The Second Green Revolution Within Reach
A Vision to Reach Those Left Behind on the Indian Subcontinent
Meeting Basic Needs in Symbiosis with Natural Systems
By Dr. Ashok Khosla and Gunter Pauli
Based on dialogues from June 13 to 19, 2004
South Asia is home to 1.3 billion people spread across seven nations, representing one-fifth of humanity. Nearly three-quarters of the population lives in rural areas. Half of the world's hunger is concentrated in South Asia. Environmental problems are immense: excessive land degradation, massive deforestation, poor water quality and scarcity, and a rapidly increasing demand for energy. The female literacy rate is only 36%, and the caste system continues to dictate the lives of the vast majority of the population.
The region boasts 5,000 years of tradition and culture. It was one of the richest places on Earth until foreign invasions and colonization in the early 17th century. The resulting cultural and scientific advancements enriched humanity. Its biodiversity is unique, and it is the cradle of the first Green Revolution. Dr. Norman Borhaug, director of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center in Mexico, successfully introduced the Green Revolution to India and Pakistan. While no one disputes the immense benefits brought to suffering populations, undeniable facts compel us to consider the Second Green Revolution, and much more.
The time has come to address the basic needs of everyone on Earth. The current situation is far from satisfactory, especially when we witness daily the suffering of the poor and their lack of access to water, food, housing, energy, healthcare, employment, and education. The authors of this vision document believe that a radical shift—from a top-down, problem-focused approach to a systemic approach in symbiosis with nature—will enable communities to move from scarcity and poverty to abundance and sustainable livelihoods, in harmony with the ecosystem and drawing upon the richness of their traditions and cultures.
The End of Patience
At the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Johannesburg in 2002, governments agreed on an ambitious goal: to halve poverty by 2015. Our immediate reaction was: "What about the other half?" It is necessary to imagine a development framework that does not abandon the 50% target from the outset, but aims to reach all those who are left behind.
We believe there are enough renewable resources to meet everyone's basic needs because, in reality, the only species on Earth incapable of satisfying all its essential needs is humankind. Even worse, humans are the only species capable of producing things that no one wants. It is estimated that 90% of all raw materials—renewable or not—end up as waste. Our agricultural programs, riddled with substantial subsidies, cause soil erosion and rely on artificial inputs that, while increasing productivity in the short term, will compromise the long-term effectiveness of the entire ecosystem on which we depend.
The poor can no longer wait for the rich to make up their minds. At a time when donor fatigue and budget cuts are commonplace in aid agencies—and when assistance is limited to the most severe crises—suffering continues for the vast majority. Certainly, there are a few pockets of progress in the world, but statistics confirm what the author wants to demonstrate: "If you plunge one hand into ice water and the other into boiling water, on average, you should feel fine." The reality is quite different!
When a mother cannot feed her children, when corruption drains scarce resources, and when simplistic analyses lead to equally simplistic solutions, causing collateral damage, despair sets in. But when communities are empowered and priorities are set locally, initiatives quickly emerge. This vision document calls for an end to waiting and for immediate action to reach everyone.
The core of this approach lies in a system: several objectives will be achieved through multiple tools. This is how natural systems function. Incredible biodiversity, with its millions of species, each having carved out a unique niche and continually adapting to the changes along this long path of co-evolution—where nothing is permanent and everything seeks partners to meet essential needs—provides us with inspiration.
The 5 Kingdoms of Nature
According to biologist Lynn Margulis, species should be classified according to the "Five Kingdoms of Nature": animals, plants, fungi, algae (protoctists), and bacteria (Monera). Each kingdom comprises millions of members sharing a common approach to chemistry, biology, and physics. Fungi digest food outside their bodies, microalgae can penetrate rocks without destroying them, bacteria constantly perform genetic modifications, the majority of animal species are worms, and inorganic magnesium becomes accessible to plants thanks to algae. Each of these kingdoms transforms nutrients and energy, but together they are capable of integrating and separating all matter at ambient temperature and pressure.
Every species produces waste, but nothing is lost. What is waste for one can be a nutrient or energy source for another. This ensures the continuous transformation of matter and energy on Earth. Moreover, this process purifies, since viruses cannot survive more than two changes in the surrounding chemistry and biology. Toxins that could compromise the life of one species are neutralized and most likely become a nutrient for a species in another kingdom. We thus realize that natural systems are all the more efficient when they are diverse, and all the more resilient when they are local.
Ecosystems are content with what they have and tolerate the erratic behavior of a few—because exceptions prove the rule. Few inputs come from outside, although wind and migratory birds provide connections with external systems. As soon as a niche appears, a new element arrives, or an environmental change occurs, the system integrates, adopts, and adapts rapidly to this dynamic process of coevolution.
The vision is that the design of sustainable livelihoods should be inspired by the functioning of ecosystems, their evolution, and their capacity to meet everyone's needs with what is available within the system. This is not a call to return to primitive life systems, but an invitation to merge the best of science with the generative capacity of natural systems, through the ingenuity of biology, chemistry, and physics. This will allow us to achieve ambitious results while strengthening our confidence in the system of production and consumption that emerged on Earth after billions of years of evolution.
From a Linear Approach to a Systemic Design
The goal of social and ecological development is to meet basic needs. These needs are interconnected: the ability to produce drinking water is directly linked to energy production, and the ability to guarantee healthcare is intimately linked to food. Although everything is interdependent, we often act on isolated problems without considering their impact on other species, or on the thin Earth's crust and the thin layer of air on which we depend.
The vision of sustainable livelihoods rests on the premise that no element can be successfully addressed without also addressing the other essential needs identified by the community. If a community desires clean drinking water (which few would refuse), ensuring access to renewable energy resources is essential. The search for these resources will likely introduce biodiesel, a new and potentially lucrative crop that could compete with agricultural land use. Designing a project by creatively assessing what is readily available and establishing connections will significantly reduce dependence on external sources.
An outside observer might see nothingness where everything exists, or conversely, see much where the local population perceives nothing. The key lies in the ability to engage in dialogue, to discover what is readily available, and to connect the dots to transform the whole into a system that endlessly generates basic needs.
When the local population suffers from gastrointestinal illnesses, we might be tempted to request medical assistance, inexpensive medications, and the construction of a hospital. The international donor community could then provide these, but this would create a permanent dependency. As soon as an international supply agreement expires or a change of government redefines priorities, funding would dry up and the social system would collapse. Self-sufficiency is impossible in such a model.
If, on the other hand, gastrointestinal illnesses are caused by potent bacterial strains thriving in highly acidic water—a consequence of deforestation—then trees must be replanted. This reforestation cannot be carried out without symbiotic planting with mycorrhizal fungi, which will provide the necessary nutrients for the young trees. During their adaptation period, these trees will shed many leaves and needles, forming a layer of humus that will alter the pH, thus driving out harmful bacteria and promoting increased rainfall. The water generated can then be used by the local hospital, reducing the need for beds, while the region will sequester carbon dioxide and be eligible for carbon credits. This is what a systems approach is all about.
System Budgets
Producing drinking water will require a budget. Launching a disease control program will also require a budget. Undertaking a reforestation program will require yet another budget. When these three initiatives are considered simultaneously, the lack of funding will force priorities to be established. How do we choose between these fundamental needs? By simultaneously implementing these three actions within a single system, we create a sustainable model that will function and evolve indefinitely.
The authors envision that all initiatives will address multiple objectives. The process of learning about social and ecological systems will reveal unsuspected links between phenomena, processes, and outcomes. It is this symbiosis and synergy that will enable us to achieve faster and more ambitious results at a lower cost. This is the kind of agenda we urgently need.
If we were to propose increasing the availability of essential amino acids by a factor of 1,000 with current resources, we would hardly be taken seriously. Similarly, focusing solely on increasing wheat or corn production would not achieve such an ambitious result. The Green Revolution cannot accomplish such a feat. But by combining available resources and "activating the five kingdoms," we obtain astonishing results. These results, which would be considered fanciful with a single-objective approach, are the norm in a systems approach.
Let's take the example of coffee and tea. Farmers worldwide are suffering: prices are historically low, and overproduction is leading to bankruptcy and poverty. A careful analysis shows that we consume only 0.2% of a coffee tree's biomass (0.1% for tea), the rest being considered waste. This waste, rich in caffeine, cannot be used as animal feed. While a cup of coffee sells for around $3 in a simple café in industrialized countries, the farmer receives only about 0.1 cents for the raw materials used.
The reality is that, from India to Africa and across Latin America, farmers are becoming impoverished and forced to choose between hunger, drugs, or fleeing to the city. Fair trade coffee, organic coffee, and even substitution programs have not yet been able to lift farmers out of poverty—more is needed.
Yet, the potential is immense. The hidden value lies in the possibility of multiplying the productivity of this biomass by 500 (from 0.2% to 100%). If this biomass could generate the same added value as that produced by a coffee shop, which, by pouring water over ground coffee or a tea bag, transforms a raw product into a high-value beverage, the enormous economic potential would be obvious. The crucial question, therefore, is: how can we transform the current 498 units of waste into a resource that generates considerable revenue?
In the case of coffee—a plant rich in caffeine—caffeine could be an excellent nutrient for mushrooms, particularly shiitake. These mushrooms fetch a high price on the international market (US$40 per kilogram dehydrated), and their production, stimulated by caffeine, is twice as fast as on hardwood logs such as oak. Even better, cultivating mushrooms on coffee—itself a hardwood—helps preserve oak forests from exploitation. The coffee residue, after the mushrooms have been harvested, is enriched with protein (including essential amino acids), making it ideal feed for chickens and pigs. The animals produce manure, which can be converted by bacteria into methane gas, and the liquid residue is an excellent food source for trace element-rich algae. By adding up the quantity of essential amino acids generated from coffee waste, we can understand how natural systems manage to create abundance and livelihoods.
Development Principles for the Indian Subcontinent
The concepts presented have been tested through a rigorous process of trial and error. They are based on available resources, address multiple challenges, and ensure rapid implementation in co-evolution with the local ecosystem. Once communities realize they can quickly meet their needs with what they have, implementation will depend solely on the natural cycles of the seasons and monsoons, as well as their own process of discovery.
It is in this context that Development Alternatives, with its decades-long social fabric and engineering capacity, wishes to partner with ZERI to study communities across the Indian subcontinent and launch a series of projects demonstrating the viability and success of the strategic options described above. Both organizations are committed to prioritizing the needs of these communities and, through a deeper understanding of opportunities and the creative integration of seemingly disparate elements, to translating these needs into concrete actions on the ground to reach those who are left behind.
This will require everyone to rediscover what exists, to be willing to be inspired by natural systems, to rely on biodiversity and to transform children's dreams into reality.
Some Pilot Cases: Chickens, Stones and Irrigation
A young entrepreneur buys two-day-old chicks from an industrial farm; he pays cash for feed and a series of colored bottles. He learns to weigh the chickens after 28 and 45 days. At this stage, they should be ready to be sold for about 50 rupees per kilo. The goal is clear: to obtain a chicken weighing at least 1.2 kg after 45 days. The materials are in place: if the chicken doesn't reach the target, growth hormones are added. The concept is simple: the entrepreneur invests cash and receives mature chickens in return, thus generating income. Unfortunately, this approach is not sustainable, as it relies heavily on artificial additives and creates total dependence on external suppliers. The quality of the chicken is therefore questionable, and the profit margins are very low.
Imagine the following scenario: the region cultivates peanuts. Some of the peanuts are reserved to feed chickens, a local breed that takes 90 to 120 days to reach a maturity of 3 to 3.5 kg of meat. To obtain 3 kg of animal protein, 6.5 kg of plant or fungal protein are required. The peanuts are only sold shelled; their shells are collected and, combined with local grasses or wheat and corn straw, are transformed into a substrate for growing mushrooms. These mushrooms, which are part of the local diet, contribute to food security. The depleted substrate is then enriched with essential amino acids—particularly lysine, which is highly valued by chickens—and food scraps collected from the community supplement their diet.
These nutrient-rich, low-cost-to-raise chickens transform local resources into something of far greater value. They will fetch a good price on the market and can successfully compete with tasteless, low-quality factory-farmed chicks. And this is just the beginning.
Around the town of Jhansi, rock crushers dominate the landscape. Heaps of rock dust, rich in magnesium, lie unused for years. Yet, this dust is essential for regenerating arable land. After the loss of forest cover and years of intensive agriculture, the region suffers from soil erosion. This problem can only be solved by adding sufficient trace elements, allowing millions of microorganisms—from bacteria to microalgae—to transform these elements into a fertile base for plants. Without efforts to rebuild the soil, peanut cultivation will only accelerate erosion. Years of focusing on the three nutrients N, P, and K (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) have neglected essential trace elements. As we know, plants cannot live without chlorophyll, which depends on magnesium. Let's therefore release the magnesium contained in the rock dust.
An initiative has been launched to transform agricultural and municipal waste into compost and animal manure into vermicompost. This high-quality material, enriched with 10 to 15% rock dust, would provide not only readily available nutrients but also the micronutrients needed to replenish arable soil. Rock dust, already produced and considered a nuisance, would allow the soil to regenerate at a rate of 1 to 10 cm per year. Even an increase of just one centimeter would significantly improve water retention from the monsoon, thus reducing the need for irrigation and retention dams.
Water is, of course, the basis of life. When drilling a well to supply a city with drinking water, it is essential to check the water temperature. If it is cold and about 20 degrees cooler than the ambient air, it becomes easy to use this water to create condensation. Drip irrigation systems will then stop losing water from the inside out, allowing only the outside to flow out. Like a glass of cold water that "sweats" when exposed to humid air, cold water from rivers, artesian wells, or deep aquifers should not be used without generating excess condensation. Rather than consuming water, why not create it?
The effects are immediate: water generates more water. With an efficiency of 5%, it would even be possible to pump water just once to a high point—using a hand pump or a generator—by coloring the inlet pipe white (or leaving it transparent) and the outlet pipe black. This pumping system would then become efficient and practical, providing water without consuming any, with minimal energy. If we can eliminate the need for irrigation water by creating irrigation water, we will reduce the pressure on depleted aquifers, and the condensate will be clean and plentiful. Does this sound like fantasy? Yet, this is how many plant and insect species survive every day.
From Fantasy to Reality
The challenge of creating sustainable livelihoods is immense, but the opportunities offered by a systems approach are considerable. Development Alternatives and ZERI will design systems capable of addressing multiple issues and are committed to a perpetual quest for the best solutions, drawing on the ancient Sanskrit proverb:
The Sanskrit Proverb
Asato mā sat gamaye – lead me from illusion to truth
Tamaso mā jyotir gamaye – lead me from fantasy to reality
Mrityor mā amritam gamaye – lead me from death to immortality
The result will be the advent of the Second Green Revolution, or rather the brown revolution (for fungi) and the blue revolution (for water). This will be the rainbow revolution, through which humanity will be able to meet its needs in co-evolution with nature.
