Humans now exploit more than 70% of the Earth’s ice-free surface. Much of that is to grow food. Modern agriculture uses up soil 100 times faster than it can be replenished and swaths of fertile land are withering to desert faster every year.

Where does all this lead? Starvation for many and catastrophic climate change, according to a new IPCC report. Thankfully, there is still time for a different future – and help could come from an unlikely place.

Kelly Reed studied ancient societies and found ingenious ways of growing food that work in greater harmony with nature. In Pre-Incan South America, people raised soil beds above canals to absorb floods and help irrigate crops during droughts. In China 2,000 years ago, rice farmers employed fish for free pest control – growing more healthy protein without harmful pesticides.

These methods are still used today. Their persistence over time suggests they could be a more reliable way of feeding the world in an increasingly uncertain future.

Also, read what The Lion King can teach us about how children deal with grief, and consider the challenge facing Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour party as Britain gears up for a potential general election later this year.

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