I am currently reading Future Harvest, Pesticide-Free Farming by Jim Bender.
In his chapter comparing conventional and sustainable systems he
presents that the basic strategy of conventional agriculture is to
maximize the maximum, while the strategy of sustainable ag. is to
maximize the minimum. He is contrasting the focus of conventional
systems on taking advantage of optimal conditions as compared to
sustainable ag. systems which stress minimizing the effects of
poor conditions. As I prepare to teach a seminar that investigates
current sust. ag. research, I found this simple differentiation to be
very useful. I would appreciate any comments on maxing the max vs.
minimizing the min. Did Jim Bender originate this phraseology ?
Joel Gruver
Hampshire College Farm Center
jgruver@hamp.hampshire.edu