John P. Reganold
Addressing the Sustainability of Agriculture
Because there has been growing apprehension about the long-term health of conventional agriculture, many farmers and consumers are looking at alternative systems, such as organic, integrated, and conservation agriculture, to make agriculture more sustainable. Dr. John P. Reganold’s farming systems research measures the effects of alternative and conventional farming on sustainability indicators: soil health, crop quality, financial performance, environmental quality, and social responsibility. He has successfully conducted his sustainability research on more than 100 farms on five continents.
Dr. Reganold has assembled transdisciplinary teams, representing soil science, horticulture, agronomy, food science, economics,entomology, plant pathology, sociology, molecular biology, and statistics, to pool their skills in assessing the sustainability of different farming systems. Using his on-farm methodology, Reganold’s teams have been able to answer the following question: Can alternative systems be as or more sustainable than their conventional counterparts? His research has shown that organic, biodynamic, and integrated farming systems are not only more sustainable, but that their practices can mitigate some of the hazardous effects of conventional agriculture on the environment.
Reganold’s research contributions in farming systems research have been novel, pioneering, and creative. His work has laid a strong foundation for sustainable agriculture research, as measured by the number of times his peers have cited his publications. Literally hundreds of newspapers, many science magazines, and numerous radio and TV stations have featured articles or reports about his research. Dr. Reganold’s on-farm studies have created some of the largest published data sets on alternative and conventional agricultural systems. Such large data sets have had a significant impact on U.S. public policy and farm bills, creating major policy incentives to reduce the use of chemicals in the production of the nation’s food.
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Contact Information
Dr. John P. Reganold, Ph.D.
Regents Professor of Soil Science & Agroecology
Department of Crop and Soil Sciences
Washington State University
PO Box 646420
257 Johnson Hall
Pullman WA 99164-6420
Telephone: 509-335-8856
Fax: 509-335-8674
E-mail: reganold@wsu.edu
