Traditional Farming Techniques: A Class Visit From Hopi Farmer, Michael Kotutwa Johnson
I’ve been through numerous workshops, trainings, and presentations related to food justice and agriculture. Michael’s presentation in the Spring at Changemaker High School, titled “Hopi Agriculture: Preserving a Cultural Heritage,” was different. It gave us insight to the traditional farming practices of indigenous Hopi. His presentation taught us the principals of dryland farming, a practice that goes back thousands of years. Michael started his presentation by describing how his ancestors were put in boarding schools and given names like “Johnson,” acknowledging a colonial history of oppression and resiliency. Despite colonial oppression, he shared how Hopi think about conservation and farming. “Hopi plant and raise corn to fit the environment unlike western based agriculture, which manipulates the environment,” said Michael. Such management techniques consist of passive rain water harvesting, crop and biodiversity, seed saving and a special relationship with the earth.
“Its hard being a farmer at Hopi. Your crops go through things like early frost (pic), drought, hailstorms, rat and rabbit invasions, crow attacks, cutworms, strong destructive winds, grass hopper plagues,elk invasion, gophers, corn worms, too many extreme hot days, not enough monsoon rain or snowfall, ect. But it is not about that, its about the person you become by experiencing all those things that make you who you are. Its the character of being a Hopi farmer that keeps you planting year after year despite the difficulties. Its not about just putting seeds in the ground its about the faith you have for doing it.”
Michael’s presentation was a reminder of how important it is to maintain a balanced relationship not only with our crops but also the environment. This approach not only challenges western views of agriculture and land management, but also forces us to rethink our entire food system and our relationship with the land. This perspective often gets missed by current food justice organizers. Lets rethink our current farming practices as we move toward achieving food justice, food sovereignty, and continue respecting traditional farming practices of the past.
Oscar Medina is the urban restoration ecology manager at Changemaker High School. He teaches courses in urban agriculture, history, and economics.
This story is part of a Storytelling for Changemakers program forChangemaker Schools activated in partnership with Ashoka’s Youth Venture and Start Empathy. Individual views expressed in this blog are from individuals, and not representative of Ashoka, Start Empathy, or Youth Venture.
