeN categories? 
• Are there ocassions when an impact can be positive in some areas and negative in others?
• Can you think of an event in history that has had both positive and negative impacts?  
• (Economic) Refrigeration allows cattle and other livestock to be harvested and processed closer to where they were grown rather than driving cattle to the markets like they did in the 1850s.
• (Social) Pasteurization of milk nearly eliminates foodborne illness from milk.
• (Social and Political) The invention of the cotton gin created more demand for cotton which was primarily grown by enslaved African Americans leading to the Civil War.

• What are unintended consequences?
• How did Norman Borlaug solve India's famine problem?
• Why would Norman Borlaug's achievements come 'under fire'?
• Introduce a Decision Matrix as a tool designed to help evaluate multiple criteria along with the importance, or weight, of each criteria to ultimately make a decision.
• Pass out the Green Revolution Decision Matrix  handout. Discuss the first page and call out the the ESPeN (economics, social, political, environmental) model that they will be using to evaluate the work of Norman Borlaug who is known as the "father" of the Green Revolution.
• Prior to watching the film, students should indicate a "weight" for each ESPeN category. They should circle "1" for the factor they feel is most important, "2" for the next factor, and so on.

• Following the film, instruct students to review their notes and the "weight" they indicated for each ESPeN factor. They should then answer the question, "Were Norman Borlaug's efforts successful? Why or why not?" on a sheet of paper. See the teacher key to help guide discussion.
• With the ESPeN circles still on the board, distribute one ESPeN Impact Statement card to every student or pair of students.
• Ask students to review their card and determine which category the impact falls under (economic, social, political or environmental). They should attach the card to the board under the impact circle with a magnet or tape.
• As a class, use the cards to discuss the benefits and challenges that developed from the Green Revolution.
• The scientific and agricultural discoveries made by Norman Borlaug saved countless lives from starvation and averted additional famine that was predicted in the 1960s.
• Due to his advances in plant breeding, Norman Borlaug is considered the "Father of the Green Revolution." 
• Governments are concerned about food security and hunger. Hunger is usually associated with political unrest. Governments have an interest in securing a sufficient food supply. 
• The discoveries of the Green Revolution gave farmers tools to provide more food for a growing population. There were benefits as well as environmental impacts and social challenges.
• While many positive benefits came from the Green Revolution, they were not experienced equally by every country due to differences in infrastructure, political influence, and education to diffuse new ideas and practices.
• https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.0912953109
• https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/caught-war-on-communism-norman-borlaug-and-green-revolution/
• https://www.britannica.com/facts/green-revolution

Recommended Companion Resources

• Growing a Nation Multimedia Timeline
• The Man Who Tried to Feed the World

Bekka Israelsen and Andrea Gardner

Organization

Utah Agriculture in the Classroom & National Center for Agricultural Literacy

Culture, Society, Economy & Geography

• Evaluate and discuss the impact of major agricultural events and agricultural inventions that influenced world and U.S. history (T5.9-12.g)
• Discuss how agricultural practices have increased agricultural productivity and have impacted (pro and con) the development of the global economy, population, and sustainability (T5.9-12.e)
• Explain the role of government in the production and consumption of food (T5.9-12.i)

Education Content Standards

Social studies – geography (geography).

APHG Topic 5.5: The Green Revolution

• SPS-5.D.1    The Green Revolution was characterized in agriculture by the use of high-yield seeds, increased use of chemicals, and mechanized farming.
• SPS-5.D.2    The Green Revolution had positive and negative consequences for both human populations and the environment.

Science (SCIENCE)

APES Unit 5 Land and Water Use

• EIN-2.C The Green Revolution    Describe changes in agricultural practices

Common Core Connections

Anchor standards: reading.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.9 Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.

Anchor Standards: Speaking and Listening

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.1 Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.

Anchor Standards: Writing

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.W.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.

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• New Visions Social Studies Curriculum
• Curriculum Development Team
• Content Contributors
• Getting Started: Instructional Routines
• Getting Started: Baseline Assessments
• Getting Started: Resources to Enhance Instruction
• Unit 9.0: Global 1 Introduction
• Unit 9.1: First Civilizations: Stone & Bronze Ages
• Unit 9.3: Classical Civilizations: Golden & Iron Ages
• Unit 9.4: Political Powers and Achievements
• Unit 9.5: Social and Cultural Growth and Conflict
• Unit 9.6: Ottoman and Ming Pre-1600
• Unit 9.7: Transformations in Europe
• Unit 9.8: Africa and the Americas Pre-1600
• Unit 9.9: Interactions and Disruptions
• 10.0: Global 2 Introduction
• 10.01: Early Modern Era
• 10.02: Enlightenment, Revolution, & Nationalism
• 10.03: Industrial Revolution
• 10.04: Imperialism & Colonization
• 10.05: World Wars
• 10.06: Cold War
• 10.07: Decolonization & Nationalism
• 10.08: Cultural Traditions & Modernization
• 10.09: Globalization & Changing Environment
• 10.10: Human Rights Violations
• Unit 11.0: US History Introduction
• Unit 11.01: Colonial Foundations
• Unit 11.02: American Revolution
• Unit 11.03A: Building a Nation
• Unit 11.03B: Sectionalism & Civil War
• Unit 11.04: Reconstruction Era
• Unit 11.05: Gilded Age & Progressive Era
• Unit 11.06: Rise of American Power
• Unit 11.07: Prosperity & Depression
• Unit 11.08: World War II
• Unit 11.09: Cold War
• Unit 11.10: Social & Economic Change
• Resources: Regents Prep: Global 2 Exam
• Regents Prep: Framework USH Exam: Regents Prep: US Exam
• Find Resources

Global History II

10.09: Globalization & Changing Environment

B - Globalization & Changing Environment: SQ 7. What was the Green Revolution? What effect has it had? What lessons can we learn from it to address global needs in the 21st century?

Describe what the Green Revolution was.  Explain the effects of the Green Revolution.  Identify lessons learned from the Green Revolution that can help address 21st century issues.

CONCEPTUAL UNDERSTANDING:  Population pressures, industrialization, and urbanization have increased demands for limited natural resources and food resources, often straining the environment.

CONTENT SPECIFICATION:  Students will examine how the world’s population is growing exponentially for numerous reasons and how it is not evenly distributed.

CONTENT SPECIFICATION:  Students will explore efforts to increase and intensify food production through industrial agriculture (e.g., Green Revolutions, use of fertilizers and pesticides, irrigation, and genetic modifications).

CONTENT SPECIFICATION:  Students will examine strains on the environment, such as threats to wildlife and degradation of the physical environment (i.e., desertification, deforestation and pollution) due to population growth, industrialization, and urbanization.

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Globalization & Changing Environment