Article originally posted on The Essentialist, 7/15/22 (based on a Mercola article of same date).
Per a July 2022 Mercola article (Impending ‘Polycrisis of Doom’). * There are predictions for several devastating crises (around the globe) coming in late 2022-2024, about food shortages, health issues and more. I’ve copied his “Story at a Glance,” below, and also some notes from his article.
* [I’ve saved his article as a pdf (since he closes down his articles after 48 hours): MERCOLA: Doom-ImpendingPolycrises_strateg-to-deal.pdf. If you’d like a copy of the pdf, please contact me (see ESP Contact.]
- See also: 1. Food Shortages and Other Crises: How to Prepare;
- Other Sites: From The EssentiaList [I will save as pdfs so can access these articles after I close-down The EssentiaList]: 1. Upcoming Food Shortages: Why and How to Prepare; 2. Victory Gardens – Grow your own food year ’round; 3. On Small Farms and a Sustainable Food Supply
Story at a Glance
- “Adam Tooze, a financial crisis historian and director of the European Institute at Columbia University, warns the world is facing a “polycrisis” — a perfect storm of multiple global socioeconomic influences
- Polycrisis is not merely the presence of several crises at once. Rather, it refers to a situation where the whole is more dangerous than the sum of the parts, as each individual crisis escalates, compounds and worsens other simultaneous crises
- Tooze predicts several crises may erupt and converge over the next six to 18 months, including a food crisis, pandemic outbreaks, stagflation, a Eurozone sovereign debt crisis and potential nuclear war
- While a majority of economists are optimistic and predict only a mild and temporary recession to hit the United States in 2023, real-time evidence doesn’t look good. Consumer spending, domestic investments, mortgage applications, manufacturing and U.S. railroad cyclical cargo loads are all declining, while inflation and interest rates are rising. Consumer sentiment, an indication of people’s confidence in the economy and their willingness to spend, is also tanking at a record rate
- Two strategies that can strengthen individual and local resilience to the stresses facing us are: (1) the creation of local food systems and (2) the strengthening of neighborhood and community connections. Both reduce individuals’ reliance on government handouts, and by extension, they’re less likely to be forced into these new Great Reset slave systems”
CAT’S NOTES
Back in the 2000s when ESP became a popular, local series of articles, gatherings, and community events, we discussed some common things that could help with problems like food shortages and health issues. And while these are very important things to do, they will likely not be enough to withstand the coming crises. We discussed:
- community gardens
- farmers markets, and
- community-supported agriculture (CSAs).
What is a Polycrisis? and What to do….
Tooze states that it is “a situation … where the whole is even more dangerous than the sum of the parts.” He also notes that this Polycrisis will be a global crisis – not just in the USA.
This 2022 article suggests adding the following two things to do:
- creation of local food systems; and
- strengthening of neighborhood and community connections.
How to Build a Local Food System
•“Secure local-purchasing commitments from schools, hospitals, colleges, restaurants, local grocers and other institutions—Such commitments are crucial for developing the necessary infrastructure for a strong local food market.
When you have demand from large institutions, you can then bring farmers, food processors and distributors into a complete supply chain network, as the contracts will be large enough to support everyone and make the endeavor financially viable.”
• “Enlist support from existing food processors and distributors—Many small-scale, family-run businesses struggle to make ends meet, and may be more than willing to become part of your local network. Two key components are slaughterhouses and trucking companies to distribute the food from one place to another. But you also need food processors that can wash, pack and dice or cut the food.
•”Build a network of local farmers willing to collaborate —Individual farmers may not be able to meet the demands of large contracts, but pooling the output from several farms might.”
How to Strengthen Neighborhood and Community Connections:
•“Build the economic infrastructure —If certain services are not available, determine what’s needed and put out a call out to the community. You never know who might be willing to start a company to fill a local need.
Keep in mind that financial productivity is key for making a local food system work. Everyone involved must benefit financially, or the system won’t be sustainable. The good news is that a local network keeps the money inside the community, and it’s easier to stay financially viable when nothing is being siphoned off to out-of-state players that don’t spend their earnings within your community.”
•”Build relationships with local public health officials, economic development officials, legislative representatives, and bankers —As noted by Williams, “Public health officials … regulate local food-related businesses. If their regulation seems too rigid or unrealistic, economic development experts can help iron out the details and look for other opportunities.
Food banks already have trucks and are possible partners in distribution challenges. Bankers have money to lend to farmers who want to expand, distributors who need another truck, and processors that are growing to meet demand.”
