The global food system, tasked with feeding an ever-expanding population of 8.1 billion individuals, leaves a significant ecological footprint. The decisions made in this context hold immense implications for the environment, economy, and society at large. The challenges and implications arising from decisions within the global food system are multifaceted. These encompass infrastructure development, land ownership dynamics, and land utilization practices. These issues often result from the decentralized nature of food production, involving numerous producers working within diverse land use systems. These systems are influenced by local biophysical conditions, socio-economic factors, and cultural considerations. In the pursuit of sustainable solutions, the engagement of local stakeholders is paramount. Their deep-rooted understanding of regional nuances, culture, and the needs of their communities plays a pivotal role in crafting effective and sustainable strategies.
FLAGCCIP (Food, Land, Agriculture, Climate Change, Institutions, and People) is an initiative dedicated to fostering sustainable transformation in global agrifood systems through integrated modeling, data synchronization, and inclusive collaboration with local stakeholders. At the heart of FLAGCCIP’s mission lies a dynamic three-step approach, meticulously designed to pioneer sustainability within agri-food systems. This method blends data-driven precision, inclusive dialogues with stakeholders, and the development of actionable objectives and future narratives.
Data Driven Simulations
This involves collecting and analyzing a wide range of statistical data related to the agri-food system. The aim is to gain a deep understanding of the current state of affairs, including aspects such as agricultural practices, emissions, sustainability indicators, and economic factors. These simulations provide a solid foundation by establishing a clear baseline, which is essential for informed decision-making.
Inclusive Dialogues
The second step is centered on fostering inclusive dialogues by actively engaging with a diverse group of stakeholders involved in or impacted by the agri-food system. This includes policymakers, researchers, farmers, entrepreneurs, civil society organizations, and action groups. These dialogues serve as a crucial platform for exchanging ideas, gathering insights, and understanding the real-world challenges and opportunities within the agri-food system. The diversity of perspectives ensures a holistic view of the complex issues at hand.
Defining Objectives and Future Narratives
In the final phase, the insights gathered from data analysis and stakeholder dialogues are used to formulate precise objectives and develop future narratives. These objectives are tailored to specific countries and sub-national regions, taking into account their unique contexts and challenges. The objectives are designed to promote sustainability, reduce emissions, enhance the profitability of farmers, and strengthen the overall resilience of the agri-food system. Each set of objectives is complemented by a distinct future narrative that outlines a compelling vision for a more sustainable and inclusive agri-food system. These narratives serve as guiding beacons, inspiring action and aligning efforts toward a common goal.
The ILDC-FLAGCCIP Workshop on “Inclusion and Convergence for a Sustainable Food and Land Use Future” was organized at the India International Centre, New Delhi on 26th September 2023. The workshop was in collaboration with Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, Center for Land Governance, FLAME University, Environmental Defense Fund and FABLE Consortium of Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
The workshop began with a commencement speech by Ranjan Ghosh (IIMA) and Pranab Choudhury (CLG) (co-conveners of FLAGCCIP) which was followed by an inspiring inaugural session by eminent experts and policy makers such as Vijay Paul Sharma (Chairperson, Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices, Government of India), Gauri Kumar (IAS Retd. and Wheels Water Foundation), Anil Gupta (Padma Shri, founder GIAN and SRISTI), Soumya Swaminathan (ex-Chief Scientist, WHO and Chairperson, MSSRF), Mika-Petteri Törhönen (Lead Land Administrator, The World Bank), Mariano Beheran (Minister Agricultural Attache, Argentina), and Hisham Mundol (Environmental Defense Fund). The speakers shared their insights on the challenges and levers in the sustainability of food and land-use systems with major focus on soil health, better inputs, livestock health and productivity, nutritional security, land tenure security, village level planning, SDGs, and climate action. Special emphasis was laid on understanding the importance of collaborative governance, scientific evidence-based policy making, community engagement, land-use profiling, and knowledge transparency that can serve as potential avenues for sustainable agricultural and food system futures.
It was then followed by discussions on regenerative and inclusive agricultural production systems, and food system transformations for mitigation and adaptation, which were facilitated by Yugank Goyal and Vartika Singh respectively. Nearly 40 experts and representatives from many key stakeholder organizations actively participated including Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Ministry of Panchayati Raj, Ministry of Environment and Forests, ICAR- Indian Council of Agricultural Research, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) – CGIAR, German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), Forest Research Institute (ICFRE), Foundation For Ecological Security (FES), WASSAN, ICRAF, Caritas Austria, WRI India, Mahindra Sustainability Initiatives and Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture.
Anil Gupta (Padma Shri), Shekhar Shah (ex- DG, NCAER) and Satish Deodhar (Dean, IIMA) summarized these sessions and gave insights on major focal points which need intervention with special attention to how collaborative governance is not a choice anymore, but a necessity. The workshop concluded on directions as to how convergence can be created between state agencies, science, markets, and communities to pave way for an informed decision making and grassroots transformations to restore and sustain a stressed food and land use system.
FLAGCCIP at ILDC 2023
Senior Advisors
Dr. Soumya Swaminathan
Chairperson, M S Swaminathan Research Foundation
MS. Gauri Kumar
IAS (Retd.) , Wheels Water Council
Prof. Anil Gupta
Founder, The Honey Bee Network and Gujarat Grasroots Innovation Augmentation Network (GIAN)