One Billion Hungry - by Gordon Conway (Paperback)

About the Book

In this book, one of the world's foremost experts on global food needs explains the many interrelated issues critical to our global food supply from the science of agricultural advances to the politics of food security.

Book Synopsis

Hunger is a daily reality for a billion people. More than six decades after the technological discoveries that led to the Green Revolution aimed at ending world hunger, regular food shortages, malnutrition, and poverty still plague vast swaths of the world. And with increasing food prices, climate change, resource inequality, and an ever-increasing global population, the future holds further challenges.In One Billion Hungry, Sir Gordon Conway, one of the world's foremost experts on global food needs, explains the many interrelated issues critical to our global food supply from the science of agricultural advances to the politics of food security. He expands the discussion begun in his influential The Doubly Green Revolution: Food for All in the Twenty-First Century, emphasizing the essential combination of increased food production, environmental stability, and poverty reduction necessary to end endemic hunger on our planet. Conway addresses a series of urgent questions about global hunger: - How we will feed a growing global population in the face of a wide range of adverse factors, including climate change? - What contributions can the social and natural sciences make in finding solutions?- And how can we engage both government and the private sector to apply these solutions and achieve significant impact in the lives of the poor?Conway succeeds in sharing his informed optimism about our collective ability to address these fundamental challenges if we use technology paired with sustainable practices and strategic planning.Beginning with a definition of hunger and how it is calculated, and moving through issues topically both detailed and comprehensive, each chapter focuses on specific challenges and solutions, ranging in scope from the farmer's daily life to the global movement of food, money, and ideas. Drawing on the latest scientific research and the results of projects around the world, Conway addresses the concepts and realities of our global food needs: the legacy of the Green Revolution; the impact of market forces on food availability; the promise and perils of genetically modified foods; agricultural innovation in regard to crops, livestock, pest control, soil, and water; and the need to both adapt to and slow the rate of climate change. One Billion Hungry will be welcomed by all readers seeking a multifaceted understanding of our global food supply, food security, international agricultural development, and sustainability.

Review Quotes

In 350 information-packed pages, Conway systematically builds an answer to the book's title question. His answer is 'a qualified yes'.. This is the first 21st Century manual on how to feed the world. There may not be time to wait for another edition, so I recommend reading it now.

The author is notably, and refreshingly, open to any approach that solves world hunger as long as it meets site-specific needs, particularly at the farm scale. He appreciates the multidisciplinary nature of addressing world hunger, painting his topics in broad strokes--not superficially, but appropriately scaled so that average readers can understand trends and concepts outside their own discipline or experience. From a classroom perspective the individual chapters provide a superb launch point for more in-depth discussion. Summing Up: Highly recommended.

The existence of one billion hungry people, despite sufficient production to meet contemporary consumption needs, is a stark (and shameful) reminder of the complexity of these issues, and of the inadequacy of current thinking. Conway's text lays out, in careful detail, the many dimensions that need to be considered in trying to answer these questions, and starts to provide a future vision for a food-secure world that is both equitable and environmentally sustainable. This is a masterful survey of the landscape, and is essential reading for anyone hoping to understand these issues, and to engage in informed discussion about alternative options for global food security.

We all want to end hunger. Conway's book provides the roadmap for how to do it.. Conway provides clear (if lengthy) guidelines for what to do and how to do it. His is a voice of optimism, and he speaks convincinglty and authoritatively when addressing the promise of agricultural science in this endeavor.

About the Author

Sir Gordon Conway is Professor of International Development at Imperial College, London. He is the author of The Doubly Green Revolution: Food for All in the Twenty-First Century (also from Cornell) and coauthor of Science and Innovation for Development. Rajiv Shah is the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).