Hi everyone-

I am in need of help with identifying how to best structure my search. My section on U.S. policy quickly becomes very technical with respect to economics. I could easily gear my search towards finding policies/corporate incentives that support the growth of corn - but here is where I get stuck. If I focus on corn, I am by definition, focusing on a monoculture and how monocultures are encouraged. Where does biodiversity fit into this picture and how detailed do you want me to get with the economics?

On the flip side, I found a document with a list of USDA conservation and environmental programs.

Hope to hear from someone before chat today.

Denise

I'm not sure what would be the best way to proceed. This is certainly something we can talk about this afternoon. However, my first reaction is that the silence may be telling. For many forms of alternative production, and I'm thinking particularly about organics, there just isn't a comprehensive national policy, particularly in legislation. You might not find it because it might not be there.

This is the connection that I think we are trying to make, a connection that, as you are finding, doesn't really exist thusfar: an association between agriculture policy and the resulting effects on biodiversity within the landscapes where the policy is applied. You might look at the development of the National Organic Program, and we can use other literature to critique how an agroecosystem developed under NOP standards might rate in terms of biodiversity.

Hope that helps. Talk to you this afternoon.

Devan