--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Instead of trying to understand…" description: "\"Instead of trying to understand agriculture in its own terms, acknowledge that agriculture ultimately comes out of nature. Right now agriculture is the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/wes-jackson-26171_acknowledge_instead-of-trying-to-understand-agricult_1109178.png" --- # Instead of trying to understand agriculture in its own… ![“Instead of trying to understand agriculture in its own terms, acknowledge that agriculture ultimately comes out of nature. Right now agriculture is the No. 1 threat to biodiversity on the planet.” quote by Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/wes-jackson-26171_acknowledge_instead-of-trying-to-understand-agricult_1109178.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/wes-jackson-26171_acknowledge_instead-of-trying-to-understand-agricult_1109178.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/wes-jackson-26171_acknowledge_instead-of-trying-to-understand-agricult_1109178.png) > “Instead of trying to understand agriculture in its own terms, acknowledge that agriculture ultimately comes out of nature. Right now agriculture is the No. 1 threat to biodiversity on the planet.” [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Agriculture should be seen as part of nature, not separate; it currently threatens biodiversity the **In simple terms:** Treat farming as natural, not separate, because it harms biodiversity Key Takeaway Recognize farming’s ecological role and protect ecosystems Themes environment agriculture biodiversity Mood concerned urgent thoughtful Type analytical advocacy When to use this quote - policy making - land management - conservation planning - educational curricula - community gardening Key Concepts sustainability ecosystem services holistic management Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance food production with ecosystem health? - What policies could reduce agriculture’s biodiversity impact? A Different Perspective Agriculture can also provide essential food security, creating trade‑offs ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Agriculture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agriculture/) [Biodiversity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biodiversity/) [Gardening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gardening/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Threat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threat/) ## Related quotes > [Turtles are very stable and have been around forever. But they have problems adapting. When humans came along, turtles came under serious threat. Biodiversity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linus-torvalds/turtles-are-very-stable-and-have-been-around-forever-but-they-have/) [Linus Torvalds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linus-torvalds/) > [“We have to now been shielded from the greatest threat to our biodiversity. That threat is us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-golby/we-have-to-now-been-shielded-from-the-greatest-threat-to-our/) Mike Golby > [I came to all the realizations about sustainability and biodiversity because I fell in love with the way food tastes. That was it. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-waters/i-came-to-all-the-realizations-about-sustainability-and-biodiversity/) [Alice Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-waters/) > [An agricultural landscape produces food but it also provides water, requires biodiversity to underpin soil function, pollination and other useful services, and also has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-benton/an-agricultural-landscape-produces-food-but-it-also-provides-water/) Tim Benton > [I can't imagine anything more important than air, water, soil, energy and biodiversity. These are the things that keep us alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/i-can-t-imagine-anything-more-important-than-air-water-soil-energy/) [David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/) > [For us, not cooperating in the monopoly regimes of intellectual property rights and patents and biodiversity - saying "no" to patents on life, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vandana-shiva/for-us-not-cooperating-in-the-monopoly-regimes-of-intellectual/) [Vandana Shiva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vandana-shiva/) > [We share this planet with many species. It is our responsibility to protect them, both for their sakes and our own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-a-matson/we-share-this-planet-with-many-species-it-is-our-responsibility-to/) Pamela A. Matson > [If we pollute the air, water and soil that keep us alive and well, and destroy the biodiversity that allows natural systems to function,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/if-we-pollute-the-air-water-and-soil-that-keep-us-alive-and-well-and/) [David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/) > [“The bottom line answer to the question about why biodiversity matters is fairly simple: The rest of the living world can get along without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-a-earle/the-bottom-line-answer-to-the-question-about-why-biodiversity-matters/) Sylvia A. Earle > [Civilization has ceased to be that delicate flower which was preserved and painstakingly cultivated in one or two sheltered areas of a soil rich…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-levi-strauss/civilization-has-ceased-to-be-that-delicate-flower-which-was/) [Claude Levi-Strauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-levi-strauss/) > [Man has created death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/man-has-created-death/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [I will defend the absolute value of Mozart over Miley Cyrus, of course I will, but we should be wary of false dichotomies. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/i-will-defend-the-absolute-value-of-mozart-over-miley-cyrus-of-course/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [We should preserve every scrap of biodiversity as priceless while we learn to use it and come to understand what it means to humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/we-should-preserve-every-scrap-of-biodiversity-as-priceless-while-we/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [The thing that I think about most often is the loss of biodiversity. We talk about these food issues so often with concern to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-terry/the-thing-that-i-think-about-most-often-is-the-loss-of-biodiversity/) [Bryant Terry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-terry/) > [Agricultural demand for water - probably the largest threat to freshwater species - continues to increase. ... Meanwhile, threats to terrestrial biodiversity - primarily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indur-m-goklany/agricultural-demand-for-water-probably-the-largest-threat-to/) Indur M. Goklany ## More by Wes Jackson > [We the people, so to speak, need to realize that if we can keep ourselves fed, we might get through this long dark tunnel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/we-the-people-so-to-speak-need-to-realize-that-if-we-can-keep/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [When people, land, and community are as one, all three members prosper; when they relate not as members but as competing interests, all three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/when-people-land-and-community-are-as-one-all-three-members-prosper/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [We recognize that our progress as a species does not have to be defined in terms of wealth or material and physical growth any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/we-recognize-that-our-progress-as-a-species-does-not-have-to-be/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [Politicians are simply reflections of the public.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/politicians-are-simply-reflections-of-the-public/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [Our task is to build cultural fortresses to protect our emerging nativeness. They must be strong enough to hold at bay the powers of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/our-task-is-to-build-cultural-fortresses-to-protect-our-emerging/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [Since nature has the most sustainable ecosystem and since ultimately agriculture comes out of nature, our standard for a sustainable world should be nature's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/since-nature-has-the-most-sustainable-ecosystem-and-since-ultimately/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [“We have become a more juvenile culture. We have become a childish "me, me, me" culture with fifteen-second attention spans. The global village that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/we-have-become-a-more-juvenile-culture-we-have-become-a-childish-me/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [As we search for a less extractive and polluting economic order, so that we may fit agriculture into the economy of a sustainable culture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/as-we-search-for-a-less-extractive-and-polluting-economic-order-so/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [The agriculture we seek will act like an ecosystem, feature material recycling and run on the contemporary sunlight of our star.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/the-agriculture-we-seek-will-act-like-an-ecosystem-feature-material/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [When we conduct agriculture, we are, therefore, altering the ecological arrangement that was responsible for our genesis as a species. I think that this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/when-we-conduct-agriculture-we-are-therefore-altering-the-ecological/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [If your life's work can be accomplished in your lifetime, you're not thinking big enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/if-your-life-s-work-can-be-accomplished-in-your-lifetime-you-re-not/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [If we don't get sustainability right in agriculture first, it won't happen anywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/if-we-don-t-get-sustainability-right-in-agriculture-first-it-won-t/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [If we are really serious about protecting the environment, the discharge pipes and stacks of industry would all plug directly into their intake side,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/if-we-are-really-serious-about-protecting-the-environment-the/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [The farmer and the farm, like "the environment," are looked upon, for example, as means to offset trade deficits. The farm is a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/the-farmer-and-the-farm-like-the-environment-are-looked-upon-for/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) > [A necessary part of our intelligence is on the line as the oral tradition becomes less and less important. There was a time throughout…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-jackson/a-necessary-part-of-our-intelligence-is-on-the-line-as-the-oral/) [Wes Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) [Explore all 22 Wes Jackson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-jackson/) ## More Acknowledge quotes > [Black music has always known, and not been afraid to acknowledge just how high the stakes of Black thought are. To summarize the final…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-b-wilderson-iii/black-music-has-always-known-and-not-been-afraid-to-acknowledge-just/) Frank B. Wilderson III > [I'm a Christian because Christianity names and addresses sin. It acknowledges the reality that the evil we observe in the world is also present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-held-evans/i-m-a-christian-because-christianity-names-and-addresses-sin-it/) [Rachel Held Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-held-evans/) > [The only way to ease our fear and be truly happy is to acknowledge our fear and look deeply at its source. Instead of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-way-to-ease-our-fear-and-be-truly-happy-is-to-acknowledge/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [On Thanksgiving Day we acknowledge our dependence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-jennings-bryan/on-thanksgiving-day-we-acknowledge-our-dependence/) [William Jennings Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-jennings-bryan/) > [You can't go into games with any fear. You can acknowledge a good team but you can't go in worrying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reece-james/you-can-t-go-into-games-with-any-fear-you-can-acknowledge-a-good-team/) [Reece James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reece-james/) > [Conservative feminism is such an artificial term that doesn't mean much to me. For me conservatism means accepting reality. I acknowledge that there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristina-schroder/conservative-feminism-is-such-an-artificial-term-that-doesn-t-mean/) [Kristina Schroder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristina-schroder/) > [We must acknowledge that bearing and raising children is not some pesky, peripheral activity that we engage in, but the whole point.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-maushart/we-must-acknowledge-that-bearing-and-raising-children-is-not-some/) [Susan Maushart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-maushart/) > [When we pray, we must begin by conceiving God in full and vigorous images, but we must go on to acknowledge the inadequacy of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-farrer/when-we-pray-we-must-begin-by-conceiving-god-in-full-and-vigorous/) [Austin Farrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-farrer/) > [Acknowledging foolishness is a very powerful and important experience. We could almost say that being willing to be a fool is one of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chogyam-trungpa/acknowledging-foolishness-is-a-very-powerful-and-important-experience/) [Chogyam Trungpa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chogyam-trungpa/) > [Actually, when I look at my old notebooks, I think I have been a bit self-indulgent and have given myself too much time to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/actually-when-i-look-at-my-old-notebooks-i-think-i-have-been-a-bit/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) > [I would like, then, to end by putting in a good word for the non-industrious poor. At least they aren’t hurting anyone. Insofar as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-graeber/i-would-like-then-to-end-by-putting-in-a-good-word-for-the-non/) [David Graeber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-graeber/) > [No one seriously doubts Socrates' maxim: The unexamined life isn't worth living. Self-assessment and attempts at self-improvement are essential aspects of "the good life."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-burton/no-one-seriously-doubts-socrates-maxim-the-unexamined-life-isn-t/) [Robert A. Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-burton/) > [As objects of contemplation, images of the atrocious can answer to several different needs. To steel oneself against weakness. 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