With an exponentially increasing population across the globe, we are faced with a huge problem: Will we have enough to eat? Unless some radical changes are made globally in agriculture management, we won’t have enough food to go around. With this being said, there is a path forward…
A new report released yesterday from Landscapes for People, Food and Nature, “Landscapes for People, Food and Nature: The Vision, the Evidence, and Next Steps,” offers a new approach that can alleviate this growing problem. The report lays out a vision — called the “whole landscape approach” — for harnessing the knowledge and experience of the initiative’s members, who include dozens of farmer organizations, nongovernmental organizations, government agencies, scientists, companies and community groups from a span of six continents.
The group seeks to address unsustainable food production practices with an innovative and collaborative approach, That way, we’ll have a fighting chance at creating a more sustainable food supply to fill all the hungry bellies out there.
This report is not so much a traditional report with facts and figures, but rather filled with how we should approach agriculture practices worldwide. So what does it recommend exactly?
Currently when an organization has a need to fulfill, such as addressing a food crisis, they go tackle that specific problem. Although they may be helping the cause, most likely they are damaging something else in doing so.
The report recommends that we create alliances and work together on sustainable agriculture. Today we have access to the scientific tools and the knowledge base to make change, but it is time to bring it all together as one. Right now, there are hundreds of food initiatives all over the world. This report suggests that we need to speak together as one voice in policy forums — and this is why this coalition was born.
With the upcoming Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable Development, the Landscapes for People, Food and Nature Initiative plans on getting their voice heard. By working together on this approach, I do believe they have the potential to reduce water and land conflict, bring back barren soils, dead rivers, and struggling habitats, and of course, fill those empty bellies with nutritious food.
Photo credit: Neil Palmer