At the Crossroad of Agriculture and Ecology in a Photo Exhibit

At the Crossroad of Agriculture and Ecology

in a Photo Exhibit

 Abe V. Rotor Photo Exhibit at the National Library 1972  

That's 51 years ago, I was in my twenties (PHOTO), single and full of energy, new in my job with the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DENR).  Martial Law was just declared by President Ferdinand Marcos, the country hoped for change.   

For me, a shift from academe to bureaucracy was a big break, in fact a wide gap, from biologist and ecologist to agricultural adviser and public servant, from the confines of university wall and research laboratory to the open fields, onto the grassroots.

At the crossroad of development for economic necessity to one that secures environmental balance as well, I played a vital role as council secretary and executive assistant to a 22-member inter-agency presidential council (NFAC);  

Crush programs were launched without delay as hunger loomed:  Masagana 99 for rice, Maisan 77 for corn, pioneer production of wheat (trigo), soybean, sorghum,  
Gulayan sa Kalusugan for vegetables, Green Revolution for agriculture-at-large on all levels and corners of the country - barangay to schools; 

Dendrology (wood farming) and agro-forestry were launched nationwide; hybrid  ipil-ipil plantation set up for wood, natural fertilizer, feeds, industrial fuel, likewise for erosion and flood control, reforestation, for which this miracle tree got its name.

Bakahan Barangay (cattle raising), piggery and chicken production on the municipal and barangay  levels, Palay-isdahan (fish culture in ricefield), SWIP (Small Water Impounding Projects) for irrigation and power generation, among other projects;

New frontiers of agriculture were pushed to the upland and hillside, contour farming, SALT (Slope Agricultural Land Technology), onto the sea - mariculture (seaweeds farming, fish pens, floating cages), swamps reclaimed into new farms;

Increased farm production, yield : input ratio was pushed to the maximum, which means more and new tools and inputs: fertilizers, pesticides, machines, seeds, etc., supported by aggressive extension cum financial subsidy for farmers; 

The complex crossroad of change was visualized as traditional versus modern agriculture; intensive and ecological farming; integrated farming and agro-processing, combining agriculture and industry in a new enterprise: agribusiness;  

Quo vadis? (Where are we headed for?) What roads lead to greater and long-term advantage? Where and what measures can we gain in one but not the other? Do we gain in agriculture at the expense of the environment, or is it the other way?  
  
This scenario projected the theme and message of a one-man photo exhibit in 1972, first at the Nayong Pilipino in Parañaque, then moved to the National Library in Manila. Ecology then a relatively new field, and proposed subject in schools.~

 

                         Personal collection from the 1972 Ecology exhibit. ~