---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Always value people over things\" \"Without…"
description: "\"“Always value people over things\" \"Without farmers you'd be naked, hungry, and sober”\" — Robin Wall Kimmerer"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/820/robin-wall-kimmerer-31517_agriculture_always-value-people-over-things-without_3155491.jpg"
---

#  Always value people over things" "Without farmers you'd be…

![“Always value people over things&quot; &quot;Without farmers you'd be naked, hungry, and sober” quote by Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/820/robin-wall-kimmerer-31517_agriculture_always-value-people-over-things-without_3155491.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/820/robin-wall-kimmerer-31517_agriculture_always-value-people-over-things-without_3155491.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/820/robin-wall-kimmerer-31517_agriculture_always-value-people-over-things-without_3155491.jpg)

> ““Always value people over things" "Without farmers you'd be naked, hungry, and sober””

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

People should be valued above material possessions; farmers sustain basic human needs.

**In simple terms:** People matter more than things;

Key Takeaway

Prioritize relationships and essential sustenance.

Themes

humanity sustainability gratitude

Mood

grateful inspired

Type

ethical environmental

When to use this quote

- community building
- food security
- environmental stewardship

Key Concepts

interdependence ecology

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you show appreciation for people over possessions?
- What role do farmers play in your life?

A Different Perspective

Overemphasis on materialism can erode social bonds.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Agriculture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agriculture/) [Farmers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/farmers/) [Farming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/farming/) [Giving and receiving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving-and-receiving/) [Value](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/value/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/)

## Related quotes

> [The best farming systems are ones where animals and plants are put into a synergistic relationship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-best-farming-systems-are-ones-where-animals-and-plants-are-put/)

[Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/)

> [Farming is the riskiest profession in the world since the fate of the crop is closely linked to the behaviour of the monsoon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-s-swaminathan/farming-is-the-riskiest-profession-in-the-world-since-the-fate-of-the/)

[M. S. Swaminathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-s-swaminathan/)

> [I grew up in a small farming town called Concord, outside Charlotte in North Carolina.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skeet-ulrich/i-grew-up-in-a-small-farming-town-called-concord-outside-charlotte-in/)

[Skeet Ulrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skeet-ulrich/)

> [The measure discriminates definitely against products which make up what has been universally considered a program of safe farming. The bill upholds as ideals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-coolidge/the-measure-discriminates-definitely-against-products-which-make-up/)

[Calvin Coolidge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calvin-coolidge/)

> [Its the sort of thing in your blood. You don't think about the long hours or the money, you do it because you love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-the-sort-of-thing-in-your-blood-you-don-t-think-about-the-long/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Twelve thousand years ago, everybody on earth was a hunter-gatherer; now almost all of us are farmers or else are fed by farmers. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-diamond/twelve-thousand-years-ago-everybody-on-earth-was-a-hunter-gatherer/)

[Jared Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-diamond/)

> [An organic farmer is the best peacemaker today, because there is more violence, more death, more destruction, more wars, through a violent industrial agricultural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vandana-shiva/an-organic-farmer-is-the-best-peacemaker-today-because-there-is-more/)

[Vandana Shiva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vandana-shiva/)

> [I don't understand the notion that modern farming is anything do to with nature. It's a pretty gross interference with nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-don-t-understand-the-notion-that-modern-farming-is-anything-do-to/)

[Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/)

> [Five generations of back ache, wrinkles and empty penny jars.. why do we do it?! Dur its farming, simply loving life and what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-claxton/five-generations-of-back-ache-wrinkles-and-empty-penny-jars-why-do-we/)

Laura Claxton

> [“For we must farm or die. In undertaking farming we undertake a responsibility covering the whole life cycle. We can break it or keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-northbourne/for-we-must-farm-or-die-in-undertaking-farming-we-undertake-a/)

LORD NORTHBOURNE

> [ “In Spain, hilly terrain and antiquated planting and harvest practices keep farmers from retrieving more than about 100 pounds \[of almonds\] per acre. Growers… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-nordhaus/in-spain-hilly-terrain-and-antiquated-planting-and-harvest-practices/)

Hannah Nordhaus

> [There seem to be but three ways for a nation to acquire wealth. The first is by war, as the Romans did, in plundering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/there-seem-to-be-but-three-ways-for-a-nation-to-acquire-wealth-the/)

[Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/)

> [Many organic practices simply make sense, regardless of what overall agricultural system is used. Far from being a quaint throwback to an earlier time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/many-organic-practices-simply-make-sense-regardless-of-what-overall/)

[David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/)

> [The purpose of farming is to deprive other species of the land and sequester it for our own use. But by perfecting the art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristram-stuart/the-purpose-of-farming-is-to-deprive-other-species-of-the-land-and/)

[Tristram Stuart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristram-stuart/)

> [Urban conservationists may feel entitled to be unconcerned about food production because they are not farmers. But they can't be let off so easily,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/urban-conservationists-may-feel-entitled-to-be-unconcerned-about-food/)

[Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/)

## More by Robin Wall Kimmerer

> [“We can't meaningfully proceed with healing, with restoration, without "re-story-ation".”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/we-can-t-meaningfully-proceed-with-healing-with-restoration-without/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“In a culture of gratitude, everyone knows that gifts will follow the circle of reciprocity and flow back to you again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/in-a-culture-of-gratitude-everyone-knows-that-gifts-will-follow-the/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“The prosperity of the community grows from the flow of relationships, not the accumulation of goods. When the natural world is understood as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/the-prosperity-of-the-community-grows-from-the-flow-of-relationships/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“When we speak of these not as things or natural resources or commodities, but as gifts, our whole relationship to the natural world changes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/when-we-speak-of-these-not-as-things-or-natural-resources-or/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“I think it is this that it is this that draws me to the pond on a night in April, bearing witness to puhpowee.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/i-think-it-is-this-that-it-is-this-that-draws-me-to-the-pond-on-a/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“Infrared satellite imagery, optical telescopes, and the Hubbell space telescope bring vastness within our visual sphere. Electron microscopes let us wander the remote universe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/infrared-satellite-imagery-optical-telescopes-and-the-hubbell-space/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“What is it that brings me here to stand like a rock in this river of sound?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/what-is-it-that-brings-me-here-to-stand-like-a-rock-in-this-river-of/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [It's a sign of respect and connection to learn the name of someone else, a sign of disrespect to ignore it. And yet, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/it-s-a-sign-of-respect-and-connection-to-learn-the-name-of-someone/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“If we allow the practice of restoration to become the exclusive domain of science, we will have lost its greatest promise, which is nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/if-we-allow-the-practice-of-restoration-to-become-the-exclusive/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“Just as you can pick out the voice of a loved one in the tumult of a noisy room, or spot your child's smile…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/just-as-you-can-pick-out-the-voice-of-a-loved-one-in-the-tumult-of-a/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [What if you were a teacher but had no voice to speak your knowledge? What if you had no language at all and yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/what-if-you-were-a-teacher-but-had-no-voice-to-speak-your-knowledge/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“Between takeoff and landing, we are each in suspended animation, a pause between chapters of our lives. When we stare out the window into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/between-takeoff-and-landing-we-are-each-in-suspended-animation-a/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“How, in our modern world, can we find our way to understand the earth as a gift again, to make our relations with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/how-in-our-modern-world-can-we-find-our-way-to-understand-the-earth/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“In Native ways of knowing, human people are often referred to as "the younger brothers of Creation". We say that humans have the least…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/in-native-ways-of-knowing-human-people-are-often-referred-to-as-the/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

> [“Action on behalf of life transforms. Because the relationship between self and the world is reciprocal, it is not a question of first getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/action-on-behalf-of-life-transforms-because-the-relationship-between/)

[Robin Wall Kimmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

[Explore all 16 Robin Wall Kimmerer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/)

## More Agriculture quotes

> [Advances in technology will continue to reach far into every sector of our economy. Future job and economic growth in industry, defense, transportation, agriculture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-bond/advances-in-technology-will-continue-to-reach-far-into-every-sector/)

[Christopher Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-bond/)

> [To husband is to use with care, to keep, to save, to make last, to conserve. Old usage tells us that there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/to-husband-is-to-use-with-care-to-keep-to-save-to-make-last-to/)

[Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/)

> [As the first Member of Congress from western Washington to serve on the House Agriculture Committee in over 50 years, I am proud to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-larsen/as-the-first-member-of-congress-from-western-washington-to-serve-on/)

[Rick Larsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-larsen/)

> [Conventional agriculture has never succeeded in feeding the world, and it's never produced anything good to eat. For the future, we need to look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-barber/conventional-agriculture-has-never-succeeded-in-feeding-the-world-and/)

[Dan Barber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-barber/)

> [I would say my fraternity was nothing but a bunch of farm boys; we weren't really in the whole fraternity scene, but yeah, that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-bryan/i-would-say-my-fraternity-was-nothing-but-a-bunch-of-farm-boys-we/)

[Luke Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-bryan/)

> [I grew up in Italy, and our country is a country of great agriculture and food produce. It wasn't like I was urban and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-rossellini/i-grew-up-in-italy-and-our-country-is-a-country-of-great-agriculture/)

[Isabella Rossellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-rossellini/)

> [Farmers, get out your sense of humor. Congress meets to relieve you again next week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/farmers-get-out-your-sense-of-humor-congress-meets-to-relieve-you/)

[Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/)

> [Because Iran understands Afghanistan far better than Americans do, making Iran a partner in a long-term effort to transform Afghan agriculture makes sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kinzer/because-iran-understands-afghanistan-far-better-than-americans-do/)

[Stephen Kinzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kinzer/)

> [Sara Scherr and Jeff McNeely have given us a thoughtful, sensible book about a topic of great importance to the world. There is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ismail-serageldin/sara-scherr-and-jeff-mcneely-have-given-us-a-thoughtful-sensible-book/)

[Ismail Serageldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ismail-serageldin/)

> [People want development, modern thinking. They want to encourage and support research in agriculture and other fields.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharad-pawar/people-want-development-modern-thinking-they-want-to-encourage-and/)

[Sharad Pawar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharad-pawar/)

> [Growing corn, which from a biological perspective had always been a process of capturing sunlight to turn into food, has in no small measure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/growing-corn-which-from-a-biological-perspective-had-always-been-a/)

[Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/)

> [When politicians talk of loan waiver, they are accepting that agriculture is not economically viable. They are giving a wrong signal that farming is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-s-swaminathan/when-politicians-talk-of-loan-waiver-they-are-accepting-that/)

[M. S. Swaminathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-s-swaminathan/)

> [Nitrogen-based fertilizers, which came into wide use after World War II, helped prompt the agricultural revolution that has allowed the Earth to feed its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tatiana-schlossberg/nitrogen-based-fertilizers-which-came-into-wide-use-after-world-war/)

[Tatiana Schlossberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tatiana-schlossberg/)

> [Agriculture is one economic activity that does not obey the laws of demand and supply.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/agriculture-is-one-economic-activity-that-does-not-obey-the-laws-of/)

[John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/)

> [More than a mere alternative strategy, regenerative agriculture represents a fundamental shift in our culture’s relationship to nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-eisenstein/more-than-a-mere-alternative-strategy-regenerative-agriculture/)

[Charles Eisenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-eisenstein/)

[Browse all 889 Agriculture quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agriculture/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Always value people over things\" \"Without farmers you'd be naked, hungry, and sober”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Robin Wall Kimmerer"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/always-value-people-over-things-without-farmers-you-d-be-naked-hungry/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Agriculture"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/always-value-people-over-things-without-farmers-you-d-be-naked-hungry/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/820/robin-wall-kimmerer-31517_agriculture_always-value-people-over-things-without_3155491.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/820/robin-wall-kimmerer-31517_agriculture_always-value-people-over-things-without_3155491.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/820/robin-wall-kimmerer-31517_agriculture_always-value-people-over-things-without_3155491.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Always value people over things\" \"Without farmers you'd be naked, hungry, and sober” — Robin Wall Kimmerer",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Robin Wall Kimmerer",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wall-kimmerer/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Always value people over things\" \"Without...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/always-value-people-over-things-without-farmers-you-d-be-naked-hungry/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wall-kimmerer/always-value-people-over-things-without-farmers-you-d-be-naked-hungry/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
