Amanda Little

Amanda Little, an author, journalist and professor, came across a study a few years ago that showed how climate change will cause a sharp loss in food supply if agricultural practices don’t transform.

The study left Little with serious questions about what food producers need to do to face the growing threat of climate change.

“If your current approach to food producing will no longer be possible in this climate stressed world, how will they change?” Little said.

“What will those changes look like?”

Little, a professor of journalism and science writing at Vanderbilt University, addressed those questions in her 2019 book, “The Fate of Food: What We’ll Eat in a Bigger, Hotter, Smarter World.”

She will discuss her book and the topic of the effect of climate change on food supply at a virtual lecture 6:30 p.m. Monday, hosted by Central Oregon Community College. The Bulletin is a sponsor of the event.

Registration for the event, which costs $5, can be found at https://tinyurl.com/y24mwpcn.

At the lecture, Little will also share stories from her travels to 13 countries and 18 states across America while researching her book.

Little said she discovered other countries — including Mexico, China, Israel and parts of East Africa — all felt the effects of climate change more than in the United States. U.S. consumers may experience a slight fluctuation in the cost of food due to a drought or hurricane, but disruptions in food production are not a daily matter of survival like they are in other countries, she said.

“A lot of these farmers and communities were keenly aware of the threats of climate change to food systems,” Little said. “In the U.S., we are much more removed from those realities.”

Little also found possible solutions for food producers as heat waves, droughts and floods increase due to climate change.

During a trip to Arkansas, Little witnessed a robotic weeding machine being unveiled at a farm. The machine allowed the farm to use less herbicides in the field, and showed Little how technology can blend with traditional farming.

“I saw this central theme. Technology doesn’t have to compete with sustainability,” Little said. “It can in fact support and advance the principles of sustainable food production.”

Little said she is more of an expert in energy issues from researching her 2009 book, “Power Trip: The Story of America’s Love Affair with Energy.”

The topic of food production was something Little approached simply as a consumer who tries to eat ethically produced food and keep her backyard garden alive, she said. But the more she studied the threats to the global food supply, the more she wanted to find solutions.

She also noticed her readers were drawn to the chapter in “Power Trip” focused on food and agriculture. That motivated her to study the issue further.

“I began to realize how important and invested readers are in the food issue,” Little said. “In a way, that is much more immediate than the energy issue.”