In a world grappling with a multitude of crises, the future of global agriculture has emerged as a focal point for critical questions and decisive action. As nations face the challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, food security, and economic resilience, it has become imperative to address the pressing issues that will shape the future of agriculture.
On October 6, 2023 at the Arizona State University DC campus, the Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems, TMG Think Tank for Sustainability, Berlin Germany and the German Embassy of Washington DC joined together to host an event designed to identify the most pressing questions policymakers must confront as they write the forthcoming US farm bill.
The conversation kicked off with a review of a 2010 publication titled “The Top 100 Questions of Importance to the Future of Global Agriculture.” The panel pondered whether it was fitting to revisit this assessment and give these questions greater significance in today’s context. Their unanimous response? Absolutely, yes!
Alexander Müller, TMG, talked about the four C’s: Climate, Conflict, Costs, and COVID. The dynamics unleashed by these four interlinked crises pose profound additional challenges for food system transformation calling for better risk management. The first report of the Foresee Report Series of the CLIF project analyses the 4Cs and how they interact with the dynamics of the current agri-food systems. Müller argued that a big change since 2010 is that we are now talking about food systems, not just agriculture, approaching the subject with a holistic systems approach. He also raises attention to the fact that the narrative has changed. Instead of maximizing yields and increasing efficiency, the goals is now to transform food systems. However, the world seems to avoid coming to concrete terms that this means regarding the direction and implementation of food systems transformation. Report 4 of the Foresee series will launch in December offering a transformation protocol supporting the development of concrete transformation solutions.
You can watch the recording of the event here: Critical Questions to Ask and Answer about the Future of Global Agriculture – YouTube
