Driving sustainable change: insights from the 2024 World Food Forum
By: McKenzie Huneke, PHD student in SEED | Estimated reading time: 1:30
The global agri-food system faces challenges related to climate change, biodiversity loss, soil degradation, and the increasing needs of growing populations. To build partnerships to address these challenges at the local, regional, and global levels, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations hosts an annual conference, the World Food Forum. The event brings together farmers, food producers, scientists, policymakers, researchers, and youth to share ideas across cultures, regions, generations, and sectors.
SEED PHD student and delegate at World Food Forum, Mckenzie Huneke
As a doctoral researcher immersed in understanding the role of emerging technologies in supporting sustainability transitions within agri-food systems, I was selected as a delegate to represent the University of Waterloo at the World Food Forum 2024 in Rome, Italy from October 14-18, 2024. This year’s theme was “good food for all, for today and tomorrow”, organized around three pillars: Global Youth Action; Science and Innovation; and Hand-in-Hand Investment. The event also included a Global Family Farming Forum, a Global Hub on Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems, 2024 World Food Day activities, a Dialogue on Water Scarcity in Agriculture, and a broad range of cultural exhibitions and performances.
It was an incredible opportunity for me to learn from global agri-food system experts and changemakers and to contribute a Canadian perspective in the Science and Innovation track on topics such as responsible innovation, inclusive design, and rural development related to agri-food systems and technologies.
The Science and Innovation track opened with a plenary discussion on initiatives and strategies for a more equitable landscape in science, technology, and innovation (STI) across diverse contexts. The sessions explored ways to empower local actors and communities through inclusive innovation ecosystems. Key topics included the science-policy-society interface, integrating traditional and Indigenous Peoples knowledge with scientific advancements, and addressing hidden biases within multistakeholder STI governance.
Technological innovation was also discussed as a way to address agricultural skills shortages and attract younger generations into agriculture, as the average age of farmers worldwide is now 55 years. My research at the University of Waterloo has highlighted how this situation is especially critical in Canada (Huneke, Vinodrai, & Hall, 2024). As 60.5% of farm operators approach retirement age (Statistics Canada, 2022), Canada has one of the highest skills shortages in food production compared to other major food exporting nations (Yaghi et al., 2023). Skills shortages make it even more necessary to accelerate the development and adoption of responsible technology solutions in the Canadian and global agri-food systems.
The Science and Innovation track continued with sessions emphasizing the need for relevant, appropriate, and context-specific technologies, innovative practices, and scientific and local knowledge. Speakers and participants advocated for collective action, knowledge sharing, and capacity development to accelerate the pace and scale of agri-food systems transformation. There was a clear consensus that agri-food systems innovation must become more inclusive and accessible, with collaboration and direct participation from underrepresented groups of growers and producers such as family farmers, women farmers, and Indigenous farmers. At the same time, the discussions highlighted the need for intellectual property and data protection mechanisms to evolve to better facilitate open innovation and manage the risks and potential harms of artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technologies.
The Forum included a number of speakers like Nobel laureate Professor Carlos Alfonso Nobre (University of São Paulo) who discussed how technological change is essential for preserving and enhancing sustainable agri-food systems, particularly for the Amazon region and other tropical areas. Building on this idea, Dr. Amandeep Singh Gill (UN Secretary-General's Envoy on Technology) suggested that while AI might be " the ultimate systems technology" for agri-food transformation, much more work is needed to align these developments with the needs of small-scale and family farms and the protection of local and traditional knowledge. Professor Valmaine Toki (University of Waikato) discussed new approaches and opportunities in digitization, policy, and governance of Indigenous data. Related to this, the Director of the Traditional Knowledge Unit at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Wend Wendland, detailed a new treaty adopted by WIPO member states to better protect traditional knowledge and genetic resources, ultimately aiming to reconcile technological innovation with local biodiversity initiatives. Collectively, these insights provide me with a broader, global perspective to contextualize my research on the role of digital technologies in Canada’s agri-food systems.
In a workshop on using inclusive AI to transform agri-food systems, discussion centered on the necessity of inclusivity and ethical practices to promote transparency, fairness, and trust. For example, Dr. Greet Janssens-Maenhout (European Commission – Joint Research Centre) showcased projects using AI to enhance policy decisions for equitable land use in Europe and to increase transparency related to the preservation of sustainable cocoa farms in Cameroon and Côte d'Ivoire. Eric Salobir (Human Technology Foundation) argued that AI can only be considered inclusive if local farmers and growers are deeply involved in the conception, design, and development of technology intended for them. In response, Dr. Carol Zavaleta-Cortijo (Indigenous Peoples Observatory Network) stressed how AI developed for food and agriculture applications must consider farmers’ gender, culture, tradition, capacity, and ability to access technology.
These discussions underscored the complex and dynamic ways that technology links people, food, agriculture, environment, and society in place-based contexts. As I continue my own research on Canadian agri-food systems and technologies, it is more apparent than ever that family farms, local agricultural knowledge, and regional agri-food innovation are key to a sustainable future in Canada and globally.
