Show Notes
Chuck Chan is an accomplished amateur crop breeder from the humid cloud forests of California, adapting plants to his little pocket of Andean climate. He has made the most of his challenges by breeding a host of rare crops which struggle in other places, particularly the root crop Mashua, and papaya relative Vasconcellea along with numerous other projects. We also delve into how he manages his diverse plant collection and his experiences sharing the breeding work with the wider community. You can check out glimpses of his successes through his regular posts: https://www.facebook.com/chuck.chan.562019
Sign up to Recombination Nation on Substack for free weekly articles: https://recombinationnation.substack.com Read Shane's book, Taming the Apocalypse, about the future of post industrial biological technology: https://www.amazon.com/Taming-Apocalypse-Shane-Simonsen-ebook/dp/B0D2XCLJ85/
More from Recombination Nation
James Shapiro has spent a life time studying the evolvability of life and its capacity to change itself and the mechanisms by which it changes on multiple different levels with countless mechanisms. For an in depth read on his theories check out Evolution: A View from the 21st Century Or explore his website The Third Way- Evolution in the Era of Genomics and Epigenomics,
Andrew Cutler started out researching LLMs and the analysis of the fundamental elements of human personality but has since branched out into explorations of the evolutionary origin of modern human consciousness (hinted at in countless oral histories shared by multiple cultures today). Check out more of his work at Vectors of Mind on Substack.
Jacob Wolki is an innovator and advocate for regenerative farming, running a direct to consumer mixed livestock farm in rural Australia. We talk about the impact of animal genetics on the viability of such operations, and the impact of new technology on the perpetual challenge of marketing and sales. Check out Wolki Farms website Follow Jacob on twitter or Facebook.
Ashley Fitzgerald took the path less travelled, through a PhD on subsistence agriculture in the USA, to a stint of idyllic rural life in Uruguay, then back into the bubbling cauldron of American suburbia. We discuss the lessons learnt from this life of creative and hopeful responses to the challenges of our time, Follow Ashley on twitter Subscribe to Doomer Optimism on substack Or catch their own interviews on YouTube or any major podcasting app.
Stefan Schmitz is the executive director of Crop Trust, an international non-profit working to preserve crop genetic diversity and support food security across the globe. The organisation was a key contributor to the Svalbard seed vault along with countless similar organisations in less dramatic locations. We discussed the potential for amateur crop breeders to collaborate with large institutions.