REAP/SOW

Modern agriculture has been tweaking the same system for decades, but scientists think we need a new approach for a warmer world — one that involves novel crops. Producer Rachel Yang visits with researchers and explores the challenges of changing what we grow and what we eat.

Most American farmers don’t believe man-made climate change is real. Yet we need those farmers to be part of the climate change solution. So how can we get them on board? Producer Dana Cronin finds a surprising answer in Illinois. Hint: It starts with the soil.

In 1988, a drought made Dave Bishop a different farmer. Back then, he was a freak in farm country. Today, he is the model that we need all farmers to be if we are to have any chance of fighting climate change and continuing to eat.

Over four episodes, host Eve Abrams and her team travel the Midwest, engaging with farmers who are confronting the difficult reality of climate change—increasingly extreme floods and heat—including those who don’t believe they’re part of the problem. We also meet the scientists who are developing new crops that are better suited to an unpredictable climate, and the people who are trying to convinc...