Three years ago Norman Borlaug died. Borlaug was instrumental in the Agricultural Revolution that occurred in the second half of the 20th century and thus because of his work, millions of people who otherwise would have starved to death lived. In short, he proved Malthus wrong. Here’s our 2009 obituary for Borlaug. From the obit:
Don Boudreaux, an economist at George Mason University, said that doubtlessly, with malnutrition less of a threat in the developing world, there were millions of babies born who otherwise would not have been. It is hard to imagine one life having more of a positive effect on so many people as Borlaug’s did.
This, from Jarrett Skorup writes a nice appreciation of Borlaug, with this incredible fact:
He is one of just six people to win the Nobel Peace Prize, the Congressional Gold Medal and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. And yet Borlaug, who died three years ago today, is scarcely known in his own country.
Few Nobel Peace prize winners actually unambiguously made the world a better place, but Borlaug was one of them.
