“Farmers are stuck in their ways.” “They don’t care about climate change.”  “They lack the education for forward-thinking.” 

I’ve heard it all before. And every time, it hits a nerve. Not because it’s personal (although it kind of is), but because it’s flat-out wrong. 

Take the history of my family farm, for instance. 

In 1909, my great-great-grandfather filed for a homestead in Southern Alberta to start a better life for his family. Others had canceled their claims, deciding the land was too dry. But he saw its potential. With sheer determination, he broke up that stubborn ground and, against all odds, made crops grow. Just like many homesteaders at the time.  

His vision gave my great-grandfather the chance to farm. But it wasn’t easy. Back in the 1920s, summer fallow was common practice, which left half the land bare to conserve moisture for the next season. But that bare earth was no match for Alberta’s strong winds. They swept across the Prairies, stripping away precious topsoil and creating the dust storms of the Dirty Thirties, leaving behind a scar on the land that remains to this day.  

Like many farmers, my great-grandfather had to adapt. To fight erosion, he turned to strip........

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