The breadbasket of the United States, defined by those family farms spread out as checkered squares we fly over in the center of the country, are richly enmeshed in the storied history that defines iconic American ideals. These landscapes of fertile soil and rolling fields anchor our perception of American security and independence.
But those same lands, laying out across the American Midwest, are suffering greatly, as are the families trying to keep those farms alive. The ability to thrive as a farmer has faded into history. Subsistence is all that’s left.
The danger, damage and devastation brought by climate change has become a costly reality, its impact on the future a sad certainty.
This Politico article by Scott Mahaskey in photos and description details the evolving trauma.