FloatingFarms

Current agriculture practices have catastrophic impacts on Earth's natural systems, cycles and biodiversity. Our floating membrane hydroponics solution moves traditional monocrop farms to the surface of the ocean where the net impact on other species is reduced by orders of magnitude. Floating agriculture would allow for the reduction of open-field plantations and restoration of natural habitats and ecosystems.

There are two root causes that explain the current agriculture dilemma we face. First, artificial food production (farming) which has fundamentally been a net destroyer of the natural environment, has been doomed from the moment our species transitioned out of hunting and gathering from the ecosystem's natural and balanced carrying capacity and food chain. The second, population growth, which acts as a multiplier, is an aggravator of the problem. Our explosive population growth along with food production techniques that feed us at the cost of other species is flawed and can only lead to one outcome given enough time: ecological collapse. Human beings have allowed themselves to get dangerously far into this pattern of destruction by building invasive systems that rely less on nature and compete with other species.

We farm in areas previously dense with life because of the natural concentration of agriculture resources such as top soil and water. But unfortunately we wipe out forests and habitats as we make room for agriculture. This needs to stop. Turning desserts green where life is scarce is thinking in the right direction but even desertland is in short supply. Ocean surface is plentiful.

The solution is to grow staple crops that represent the majority of our calories like corn, wheat, rice and soy through hydroponics, in simple floating membranes that function through buoyancy as conveyor belt agriculture fields, in the ocean. Minimal material costs, increased energy efficiencies and utilization of natural light for photosynthesis all function together to move large scale commercial agriculture to an area of the Planet that is not in short supply - the surface of our oceans. While the oceans are vast and rich in life, covering a small portion of its surface would be orders of magnitude less impactful than stripping thick vegetation out of land.

Floating Agriculture serves the integrity of Planet Earth’s greater ecosystem which also serves Homo Sapien in the long-term. Today, we have the ability to desalinate salt water, capture and store renewable energy, upcycle organic waste and even genetically optimise crops. Our solution brings all those components together through a missing link (floating technology) that vertically integrates food production in the ocean. Because it’s not replacing forests with farmland, it allows for a net-capture of CO2 which could help expand Earth’s ‘lungs’ and reverse climate change.

The vision for floating farms involves working with current farmers to return farmland back to pre-agriculture conditions. It's complicated, but the floating farms have to compete with open-field farms economically, which they should in theory and based on our prototypes.

I’ve figured out a way to produce carbon neutral calories with minimum environmental impact, especially on land

It’s simple hydroponics, comprising deep-water culture, aeration and water&fertilizer management which isn’t currently viable for grains because it requires a lot of infrastructure on land. But on water it’s surprising viable and simple and can outcompete soil-based monocrops

We currently have a prototype on a lake growing corn. I can show photos to the team.

This is the prototype:

It will work on ocean choppy water. Waves wouldn't be as problematic as one would think. Both waves and wind can be absorbed or diffused in the perimeter of the farm. But watch this video which should resemble the mechanics.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYeE1R0Hud0

My theory of change is that we need to solve and transition into sustainable use of Water, Energy and Land: Energy is being solved - renewable energy is on the rise and will continue to reduce energy costs since it’s no longer dependent on fossil fuels which are diminishing. 

Fresh water is an energy problem and a combination of emerging techniques along with energy costs reduction factored in with increased shortage of freshwater supplies will transition the world into desalination. 

Land is the hard one to solve and agriculture is the biggest responsible human activity. The only possible future where climate change is addressed is by eliminating the impact of food on land and resources.

I have been working with agriculture my whole career. I served on the Board of Indoor Harvest Corp. which installed Media Lab’s Open Ag platform and have seen first handed the flaws and limitations of vertical farming. I then started an EdTech start-up (JustLearn.io) serving 20,000 environmental science students using an aquaponics platform called PlanetBox that makes systems-thinking more hands-on and accessible. I am eager to share what I have been conceptualising and working on which I believe could solve agriculture.

I have watched SOLVE closely because I appreciate this format and community. I have been waiting for the challenge on food and the environmental environment and Sustainable Food Systems is where I feel I will shine.