The Problem with Solutions

Why Silicon Valley Can't Hack the Future of Food

Julie Guthman

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English

University of California Press
24 September 2024

Food & society; Social discrimination; Central government policies; Political activism; Agriculture & farming

A concise and feisty takedown of the all-style, no-substance tech ventures that fail to solve our food crises.

Why has Silicon Valley become the model for addressing today's myriad social and ecological crises? With this book, Julie Guthman digs into the impoverished solutions for food and agriculture currently emerging from Silicon Valley, urging us to stop trying to fix our broken food system through finite capitalistic solutions and technological moonshots that do next to nothing to actualize a more just and sustainable system.

The Problem with Solutions combines an analysis of the rise of tech company solution culture with findings from actual research on the sector's ill-informed attempts to address the problems of food and agriculture. As this seductive approach continues to infiltrate universities and academia, Guthman challenges us to reject apolitical and self-gratifying techno-solutions and develop the capacity and willingness to respond to the root causes of these crises. Solutions, she argues, are a product of our current condition, not an answer to it.

By: Julie Guthman
Imprint: University of California Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 216mm, Width: 140mm, Spine: 20mm
Weight: 318g
ISBN: 9780520402676
ISBN 10: 0520402677
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 24 September 2024
Audience: College/higher education , Further / Higher Education
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Contents Preface Introduction: The Origins of Solutions 1 Silicon Valley and the Urge to Make the World aBetter Place 2 Agrifood Solutions before Silicon Valley 3 Silicon Valley Bites Off Agriculture and Food 4 Alternative Protein and the Nothing Burger of the Techno-Fix 5 Digital Technologies and Plowing Through to the Problem 6 Silicon Valley Thinking Comes to the University 7 Big Ideas and Making Silicon Valley–Style Solution Makers Conclusion: The Pessimism of Solutions and the (Cautious) Optimism of Response Acknowledgments Glossary of Terms Notes Bibliography Index

Julie Guthman is a geographer and Distinguished Professor in Sociology at University of California, Santa Cruz. Her previous books include Wilted: Pathogens, Chemicals, and the Fragile Future of the Strawberry Industry.

Reviews for The Problem with Solutions: Why Silicon Valley Can't Hack the Future of Food

“Meets this moment with political-economic analysis, humor and clear-eyed critique. Guthman — author of several books that examine the intersection of policy, capital and agriculture — is well-positioned both geographically and intellectually to provide deep yet extremely accessible insight into Silicon Valley’s solution-first process for engaging with food and agriculture.” * FoodPrint *