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Special Report |
LAST UPDATE December 13, 2005
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| November 1, 2005 |
Global University: Unit 2 – Organic agriculture |
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| Guest educator onboard Peace Boat, Rosa del Carmen Crellana Gallego, trying on traditional Japanese kimono onboard Peace Boat |
As Peace Boat made her way around Central and South America, the final unit of Global University – the onboard intensive study programme – was completed.
Twenty-four students participated in Unit Two of the daily programme, which focused on sustainable organic agriculture. The course was supported by two guest educators: Kazuoki Ono, an agricultural journalist from Japan, and Rosa del Carmen Crellana Gallego, an organic farming specialist from Cuba. |
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| Global University students in a group discussion on agriculture, with Rosa. (Photo: Shoko Watanabe) |
Rosa came onboard as Peace Boat cruised across the Atlantic Ocean from Las Palmas to Havana. Through lectures, video screenings and daily meetings with students, she explained the success story of self-sustainable organic agriculture in Cuba – a country with one of the fastest growth rates of organic farming in the world.
Rosa explained to students and other Peace Boat participants what Being Organic means to Cubans.
“The definition of organic is very important for us Cubans. It means not only organic in the conventional sense [free from chemical pesticides and herbicides] but also utilizing efficient, sustainable, recyclable farming methods that are good for the environment,” she said. |
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| Working in the field on an organic farm near Havana, Cuba (Photo: Shoko Watanabe) |
When Peace Boat arrived in Cuba on October 28, 2005, Global University students were able to learn about and experience first hand the current agriculture situation in Cuba. They visited the Ministry of Agriculture, where they learnt about the history and policies concerning agriculture in Cuba. They also met representatives from an organization focusing on developing technology for organic farming called INIFAT, to which Rosa belongs.
On the second day of the tour, students visited two vegetable farms in Las Terrasas community, in the state of Pinar Del Rio. There, they had the chance to observe the activities of organic farmers, and even try a little farming for themselves. |
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| In a final presentation to Peace Boat participants, Global University students demonstrated ways to farm organically, such as making compost |
Throughout Units One and two of the Global University programme, students compared case studies and statistics around the world with the situation of sustainability within Japan. For instance, Japan’s self sufficiency rate is said to be around 40 per cent, compared with Cuba, which is 90 per cent self-sufficient. Students considered the benefits of self-sustainability, and looked at how organic techniques used in Cuba could be used in Japan. Issues such as threats to food safety of imported products, and the economic, environmental and social effects of importing food from developing countries were also studied.
To complete the programme, students wrote a comprehensive report, and gave a presentation, which was attended by hundreds of participants onboard. Under the title “Organic Agriculture Will Save the World”, they explained what they had learnt about agricultural practices and trends on a global and local level. |
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| Students presenting their findings in the final presentation onboard |
After the intensive study programme, many students expressed a desire to make changes in their every day life on return to Japan, in order to help contribute to a self-sustainable society. These ranged from growing vegetables on their balconies, to renting land on which to grow vegetables, to educating others of the benefits of sustainable farming. |
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| Global University Coordinator Nohira Shinsaku encourages students to do what they can to contribute to a self-sustainable society |
Global University student Asakura Kana said she wasn’t interested in agriculture before she started studying the course; “Through the Global University programme I’ve been able to learn lots of things, and now I have a different perspective about various problems. I’ve also had the opportunity to inform people about what I learnt, so I feel very satisfied and happy,” she said.
Programme Coordinator Nohira Shinsaku encouraged his students to do whatever they could to contribute to a more self-sustainable society. “This is just the beginning. Please make an effort to do something to change society when you return home. You can do whatever you can, at your own pace, and in your own style. You can make a positive change,” he said.
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