Monday June 16th Reflection

Hi all:

Read this Newsela article and answer ONE of the three questions at the bottom.

CARACAS, Venezuela — On a recent weekday, the government was holding military exercises as it prepared for a foreign invasion it says is coming. Just a few miles away, about a dozen senior citizens were gathered in a classroom learning about another war-time invention: vertical gardens.

Empty Grocery Shelves, Long Lines

“Vertical gardens were pioneered during World War II,” a teacher said as he instructed students on how to turn plastic bottles into planters that could be hung on a wall or balcony. “We need to take advantage of every space possible.”

This is Venezuela’s latest weapon in its battle against hunger: big-city agriculture, or urban farming.

Venezuela has been swamped with images of empty shelves, soul-crushing lines and food riots. In response, the administration is now urging city dwellers to begin growing some of their own food.

Ministry Of Urban Agriculture

In January, President Nicolas Maduro created the Ministry of Urban Agriculture, saying it was critical to “fight the grave economic situation” being produced by “falling oil prices and the war being waged by the U.S. Empire against our national economy.” More recently, the administration has said metropolitan areas should grow at least 20 percent of their own food.

Urban farming is a global trend from Miami to Hong Kong, but here it is as much necessity as hobby.

A poll in April found that 86 percent of those surveyed bought “less” or “much less” food than they used to. Only 54 percent said they ate three meals a day.

"Back To The Land"

Petra Meneses, a retired 66-year-old doctor, said the soaring prices of vegetables had forced her to get serious about home gardening. In her neighborhood, a bag of green peppers costs about 1.800 bolivares. Equal to around R$16, that amount is almost a tenth of her monthly social security check.

Given Venezuela's state of crisis, "we have to go back to the land,” she said. “Even if that land is inside the city — in our homes.”

Some may wonder why the country with the world’s largest oil reserves is struggling to keep food on the table. Venezuela's problems are due as much to global forces as they are to government policies many people consider wrongheaded and ineffective.

Black Market Markups

Many farmers say government neglect, land seizures and price controls aimed at keeping food easily affordable have strangled rural development. Rice, sugar and corn — staples of the Venezuelan diet — all cost more to grow than they can be legally sold for, according to the Federation of Agriculture.

The regulated food that does make it to the store is often scooped up by bachaqueros, people who buy food and resell it at huge markups on the black market. As a result, while the regulated price of an egg is 14 bolivares, it is nearly impossible to find one that costs less than 100 bolivares.

To complicate matters, Venezuela has the world’s highest inflation, or rate of price increases. As a result, hoarding is widespread, as many consumers stock up today on items they know will cost more tomorrow.

"I Can't Find Rice"

The result of all these pressures create a confusing mix: extremely long lines and bare shelves at stores that sell regulated goods, while neighboring stores that deal in unregulated products might be stocked but at prices that are too high for people to afford.

Jaqueline Tavarez, 50, had woken up at 3 a.m. and dragged her two-year-old grandson across town in hopes of finding some food on a recent weekday. She was number 60 in a line that stretched hundreds of people long to get into a grocery store.

“I will buy whatever I can find,” she said of her shopping list. “Right now, in our neighborhood, I can’t find rice, pasta, yuca or potatoes.”

Tavarez said she and her older daughter often skipped meals to keep her grandson fed.

Collapsing Oil Prices

“We just can’t afford it,” she said. “How are we going to pay 4,000 bolivares ($9) for milk or 1,500 ($3) for rice?”

The late President Hugo Chavez first began talking about urban agriculture years ago, before the lines began stretching and prices started soaring. However, it never caught on in a nation that has traditionally imported 70 percent of all its goods. Venezuela was able to import so much because of its rich oil reserves. The country could export oil and use profits to import other necessities.

Collapsing oil prices have sapped the country’s ability to bring food in. As a result, Venezuela is now ripe for adopting the new practice, Ana Lucia Simons says. Simons is an official at Simon Rodriguez Experimental University, a state-run institute that has been charged with spreading the gospel of urban agriculture.

Crisis Brings Opportunity

“During times of great difficulty there are great opportunities,” Simons noted. Currently, she said, the El Nino weather phenomenon, global warming and political trickery are all hammering Venezuela's farmers.

“We have problems with water, we have problems with production and we have this induced war that has increased prices abysmally,” she said. “In this scenario, if you have a plantain tree, a yuca or tomato plant, it helps resolve your problem a little bit.”

President Maduro says the country needs to prepare for a foreign invasion. However, the real threat is likely to be in the guts of Venezuelans.

Ainda Olivo, a government worker who is also trying to spread urban agriculture programs, said there are many reasons to think they will be successful this time. There is unused land in the city, people are not working and money does not go as far as it once did.

“Before, we didn’t need to do this,” she said. “But as they say, necessity is the mother of invention.”

Reflection Questions:  Answer one question with at least three full sentences.  Read the description of the unit Sharing the Planet to help you answer the question.

1.  In the article that you read, what phrase from the Sharing the Planet description stands out most to you?  How is that phrase related to what you read?

2.  In the article that you read, explain what you understand about Venezuelan communities and the relationships within and between them.

3.  In the article that you read, explain how Venezuelans are struggling to share finite resources with other people and other living things.