"Mr. (Yadi) Wang had never seen a farm before moving to the United States from China to play college
basketball in the mid-2010s. He was inspired to become a regenerative farmer by his former career as a
chemical process engineer.
“I saw firsthand a lot of environmental devastation,” he said."
Yadi Wang, a first-generation regenerative farmer in Tucson, Arizona, said that he is part of a growing
number of farmers who believe land stewardship is more important than land ownership.
Wang said regenerative practices have allowed his employer, Oatman Flats Ranch, to maintain a resilient
and profitable grain-and-livestock operation in one of the driest climates in the country.
“Congress needs to invest more money on land management, on soil and water conservation so that we can
truly have viable land and farmers can continue to grow food for the people,” Wang said at the Tuesday
rally. “Regenerative agriculture is the way forward.”
"...Throughout, sustainable practices are organically present: including a zero waste clothing stall,
the Awareness Ranch booth which takes in trash for appropriate sorting, and an afternoon dedicated to
the Regenerate AZ discourse programme. “Music and art festivals leave lasting impressions on the
viewers and attendees. Memories formed by lived experience will last a lifetime. By bringing simple
practices of sustainability and a hopeful message to the forefront of these events we raise
consciousness and can positively affect our culture,” notes Guru Das Bock.
“My submission for that particular project was not going to meet the criteria but from there she
connected me with a now business partner of mine, Yadi Wang in Arizona SOL L3C and Development of
Regenerative Yields (DRY) Co-Op,” Baquet said.
“My submission for that particular project was not going to meet the criteria but from there she
connected me with a now business partner of mine, Yadi Wang in Arizona SOL L3C and Development of
Regenerative Yields (DRY) Co-Op,” Baquet said.
"Located in the Sonoran Desert, 60 miles north of the Mexican border (and, now, “The Wall”), Tucson has
the longest agricultural history of any state in the US. Arizona itself is the oldest inhabited region
in the country, with indigenous people cultivating the land here for at least 10,000 years. With that in
mind, HOCO ticket holders were given free access to Regenerate AZ – a summit featuring talks on food
supply during the water crisis, regenerative agriculture, and sustainability in the music industry.
Speakers included first nations farmers from San Xavier Co-op, first-generation farmers from Awareness
Ranch and Arizona SOL L3C, members of non-profit organisations like Canelo Project and loads more – all
talking about things like how to grow food and use water in a circular way that goes back into and
benefits from the land. Considering the omnipresence of corporate conferences on sustainability, where
people from BP and Amazon et al get together and talk about how to fix the world by doing something –
when they could help right now by simply not existing – it was refreshing to come away feeling like
change was not only possible, but underway."
"HOCO Fest celebrates its 16th anniversary Labor Day weekend with a “forward-facing” twist: the
Regenerate AZ: Sonoran Desert Sustainability Summit. Matt Baquet, the festival’s director of four years,
called it a “homecoming.”
“I truly believe and hope that we will begin this process in this era of Tucson becoming a beacon symbol
of sustainable, regenerative, collaborative community work,” Baquet said.
The annual boutique festival, which took a hiatus in 2020 and 2021, is placing the climate crisis at the
forefront. Festival coordinators, including Baquet, hope to foster conversations and connections between
creative minds such as Mexican musician and environmental activist, Caloncho, James Beard award winner
Don Guerra of Barrio Bread, keynote speaker and co-founder of the national soil health nonprofit Kiss
the Ground, Finian Makepeace, and many other local and visiting researchers, permaculturists and
farmers."