How will these resources help you?

When people picture deserts they often think of rolling dunes and nomadic people. However, delving deeper reveals a complex and dynamic biome, which can be both used and damaged by people. These resources take the reader from a wider overview of deserts, through a consideration of their importance as ecosystems, to a focus on their use for farming. Nomadic groups of people have used the desert as a home and source of food throughout history, but deserts are now also home to modern developments such as aquaponic farms which provide fish and crops to improve food security. However, unsustainable use of desert for farming can bring disaster to both the ecosystem and the farmers. Use of marginal land for farming in Australia could be argued to be an example of this. Should we farm the desert? Perhaps before we answer we need to consider which deserts are being farmed and how the farming is being carried out.