The Dust Bowl: Ken Burns Featured At The National Youth Summit (VIDEO)

How Can We Prevent Another Dust Bowl?

This is in fact a classic story of human nature coming up against Mother Nature. And guess what, Mother Nature always wins. – Ken Burns

On October 17, 2012, I was offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to moderate the National Youth Summit on the Dust Bowl, presented by the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History and PBS. The guest of honor was Ken Burns, Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning documentarian. His newest film, The Dust Bowl, chronicles what he calls "the worst man-made ecological disaster in American history."

Joining us on stage was dust bowl survivor Cal Crabill, fifth generation farmer Roy Bardole, USDA research ecologist Deb Peters, and Anson Mills founder Glenn Roberts. With the help of students from around the country, we discussed how learning about the Dust Bowl can contribute to our current understanding of drought and agricultural sustainability. How might we prevent such a catastrophe from occurring in America today?

To learn more, watch the video at the top of the page. And don't forget to contribute to the discussion in the comments section below.

The Dust Bowl premieres Sunday, November 18 & 19, at 8pm EST on PBS.

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