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Science alone not enough to boost world farm output

(Reuters) - Feeding a fast-growing global population in the face of climate change and stagnant funding for food aid and farm research will require a fundamental revamp of agriculture, agricultural experts said. GREEN BUSINESS | COP15 But unlike the "Green Revolution" that dramatically hiked agricultural output in Latin America and Asia from the 1950s, a new agricultural restructuring will need to focus as much on new seed varieties as on good governance, women's empowerment and things like curbing commodities speculation, they added. "We cannot address world food security risks effectively only through a science and technology agenda," Joachim von Braun, former director general of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), told a conference Sunday. "We need to get appropriate market regulations to prevent excessive speculation," he added on the opening day of the conference held in southern France to discuss a roadmap to reform agricultural research to meet development goals. Speculation in food markets contributes to fuelling price swings that can undercut the ability of farmers to plan, often leading them to over or under-produce.

President Obama on Health Care Reform

Dear Friend,

I recently began work as the Director of the HHS Office of Health Reform, and I wanted to share President Obama's weekly address with all of you.

This weekend the President's address focuses on the urgent need for comprehensive health reform. The President noted:
"...We know that our families, our economy, and our nation itself will not succeed in the 21st century if we continue to be held down by the weight of rapidly rising health care costs and a broken health care system."

You can watch the President's address now by visiting www.whitehouse.gov.

The U.S. Resilience System

The U.S. Resilience System is a society-wide initiative with the goal of improving the health, well-being, and prosperity of American citizens and their communities, within the United States and abroad, during this period of fundamental change. During the 20th Century, American systems, built upon a reductionist science base, economic base dependent upon inexpensive fossil fuels, and industrial age technologies had competitive advantages and made widespread positive impact throughout the world. Unfortunately, today, many of these same systems are now antiquated, not well adapted the 21st Century social ecologies, and are finding it ever more difficult to successfully meet the challenges we now face. A U.S. Resilience System is emerging to step into the breach to address the gaps that are widening in association with 20th Century infrastructures and institutions that are falling behind in meeting the needs of Americans.

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