DR. DICKSON D. DESPOMMIER is an emeritus professor of microbiology and Public Health at Columbia University. From 1971-2009, he conducted research on intracellular parasitism and taught courses on parasitic diseases, medical ecology and ecology. In recent years, he has received considerable media coverage for his ideas on vertical farming. He developed the concept over a 10-year period with graduate students in a medical ecology class.

Despommier is also co-host of three popular podcasts along and has authored or co-authored 7 books. The one we’re looking at today is: The Vertical Farm: Feeding The World in The 21st Century, from St. Martin’s Press.

The term VERTICAL FARMING has not been around long. It is defined as, the practice of producing food in vertically stacked layers, such as in a skyscraper, used warehouse, or shipping container. The modern ideas of vertical farming use indoor farming techniques and controlled-environment agriculture (CEA) technology, where all environmental factors can be controlled. These facilities utilize artificial control of light, environmental control (humidity, temperature, gases...) and fertigation. Some vertical farms use techniques similar to greenhouses, where natural sunlight can be augmented with artificial lighting and metal reflectors.

Find out more information at his website verticalfarm.com