By comparison, smaller and family-owned ranching operations have had a history of being progressive when it comes to pushing a sustainable agenda. Although, these operations are often grouped together with large-scale agriculture, which solely advances the environmental costs seen in food production. I was able to interview one of the members of the Sunset community pasture and a proud family rancher herself, Kristina Schweitzer.

Schweitzer has been ranching for about 25 years with her husband, Troy. She is an active board member, amongst 20 other families of the community pasture, and takes part in using the roundup operation annually. Schweitzer’s family owns an individual ranch, which produces forage (grass, dry hay, etc.) for her cattle operation and sells/markets her own livestock (cow-calf operation). She was adamant in expressing how she, and other small families that use the round-up system, are sustainable and open-minded operators of livestock. 

“Sustainability in farming can be different to each operation or family. We are young enough, able to adapt, and able to change,” Schweitzer commented.

Schweitzer was able to provide in critical detail how her ranching operation had itself changed over time to adapt and acknowledge the growing concern for agricultural sustainability in Canada. Her individual ranch has adopted a solar-powered watering system. They also plant grass that helps prevent soil erosion and aids in cleaning water and air systems, and regularly adapt and change their operation based on best evolving practices for climate-change mitigation. On the roundup operation, Schweitzer detailed that grazing cattle on fields (like that seen on Sunset pasture) often helps sequester carbon and foster the health of those grasslands. Schweitzer shared:

“As farmers, we really do care about the environment. I feel as though our biggest partnership in farming is mother nature. I am thankful for all the things the environment gives to us, like rainfall, sunshine, and warmth for our beautiful soil. It is our passion.”

And the last part was most important. Nettie Wild documented the mesmerizing design of this corral, but more significantly, the passion of these farmers. As viewers, we could not have possibly understood the sustainable practices of the roundup operation, but neither did we cast our usual judgment on the ‘cruelty of farming’. We simply watched and were awed about the corral and synchronicity of people, animals, and their land. As Wild detailed about her art piece,

“If this film had a purpose, it would be to surprise people. It’s engaging, it doesn’t turn people away, it pulls people together. Maybe there is a conversation to be had there…on common ground.”

In the end, that is all that mattered. The establishing of a common ground, where two distinctly opposite groups, such as farmers and conservationists, could have a discussion on a sustainable future, where solutions could be pondered and no judgment would inhibit or stall environmental progress. People would not assign blame, but rather be appreciative of current eco-friendly initiatives, like the roundup operations and its care towards all species. That is what art can do and that is what Nettie Wild’s Roundup did.

Create a common (circular) ground for warring individuals to stop fighting each other and start saving their planet instead. 

Ishani Dasgupta is majoring in Environment, Resources, and Sustainability (ERS), while also pursuing a minor in English & Literature Studies, at the University of Waterloo. She is a dedicated environmental writer and has worked throughout the course of her career to write about the challenges faced by communities, natural spaces, and activists alike regarding the destruction of the natural environment–she is interested in exploring global inequities created by the current Anthropocene. In her free time, Ishani likes to make music, read, and go on nature walks. Ishani previously took on the role of an editorial coordinator for Alternatives Journal (A/J).