North Texas Farm-to-Table Symposium | Dr. David Montgomery

Sept 13th, 2022

Our latest Symposium was another fascinating evening of learning and networking for our North Texas farmers, ranchers, and local food enthusiasts!

This time we welcomed Dr. David Montgomery, MacArthur Fellow and professor of geomorphology at the University of Washington. He studies landscape evolution and the effects of geological processes on ecological systems and human societies, and is an award-winning author of popular-science books that have been translated into ten languages.

In Dirt: The Erosion of Civilizations (2007) he documented the effects of soil loss and degradation on past societies.  In Growing a Revolution Bringing Our Soil Back to Life (2017) he showed how regenerative farming practices can build soil health as a consequence of intensive farming.  His latest book What Your Food Ate: How to Health Our Land and Reclaim Our Health (2022) co-authored with his wife, biologist Anne Biklé, examines connections between soil health and the health of crops, animals, and people.

Dave, as he prefers to be called, said, “What Your Food Ate grew out of other books—what we call our Dirt Trilogy. Growing a Revolution covered how particular farming methods can reverse past soil degradation. The Hidden Half of Nature reveals insights about the microbiomes of soil, plants, and people and why we need to change the practice of farming and medicine. Dirt kicked off our unplanned trilogy of books and tells the plight of soil since the dawn of agriculture.”

After the lecture, Dave answered nearly an hour of questions from the audience, many of whom were farmers seeking to put Dave and Anne’s findings into practical use. It was a fascinating conversation that sparked many new ideas and insights.