Nexus: Food - Biodiversity –Water - Climate

Gunilla Almered OlssonHuman Ecology, Global studies, GU

PhD course Sustainability Opportunities 2018

Humans in the ecosystem

FAO 2013

Biodiversity – a prerequisite for human food: wild …. and cultivated/domestic…

Ecosystem services – Nature´s contributions to people

Source: UN-IPBES Regional Assessment 2018

Global status fresh water resources and agricultural irrigation

• 5 to possibly 25% of global freshwater use exceeds long-term accessible supplies (low to medium certainty)

• 15 - 35% of irrigation withdrawals exceed supply rates and are therefore unsustainable (low to medium certainty)

Desertification from deep drilled irrigation wells - the backside of the Green revolution...Tamil Nadu, India

Changes to ecosystems have provided substantial benefits

– Food production has more than doubled since 1960

– Food production per capita has grown

– Food price has fallen – until 2003

MA 2005

Increasing agricultural yields…

Nitrogen and Phosphorus • Essential nutrients for biomass growth,

agricultural fertilizers• Deficit of N, P – no growth -> death of

organisms• Excess of N, P -> Pollution of ecosystems ->

Decrease and disruption of ecosystem services and climate stability.

• N as gas (78%) in the atmosphere –inaccsessible for most organisms. Syntheticallyproduced today – chemical fertilizer

• P in bedrock and sediments in lakes, sea

Peaks of limiting resources

Peak oil

Agro-regimes

Hermele 2013

Rising food prizes...

• Competing demands on agricultural land: peaking resources… biofuels, agro regimes…

• Degraded land• Climate warming• Changing food patterns

Steffen et al. 2011

Croplands and international trade – global food system& selfsuffiency

Kastner et al. 2014.

Metropolitan regions: self-provisioning ofsome food products

Dyball, 2015

AustraliaDenmarkJapanCapitalRegions

Effects of globalized food market See Kneafsey et al. 2013

• Transports between contintens of food products; feed, fertilizers, energy…

• Effects in the North, in Europe, on resilient food production?• Effects in Europe on vulnerability ?• Effects in the South on resilient food production? Vulnerability?• Globalized food systems

Effects of industrial agriculture – rising yields…

oDegradation of Soil fertility – less organic content, degraded capacity to store and circulate nutrients

oWater availability - different scales: arable and landscape scalesoClimate – local and regional –interacting with global climate change• Biological diversity – agrobd & wild bd; arable and landscape scales;

Protection and relilience to pests and deceases• Crops – the genetical material: resistence to diseases, genetic variation gives

resilience to environmental change; seed banks; agro-industrial complex…..Animal raising and meat production; Animal welfare and ethics…?Human work environmentHealth & nutrition value food products

Can we feed 9 billion people on this planet?

• Production capacity• Equity and Environmental justice• Power and equality• Globalization• ’Consumption pattern in the North is driving hunger in the South’

Definition of Food Security

FAO 2008

Food security and Sustainable developmentFood security and Sustainable development for societies - hand in hand• 800 million people in starvation• 2 billion under-nourished• 2 billion overweight• 694 million obese 2014• 574 million ton food waste 2014

Human nutritional needs

• Basal needs for growth, development & regeneration of human body and mind

• 2100 kcal daily• Food habits – consumption pattern – CULTURE?!

• OmnivOry!

• Seasonal foods

Swedish meat consumption

• 85 kg pr person 2016

Beef Pork Lamb

Self sufficiency %

Jordbruksverket 2016

13% 201618% 1976

Urban Food Security & Urban Agriculture

How can Urban Food security be increased? By reliable access to healthy food ->less dependence on the global food chains -> shorter food chains by local/regional food production -> urban and peri-urban agricultureOceans of literature on urban agriculture, cultivation methods, crops and animals: fish, pigs, insects etc, high-tech solutions, hydroponics etc. All those initiatives are important, have huge, still not fully used potential and they are contributing to local food production and to social resilience

STADSNÄRA ODLINGGothenburg City

Unique potential for food production in the Gothenburg region

Peri-urban agriculture at Askesby, Hisingen, Gothenburg municipality

Agricultural land in Kungälv municipality

The current situation… PU agriculture producing food for humans has almost disappeared or changed into something different, mainly fulfilling recreation needs for urban population

An equinized peri-urban landscape

The potential of the Gothenburg peri-urban region - Food issues – lead the way

towards sustainable transitions

GR-Region: 13 municips

VGR-Västra Götalands län: 49 municips

• Gothenburg develops Local Food Strategy• Mistra Urban Futures - Urban Food Network:

researchers & practioners; • Research & Development projects: GU +

Chalmers + business

International goals:New Urban Agenda 2016. UN Habitat UN-SDGs 2015City Region Food Systems CRFS 2016.

City region food systems…

• What is the current status of urban foodsystem work? Food strategy; Action plan?

• Many cities in Europe: Berlin, Freiburg, London, Manchester, Bristol, Lyon…

• … both in Global North and Global South…

’Growing, eating, sharing food brings local communities together.’Seattle Food Action Plan 2012

Food security – linking urban and rural regions• What is Food security for Gothenburg? • How large areas are needed to accomplish Food security for Gothenburg? • Which areas are available and possible to use for this purpose today and until 2030?• Local food? Gbg, GR (13 municips) and VGR (49 municips). • Production forms? Conventional vs organic/agroecological or combinations?• Types of crops and food products – annual, perennial, grain crops, vegetables, meat,

fish, dairy… • Organisation forms and land tenure – e.g.CSA• Health and nutrition dimensions• Food production more than food – other services: landscapes for health & recreation,

biological diversity, cultural heritage• Food production as education for sustainable development….social sustainability –• Cultural diversity & traditional knowledge

Kuyper & Struik 2014

Effects on resources of food production methods

Agroecological methods for food production

Agroecology - Ecosystem based agriculture

Björklund, J. et al. 2012. Ecosystem based agriculture combining production and conservation — a viable way to feed the world in the long term? J. Sustainable Agriculture 36: 824-855.

Sustainable and resilient foodproduction today and tomorrow?Chappell & La Valle 2011; Björklund et al. 2012; McKenzie & Williams 2015

• Vulnerability of food production is increased by Climatechange – GEC. This demands less vulnerability in otherfactors & more resilient food systems

• Independent of environment and biodiversity?• Food to 9 billions – by yield increases from

technological factors?• Other factors more influential: access; culture, ecology,

knowledge, participation …

Sustainable and resilient foodproduction for the future?• Climate dimension: production methods, transports, seasonal foods…• Energy – no fossils • Ecosystem-adapted systems: crops; plant-livestock-systems, energy, nutrients,

water, agroecological methods• Ethical livestock raising, animal welfare• Traditional, local knowledge combined with

high technology - Innovations• Bio-cultural diversity: species, landscapes• Pedagogical dimension – local food systems• Landscapes & work environment for humans• Dietary & Consumption patterns

Loss of food production systems over time

Barthel , Crumbley, Svedin 2013

Sustainable Development Goals2015-2030Goal 1. End poverty in all its forms everywhereGoal 2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agricultureGoal 3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

Goal 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote life-long learning opportunities for all

Goal 5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

Goal 6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

Goal 7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all

Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

Goal 9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation

Goal 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries

Goal 11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

Goal 12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns Goal 13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts**Acknowledging that the UNFCCC is the primary international, intergovernmental forum for negotiating the global response to climate change .

Goal 14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development

Goal 15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

Goal 17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development

SDG 2:End hunger, achieve food security…TARGETS:

• 2.1 By 2030, end hunger and ensure access by all people, in particular the poor and people in vulnerable situations, including infants, to safe, nutritious and sufficient food all year round

• 2.2 By 2030, end all forms of malnutrition, including achieving, by 2025, the internationally agreed targets on stunting and wasting in children under 5 years of age, and address the nutritional needs of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women and older persons

• 2.3 By 2030, double the agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers, in particular women, indigenous peoples, family farmers, pastoralists and fishers, including through secure and equal access to land, other productive resources and inputs, knowledge, financial services, markets and opportunities for value addition and non-farm employment

• 2.4 By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressively improve land and soil quality

• 2.5 By 2020, maintain the genetic diversity of seeds, cultivated plants and farmed and domesticated animals and their related wild species, including through soundly managed and diversified seed and plant banks at the national, regional and international levels, andpromote access to and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, as internationally agreed

• 2.a Increase investment, including through enhanced international cooperation, in rural infrastructure, agricultural research andextension services, technology development and plant and livestock gene banks in order to enhance agricultural productive capacity in developing countries, in particular least developed countries

• 2.b Correct and prevent trade restrictions and distortions in world agricultural markets, including through the parallel elimination of all forms of agricultural export subsidies and all export measures with equivalent effect, in accordance with the mandate of the Doha Development Round

• 2.c Adopt measures to ensure the proper functioning of food commodity markets and their derivatives and facilitate timely access tomarket information, including on food reserves, in order to help limit extreme food price volatility

Components of food systems

Ericksen 2008

Socio-Economic

HistoryPowerEquity & JusticeParticipationGovernance

Food security

Food issues & Sustainable Development Goals

Modified after Blay-Palmer et al., 2018; Olsson 2018b

Resilient food systems

ORGANISATIONSNAMN (ÄNDRA SIDHUVUD VIA FLIKEN INFOGA-SIDHUVUD/SIDFOT)

Schipanski et al. 2016

Bright spots – seeds of a good Anthropocene

Bennett et al. 2016

LiteratureAltieri, M.A., et al., 2015. ‘Agroecology and the design of climate resilient farming systems’, Agron.Sustain.Dev. 35, 869-890. Björklund, J et al. 2012. Ecosystem-Based agriculture combining production and conservation — a viable way to feed the world in the long term? J. Sustainable Agriculture 36: 824-855.Chapell, M.J. & La Valle, L.A. 2011. Food security and biodiversity: can we have both? Agriculture and Human Values 28:3-26.. IAASTD .2008. International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology for Development , United Nations and World BankIPBES 2018. Intergovernmental Science–Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Europe and Central Asia regional assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Bonn: IPBES. Jordbruksverket. 2013. Hållbar köttproduktion. Rapport 2013:1. Kastner, T., Erb, KH, Haberl, H. 2014. Rapid growth in agricultural trade: effects on global area efficiency and the role of management. Environ. Res. Lett. 9: 034015 Kneafsey, M. et al. 2013. Consumers and food security: uncertain or empowered? Journal of Rural Studies 29: 101-112. Lang, T. and Heasman, M. 2015. Food wars. The battle for mouths, minds and markets. 2d edition. Earthscan. RoutledgeMcKenzie, F.C. & Williams, J. 2015. Sustaiable food production: constraints, challenges and choices by 2050. Food Security 7:221-233.Martinez-Alier, J. 2011. The EROI of agriculture and its use by the Via Campesina. The Journal of Peasant Studies 38: 145-160.Moragues-Faus, A., Morgan, K. 2015. Reframing the foodscape: the emergent world of urban food policy. Environ. Plan.A. 47, 1558-1573.Olsson, E.G.A. 2018a. The shaping of food landscapes from the Neolithic to Industrial period: changing agro-ecosystems between three agrarian revolutions, in J. Zeunert, and T. Waterman eds) Routledge handbook of landscape and food, Routledge, pp. 24–40.Olsson, E.G.A., 2018b. Urban food systems as vehicles for sustainability transitions. Bull. Geography. Socio-economic Ser. 40: 133–144.Olsson, E.G.A. & Olsson, M. 2016. Matproduktion och urban hållbarhet. Fallstudie från Hisingen och Göteborgs framtida möjligheter. MistraUrban Futures Report 2016:2. www.mistraurbanfutures.orgOlsson, E. G. A., Kerselaers, E., Søderkvist Kristensen, L., Primdahl, J., Rogge, E., Wästfelt, A.2016. Peri-urban food production and its relation to urban resilience. Sustainability 2016,8, 1340-1361Power, E.F. & Stout, J.C. 2011. Organic dairy farming: impacts on insect-flower interaction networks and pollination. Journal Applied Ecology48:561-569.Pretty, J.N et al. 2006. Resource-conserving agriculture increases yields in developing countries. Environ. Science & Techn.40: 1114-1119.Schipanski, M.E. et al. , 2016. ‘Realizing resilient food systems’, BioScience 66, 600-610.Steffen, W. et al. 2011. The Anthropocene: From Global Change to Planetary Stewardship. AMBIO 40:739–761

Seminar November 2018 work tasks1. a. The global food system: much critics against it . Overview and

summary of socio-economic-cultural- environmental – equity arguments.

1 b. Other arguments put forward the advantages of the global food system, e.g. the global trade market as beneficial for the global communication and democracy – and more. Overview and summary of pro-global food system arguments

2. The links between agricultural methodologies and society/community organization of food production – identify and explore those links – if existing

3. To arrive at human wellbeing – fulfilling the Sustainable Development Goals until 2030 and 2050 and for the next milliennium - How can the present organization of food provisioning – global food system be changed – at global level – at regional and local levels? What prerequisites and steps/processes are necessary?

Instructions for seminar workPreparations

• As a basis for the tasks and seminar work use the literature on the list sent and complement it with additional papers along your own interests and related to your own phd-thesis work. This work can be used later for the home exam

• Work is performed in the same groups as for the course papers for this course