I imagine a day when a miracle has happened.

On that day our streams run clear, our air smells of nature and not the moldered waste of a swine legion. Children play in our lakes while parents look on unconcerned about infection. From our faucet flows water we can know is safe to drink.

The work of prosperous farmers enhances the quality of life for all and not just a tiny fraction. Iowa remains a working landscape but one that fosters the well-being of native plants and animals, which have returned in abundance to comingle with a crop and livestock production system designed for human nutrition and environmental outcomes. The commerce from this system has rekindled rural life and reversed the migration of young people to big cities and distant states.

Many say these are impossible goals—the world has changed too much. Why do we let those that benefit most from the status quo define what is and isn’t possible? Shouldn’t we the people define the possible?

Chris Jones
Candidate for Iowa Secretary of Agriculture