From Food Production to Food Security - Global Environmental ...

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determine interactions along and between scales, and understanding the interactions betweenand within them are critical to understanding the controls on food security.Recognising that an analysis of existing approaches and strategies for food security atregional levels was lacking (Liverman and Ingram, 2010: Paper 4), GECAFS developmenttherefore concentrated on how to integrate environmental and socio-economic drivers andoutcomes at this spatial level. The specific GEC angle led to considerations of whatadaptation measures could enhance food security by reducing food system vulnerability toGEC at regional level, while also minimising further environmental degradation. Manytechnical considerations apply at local level, especially concerning producing food (e.g.enhanced agro- and aquaculture technologies), while others pertain to the regional level (e.g.rail infrastructure in relation to food distribution). Much of the debate at the regional level ishowever in the policy arena. This led first to issues of who was the intended policy ‘client’for outputs from such research at this spatial level; and second to the question of how best toengage them in co-designing the research agenda so as to ensure the research outputs wouldbe of most value to them (Ingram et al., 2010: Paper 5). Given the lack of regional-levelstudies (in relation to global and local), this focus opened up novel ways of formulatingGEC/food security research.As understanding grew about how the whole food system operates (as opposed to theagricultural component alone), it became increasingly clear that numerous actors operateacross a wide range of scales and levels. Further, the role of ‘non-state actors’ is becomingincreasingly important worldwide (Schilpzand et al., 2010) and the need for engaging thesestakeholders (i.e. beyond the research and regional policy communities) became apparent.The challenge is how to integrate these various considerations when undertaking GEC-foodsecurity research at regional level (Ingram and Izac, 2010: Paper 6).Specific challenges the thesis addresses (thesis questions)Much progress had been made in conceptualising the GEC-food security issues and researchagenda during intensive GECAFS planning exercises. However, turning these ideas intopractice posed a number of major challenges the GEC research community had thus far notexperienced, especially as it encompassed a number of food system activities beyondproducing food. These related to issues such as which disciplines should be involved and howshould interdisciplinary research best be developed; what the optimum spatial and temporalresolutions should be, and who should be involved in research design, when and how;identifying the ‘client’, and how interactions with them should best be managed; and,importantly, how research would best build on – and contribute to – improving understandingof GEC-food security interactions. Embarking on the full system approach thereforenecessitated a somewhat different approach to designing and implementing internationalGEC research projects than those which had hitherto been designed by researchers on moredisciplinary topics (Ingram et al., 2007b).8
This thesis addresses these issues by distilling them into three questions:1. What are the essential characteristics of a research agenda to address food security?2. Why is research at the regional level important?3. Who needs to be involved in research design and delivery, and how are they best engaged?These questions are addressed by drawing on a set of six papers published over recent yearsand synthesising the main elements of each to help promote innovative and effective foodsecurity research for the future.Thesis structure, the six papers and why they have been selectedThe thesis comprises this Introduction, the six papers and a Conclusion.This Introduction (Part I) sets the papers in context by discussing the need for, andemergence of, more integrated food security research over the last decade, and lays out thespecific challenges the papers address.Part II comprises the first set of three papers which describe the development of a moreintegrated approach to food security research:Paper 1: Global Environmental Change and Food SystemsThis covers food provision and interactions with the environment. It introduces initial foodsystems concepts and couples these with emerging food system vulnerability concepts. It alsoconsiders the nature of GEC impacts on food systems, the nature of adaptation options andthe need to consider feedbacks from such options to both socioeconomic conditions andenvironment, highlighting the need for tools for trade-off analyses.Paper 2: The role of agronomic research in climate change and food security policyThis paper lays out the need to better understand how climate change will affect croppingsystems. It identifies the need both to assess technical and policy adaptation options and tounderstand how best to address the information needs of policy makers. It covers theimportance of spatial scale and the position of crop production in the broader context of foodsecurity.9
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Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the Eur
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Parry et al., 2005). Conducting foo
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is provided in the ESF/COST Forward
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Paper 5: Engaging Stakeholders at t
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into actions (strategies, policies,
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Box 2 Engaging with stakeholders in
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Box 3 Setting the research agenda f
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Third, and of considerable practica
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Figure 2: Organizing and understand
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organizations made up of numerous n
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Elements of good practice in stakeh
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Finally, it is worth noting that fo
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development (Lee, 1999; Gunderson a
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Box 7 The GECAFS stakeholder survey
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‘break down’ what might be a hi
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Paper 6: Undertaking Research at th
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agriculture in many parts of the wo
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gaps. The presence of a strong tech
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an average of two years to coalesce
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Institute for Meteorology and Hydro
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Identifying case study sitesResearc
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can both benefit from and contribut
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Box 5 Mapping stakeholder interests
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Holding planning meetings in locati
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This reorientation of the debate fr
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Importance of this type of research
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Integrating the food system concept
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awareness of the GEC issues within
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pollutants were then introduced as
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communities operating in food syste
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Improving input-use efficiency acro
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governance focuses on the range of
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Developing research agendas in supp
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The renewed approach to interdiscip
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BIELAK, A., HOLMES, J., SAVGÅRD, J
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EAKIN, H. 2010. What is Vulnerable?
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GODFRAY, H. C. J., BEDDINGTON, J. R
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INGRAM, J. S. I. & FERNANDES, E. C.
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LYUTSE, S. 2010. The One Billion To
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RAYNER, S. & MALONE, E. L. 1998. Hu
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UNDP 2006. The 2006 Human Developme
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activities “from plough to plate
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contribution to the science agenda:
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urgently needed, and - given the gr
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GECAFS plannenmakerij stelde vast d
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ieder hun eigen groep van betrokken
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het gebied van beheer hebben betrek
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Curriculum VitaeFollowing a BSc in
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