Sustainability, a watchword across the globe; and, undisputedly, the hottest topic up for discussion today. Organizations, governments and industries are beginning to call for change in great numbers as 2010 marches forward. Back in December of 2009, the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy announced an agreement they made with the USDA to cut the Dairy Industry’s Greenhouse Gases by 25%. It’s important to understand some key drivers behind the movement commonly called sustainability:
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★Global increase in food demand without a matching increase in food supply
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★Strain on land resources from a burgeoning global population
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★Water scarcity, with more than 1.1 billion people in developing countries without access to clean drinking water
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★Increasing degradation of ecological systems
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★Growing consumer interest in knowing where and how food is produced
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★Impending climate change legislation, including a carbon trading system
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★A growing innovation curve in business’s sustainability sector, recognizing that the rewards go to those who innovate early
Needless to say, the top of the list is where the big issues sit; and right there at the very top is the biggest issue of all:
How Do We Sustain/FEED A Projected Global Population of 9 Billion Humans?