After decades of decline, global hunger is on the rise again, with as many as 828 million people affected by hunger in 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and conflict have further slowed progress. Recognising the need to address food insecurity, Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2 aims to end hunger and malnutrition while promoting sustainable agriculture. Although this challenge requires a multi-industry approach, engineering has the potential to catalyse progress – and the Frontiers network is collaborating to achieve SDG 2 across the globe.
Case study
Zero-waste protein
Undernutrition is a global issue, with 768 million people undernourished worldwide in 2021. The need for adequate nutrition has put pressure on food supply chains to increase production of protein. While plant-sourced protein currently dominates the market, demand for animal-sourced protein is estimated to increase by up to 90% by 2050, resulting in grave implications for land and water use.
After connecting with peers at a Frontiers symposium, Miao Guo developed a consortium on sustainable proteins. The process involved taking stock of different types of low-waste proteins, developing regional and national models of protein supply chains, and evaluating existing protein technologies. The Frontiers-funded project led to a new understanding of zero-waste protein systems. Although undernutrition is still a prevalent issue, Miao and her team hope to continue developing research on sustainable protein for the future.
Insights
Nourishing people and communities
Participants of the Frontiers ‘From feeding people to nourishing people’ symposium came together to discuss solutions that tackle hunger while also promoting sustainable production. Currently, one in ten people in the world are undernourished. At the same time, one-third of greenhouse gas emissions are brought on by food systems. The world must mobilise across industries to build food systems that nourish people, communities and the planet. Together, the Frontiers community discussed key insights on how to promote agricultural sustainability, healthy diets, and reduce food loss and waste:
- Technology and innovation can create solutions to increase production while decreasing the environmental footprint of agriculture. However, technologies and capacity-building must be accessible to smallholder farmers. Vertical farming has shown early promise in low-resource contexts, for example.
- A ‘One Health’ approach can bridge gaps between human, plant, animal, and planetary health concerns. By understanding their interconnectedness, we can develop systems that support them all.
- More attention must be given to indigenous food systems and biodiversity. Current production generates high levels of homogeneity, but solutions that are context-relevant and local can support biodiversity and diverse nutrition.
- Cultural stigmas, lack of education and access, and high costs are barriers to healthy diets. Promoting nutritious food choices requires multidimensional solutions that address different causes for poor diets. They must be context-specific, address cultural perceptions, enable policy development, equip and empower people, and understand agricultural supply chains.
- There is a need for deeper understanding of the causes and effects of food loss and waste. Investigations must examine socio-economic and environmental perspectives to provide a more complete view of the issue.
Sustainable agriculture for the future
The ‘Agriculture, big data and the knowledge economy’ symposium brought together participants from around the globe to examine how data, technology and agriculture can work together to create a more sustainable future. Technology can advance sustainable agricultural practices in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), for instance by improving precision farming and contributing to greater automation. Furthermore, data collection can help researchers and policymakers make informed, context-specific decisions. The Frontiers community agreed several key insights:
- Research must be collaborative, cross-disciplinary and question the status quo. From boosting hazard resilience to providing basic services such as energy and water, engineering and technology can contribute to solving the world’s most pressing development challenges, but with insight from other fields and regions.
- Precision farming – a type of agricultural management based on close observation and adaptation to crop behaviour – can aid farmers in LMICs to adapt to growing challenges, such as climate change. However, there are barriers to successful implementation, including education and access.
- Engineering can especially help develop solutions for sustainable intensification. The concept integrates innovations from ecology, genetics and socioeconomics to build ecosystems that improve the wellbeing of communities and environments.
- Technology, data and agriculture can converge to develop new sustainable methods for food production, but its application must be equitable. This means providing education and resources to farmers not only in high-resource contexts, but also in LMICs.
“Smart communities should still revolve around enhancing livelihoods. If people are hungry or poor, no development happens.” – Dr Ashok Das, Frontiers Smart Communities symposium chair
SDG 2 in action
With the number of young people globally on the rise, especially in LMICs, adequate nutrition early in life is critical to building healthy, resilient communities long term, and achieving SDG 2. Demonstrating this, Suchitra Rath explained how community-based strategies to support mothers can lead to better nutrition outcomes for children at the ‘Inclusivity and wellbeing in the first 2,000 days of life’ symposium.
Working in India with the NGO Ekjut, Suchitra undertook local interventions such as creating participatory groups and home visits for mothers with young children. They provided information and recommendations, for example washing hands before feeding children. As a result, there were fewer underweight children and fewer cases of stunting in the community. Although the work was promising, Suchitra emphasised the need for further efforts to address maternal undernutrition and the financial inaccessibility of healthy diets.
Resources
Food systems are particularly complex, so achieving SDG 2 will require high levels of cross-sectoral, -cultural and -disciplinary collaboration. It means improving not only access to healthy food, but also promoting sustainable agriculture, supporting small-scale food producers, among many other aspects. Collaboration can generate impact that is far greater than the sum of the parts. The Frontiers community shared tools and tips from their real-world experience to both foster and improve collaborative working:
- Establish a common mission among collaborators. Stakeholders may have different – and sometimes competing – priorities, such as policy impacts, academic publications or profit. Taking the time to understand stakeholders’ different priorities will help to manage expectations and develop a shared goal to work towards.
- Find a common ‘language’ – or terms that every sector can understand and work in – to help make discussions more productive. A ‘translator’, or a person who has experience working across industries, can act as a bridge between different backgrounds.
- Make use of different sectoral advantages and address differing concerns. In cross-sector collaboration, every industry also brings with them important strengths and concerns that can balance weaknesses of their peers. For example, NGOs can help link research project outputs to local communities, while working with the private sector can enable greater access to funding and technology innovation.
- Embrace diversity to allow for a more impactful, well-rounded project. Making sure communication and priorities are clear and that there is a culture of respect must be a priority.