Translator: Galia Cukierman Reviewer: Cristina Bufi-Pöcksteiner
This is a tomato I bought today in the supermarket.
I really love tomatoes in my salad.
Do you know what will happen
if I put these tomato seeds in the soil?
Nothing, absolutely nothing.
The seeds in this tomato are specially engineered
to never grow tomatoes again.
So, you might ask yourself why.
Why would anyone do that?
The answer is simple:
the seed companies are trying to protect their patented seeds from spreading.
That way, farmers always have to buy more seeds.
(Laughter)
As nature designed life,
seeds are one of the most intelligent form.
Every small change in the environment causes the plant to evolve.
The seed holds all of this ancient knowledge.
It is the best storage device in nature.
So in that special moment, at the right place,
with the right amount of water, the magic of life occurs.
My passion for plants started 12 years ago
when I was a young student for chemical engineering.
I took a surf trip to Costa Rica and met an American couple.
Their happiness and ability to live the moment struck me.
We instantly connected,
and soon I found myself sailing with them to the unknown.
As we were sailing, the lady whispered in my ears
that, over a year ago,
her doctor gave her three months to live:
cancer stage three.
They tried so many things, nothing worked.
So, finally, as a last action, they decided to go to Costa Rica.
They completely changed their lifestyle and diet.
One of the key components in their diet was Noni,
a medicinal tropical fruit which is known for its healing properties.
Then my new friend showed me a photo of herself one year ago
when she was super skinny and pale.
I was completely shocked.
And there she was, standing in front of me,
happier than ever, 20 kilos more, way beyond the doctor gave her to live.
That was the seed that sparked my curiosity.
At that moment, I realized that plants hold great medicinal power.
After researching the potential of medicinal plants in nutrition,
for almost a decade,
I have come to realize that consuming fresh vegetables,
especially leafy greens and herbs,
cannot only improve your life, but also save it.
But when it comes to your diet,
it's not what you increase, it's also what we decrease.
Another critical element
is eliminating from your diet most forms of processed foods,
which usually contain crazy amounts of sugar, salts, fats
and so many chemicals, all the addictive food ingredients.
So, if we feel better when we eat better, why aren't we doing it more?
Why don't we treat our body with that attention?
I guess, somewhere along the way, we lost the connection to what we eat.
The 19th century industrial revolution changed how we produce and consume goods.
It was all about producing higher quantities for less money,
regardless the by-product or consequences.
It impacted almost every aspect in our life, including our diet.
It turned what was once a beautiful process
combining man and nature
into an industrialized, profit-based process
which creates pollution and impacts our health and environment.
But, in order for the industrial economy to prosper,
there's a critical element which has to exist:
the perception of absence.
When we perceive our reality as a reality of absence,
it creates a need.
That need turns very fast into a demand,
and, when there's a demand,
there's an opportunity to make more ... money.
Simple.
So, where can we sit in the food industry?
Do you remember my tomato?
Just like the tomato example,
seed companies are doing their best to engineer seeds
as far as possible from the natural way.
First, like we saw, they engineer seeds to never spread again.
Then they engineer seeds with resistance to pesticides.
Pesticides which they also sell, by the way,
and go directly into your body.
Then they engineer seeds to extend shelf life.
As you can see here in the study that was done,
ordinary tomato compared to an engineered one.
All of this for one purpose only.
Any ideas?
Here we go again ... money!
So in the bottom line,
what we save in our pockets, we pay with our health.
Sounds frustrating?
Well, it is!
However, something is happening around us.
There is kind of a shift occurring, and it is happening faster and faster.
In the past decade, we have been changing how we consume and produce goods,
enabling us to gain more control and independency.
A new revolution: the self-manufacturing revolution.
A term coined a few years ago by Prof. Noah Harary.
Just think about it.
Already today, people can manufacture their own products using 3D printing.
As technology advances,
more and more industries are being revolutionized
through the concept of self-manufacturing.
But, for a revolution to really happen,
there is another element which is very important:
the power of the people.
Some may call it the critical mass theory.
When there is a critical amount of people who reach a certain awareness,
they start to induce new ideas and actions.
So , I guess,
spreading a revolution is as important as starting them.
I will call it: SUC-SEED in a revolution.
And I guess there are three main steps in order to SUC-SEED in a revolution:
know it , do it , spread it.
Know it:
Firstly, it's awareness.
We can't impact what we don't understand.
Only by becoming more aware,
we can make a conscious choice of how to act.
That leads me to the second point.
Do it:
I believe that only action can bring change.
Thinking will only get you this far.
And last and very important, spread it:
By doing so, you engage more people that now become more aware,
which leads them to take action.
That's exactly how this cycle keeps on growing and growing.
So, let's get back to me for a second.
I was, and definitely am, aware.
I have seen people with my own eyes who are literary cured by food.
I studied chemical engineering,
and I was shocked to learn
how we use chemicals extensively in all industries
without paying any attention to the impact it creates.
I've traveled around the world
and I've seen something extremely important,
yet massively overlooked.
No matter who we are, or where we are from,
people need, want, and deserve, access to fresh food.
Then I got it
and decided to make a conscious choice.
It was the time for me to just "do it."
That's what made us develop LivingBox.
(Applause)
LivingBox is a sustainable system
which enables you to grow your own fresh vegetables at low costs.
Our vision is simple:
to enable everyone to do it everywhere.
LivingBox is based on a technique called hydroponics.
Hydroponics means growing directly on water,
completely free of soil.
Hydroponics has been here for thousands of years,
and it's all about enriching the water with everything the plant needs.
But, in order to make our vision a reality,
we had to make it much more simple
to make it accessible for all.
We developed a special capsule
which enables everyone to do it without any prior knowledge.
Thank you.
(Applause)
With only 10 minutes per week,
you can grow your own fresh bowl of salad everyday
and even in the city.
Without the dependency in the soil,
you can grow own food locally,
on your rooftop, balcony, or even within your home.
But, you are not the only one who's benefiting from it.
There is another environmental impact.
Just think how much we can reduce
gas emissions, pollution, waste and packaging,
and save a lot of water.
In almost all cultures,
there is a beautiful custom to bless your food.
To bless something is to seed it with your intention.
But I have to ask you something:
Do we really bless our food today?
Part of a real blessing is to know
where it came from or how it got to your plate?
Let me take you to your childhood
when somebody you love made you a sandwich.
Now, compare it to a sandwich you buy in the machine
when you have a busy day at work.
Even if the ingredients are so similar,
how different is the taste?
But how can that be?
I believe it's all about intention.
When food is made with love, it tastes so much better.
Now, imagine what will happen if you sow a seed in the soil
with that blessing and intention,
how it would be to reconnect to how you grow your own food.
Just imagine the impact it can have
on the taste, your health, and the environment.
But here's the thing.
The food revolution will only happen
with the help of each and every one of us.
Know it.
That's exactly what we've been doing here in the past 10 minutes.
Now we all know it.
Do it.
Go and grow your own natural food.
It doesn't really matter how.
Do it in any way you can.
And don't forget:
feed and nourish your body smartly.
Spread it.
Share the knowledge.
Tell what you learn to your friends and family.
That will keep the cycle keep on growing and growing.
And ... how about starting right now?
Look on your TED badges, which are placed close to your heart.
Each and every one of you have there a piece of paper
containing natural seeds of basil.
Seeds with your name on it.
Go and grow them.
Give them water, love, good intention.
Share them with your loved ones.
Spread the seeds of awareness around
because this is how you seed a revolution.
Thank you very much.
(Applause)