In 2021, the UN Food Systems Summit put food systems at the top of the global agenda. Armed with a systems lens, global scientific reports assessed the sustainability of our food systems, offered solutions, and called for urgent action. Uncertainty is pushing the pendulum back, but is it driven by contested science or unstable geopolitics?
Join us for an exciting evening seminar that digs into the implications of leading global research for food system transformation.
Food systems around the world grapple with unsustainable consumption patterns, greenhouse gas emissions, and rising diet-related illness rates, which halt progress towards the SDGs and other sustainability commitments. At the same time, the Norwegian food system is constrained by limited arable land, a short growing season, and import dependency, which raises tensions between global dietary recommendations, preparedness, and sustainability.
Food system transformation and sustainability debates have been inescapable since the late 2010s. Research at all levels, from UN groups and forums, IPCC, and IPBES reports and the EAT-Lancet commission to the EU’s Farm-to-Fork to the Nordic dietary guidelines and Norway’s government strategies in development cooperation, all call for urgent action. In the past year, the debate has arguably shifted away from sustainability and towards emergency preparedness. Are sustainability and preparedness at odds, or can the two agendas be reconciled?
Our keynote speaker and EAT-Lancet Commission author, Dr Fabrice DeClerck (EAT, The Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT), will present the report’s scientific recommendations and discuss with our panellists how they translate to contemporary political realities in Norway. Together, they will examine where progress is possible, where limits emerge, and what a transformation might require.
The event will be held in English.
Program
18.00: Introduction of the Seminar & Keynote
- Introductory Remarks: Hanne Fjerdingby Olsen & Ola Westengen (Norwegian University of Life Sciences)
- Keynote: Fabrice DeClerck (The EAT Collaborative)
19:00: Panel Discussion
- Fabrice DeClerck (The EAT Collaborative)
- Klaus Mittenzwei (Ruralis)
- Lise Saga (Norwegian Farmers and Smallholders Union)
- Teshome Hunduma Mulesa (Norwegian Forum for Development and Environment)
- Additional panelist to be confirmed
This seminar is co-organised by the Norwegian University of Life Science (NMBU) Sustainable Food Systems Arena and the Norwegian Forum for Development and Environment
