Kipper Berven is a law student in the HLS Food Law & Policy Clinic and a guest contributor to this blog.
On Tuesday, March 7th, two law students and two instructors from Harvard Law School’s Food Law and Policy Clinic traveled to Washington D.C., joining a student from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law to attend the Farmers for Climate Action: Rally for Resilience. The group represented the Farm Bill Law Enterprise by providing assistance and information to farmers and ranchers at the rally, as well as travelling to the Hill to lobby for farmer-led climate solutions that prioritize racial justice and community well-being.
Agriculture accounts for one-quarter to one-third of the United States’ greenhouse gas emissions, while also generating substantial environmental harms such as air and water pollution, habitat degradation, and soil erosion. The climate crisis in turn adversely impacts farmers, as unpredictable extreme weather events make it harder to produce food and imperil farmers’ livelihoods. Compared to consolidated corporate farms, small-scale farmers typically have access to much less capital to mobilize for recovery efforts after extreme weather events or for adaptation to increasingly volatile growing seasons. To address these issues, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) coordinated efforts to organize the Rally for Resilience, along with dozens of other organizations such as Earthjustice, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the Union of Concerned Scientists, HEAL Food Alliance, and the Organic Farmers Association. Many more organizations sent delegations of farmers and advocates to the rally as well. This diverse coalition of farmers, ranchers, activists, and supporters were advocating for resources, incentives, and assistance to empower farmers as leaders in the search for solutions to the climate crisis. Specifically, they wanted members of Congress to ensure that this year’s Farm Bill advances climate friendly farming, racial justice, and communities, not corporations.
The Rally for Resilience started late Tuesday morning around a stage erected in Freedom Plaza for speeches and musical performances. The speakers shared their personal experiences struggling to continue serving as stewards of the land while coping with the impacts of climate change disrupting their farms, communities, and livelihoods. John Mellencamp, a co-founder of the non-profit Farm Aid, took the stage for the final performance of the morning, playing some of his hit songs like Rain on the Scarecrow. Willie Nelson, another co-founder of Farm Aid, was not able to attend but addressed the attendees in a pre-recorded video projected onto a mobile screen next to the stage. After the last notes from Mellencamp’s guitar faded from the speakers, the Rally organizers directed participants onto Pennsylvania Avenue where police officers had stopped traffic for the rally. The cohort stretched down the street as farmers and advocates marched from Freedom Plaza towards Capitol Hill, battling the wind to raise hand-painted signs emblazoned with sayings like “Farmers of Color Are Climate Problem Solvers!” and “Save Our Farmers, Save Our Soil, Save Our Planet.” Chants like “No more coal, no more oil, climate solutions are in the soil” reverberated off government buildings and through the street as the group marched to the Capitol.
The rally concluded at the Capitol with more synchronized chants and photo opportunities. Apparently, there was supposed to be a rotational grazing demonstration on the lawns in front of the Capitol Building, but the Rally organizers were unable to secure the requisite permits. After a late lunch, members of the rally reconvened in the basement of a nearby church for a lobbying training session. For many of the farmers and ranchers in attendance, this would be their first time speaking with an elected official or convincing lawmakers to champion their supported policies. The training included skits, breakout sessions, and opportunities for the FBLE team to chat with other attendees and discuss the myriad ways in which law students and professionals can support their efforts to promote farmer-led climate solutions. After several hours together the rally participants broke for the day, exhausted but excited for the opportunity to practice their new skills the next day.
Wednesday was the dedicated Lobby Day for the Rally for Resilience. The FBLE students and instructors met with congressional staffers for several senators and representatives from both sides of the aisle. This was my first experience lobbying on the Hill, and I was immensely grateful for the opportunity to learn from the experience and skill of my FBLE colleagues. With each successive meeting, I felt more confident in my ability to clearly and persuasively convey the importance of sustainable agriculture practices and policies. While many rally members, including our FBLE group, were in their meetings with lawmakers, the rally organizers held a separate press conference where Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA-17) spoke about the need for farmer-led climate solutions. Rep. Khanna highlighted the Farm System Reform Act as a policy solution to reduce the climate impact of industrial agriculture by imposing a moratorium on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs). Among the many other policy proposals that could advance this goal, participants in the Rally were promoting the Agriculture Resilience Act, proposed by Representative Chellie Pingree (D-ME-1). This bill would create a comprehensive farmer-driven program to achieve net-zero agricultural emissions by 2040.
At the end of our day on the Hill, the group reconvened near the Capitol for a final closing ceremony. Our group gathered around in a circle where we took turns sharing what we were grateful for and our greatest takeaways from the last two days. There was a lot of enthusiasm for the new partnerships and future opportunities that would grow from the seeds planted at the Rally. There was also a fair amount of skepticism that the immense efforts to organize the Rally would lead to any meaningful changes. Many in the group felt overwhelmed by the immense flaws of our agricultural system and the powerful interests behind them, suggesting that it would be exceedingly idealistic to think the rally could overcome the colossal obstacles to meaningful change. As we approached the last members in the circle, somebody reminded the group that the term “climate change” was never even mentioned in the Farm Bill until the last 2018 Farm Bill. Five years later at the Rally for Resilience, we witnessed first-hand the abundance of farmers, ranchers, and advocates willing to travel hundreds of miles to support these efforts. In our meetings with lawmakers, we noticed the receptiveness and enthusiasm from Congressional staffers on finding innovative, farmer-led solutions to climate change. In just five years, climate-related topics went from not being mentioned in the Farm Bill to becoming the central rallying cry for a powerful movement that took over the streets of Washington DC. If that’s possible, perhaps there is a great deal of hope for farmer-led climate solutions in the future.
The views and opinions expressed on the FBLE Blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of FBLE. While we review posts for accuracy, we cannot guarantee the reliability and completeness of any legal analysis presented; posts on this Blog do not constitute legal advice. If you discover an error, please reach out to contact@farmbilllaw.org.
