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diplomacyJul 27, 2026
Bird droppings were a foundation of modern agriculture and American empire
Summary
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly one-third of the world’s fertilizer normally passes, has made clear that access to nutrients for crops remains as strategically important in the 21st century as access to oil. As an environmental historian, I study how fertilizer transformed the modern world.
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- Edward D MelilloBy Edward D Melillo
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly one-third of the world’s fertilizer normally passes, has made clear that access to nutrients for crops remains as strategically important in the 21st century as access to oil. As an environmental historian, I study how fe…
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