Sustainability Lecture 3- Becky

Question 1

what is SDG 2

Answer 1

zero hunger by 2030

Question 2

what affects food security?

Answer 2

utilisation
availability
access
Stability

Question 3

what does GEC stand for

Answer 3

Global Envrionmental Change

Question 4

name some characteristics of current modern farming practices

Answer 4

Intensive arable agriculture (“conventional farming”)
Maximise yields relative to land use and costs

Homogenous landscapes with low crop-diversity, and high use of fertilisers, agrochemicals, and irrigation

Concentration of environmental impacts at local scale

Current food system responsible for ~30% of greenhouse gas emissions (including CH4 from ruminants and N2O from fertilisers)

Question 5

how could the global diversity in farm systems be described?

Answer 5

Not all intensive large-scale farming
Mixed farming
Nomadic pastoralism
Shifting cultivation
Organic farming
Agroforestry

Question 6

what is subsistence farming?

Answer 6

A plot of land produces only enough food to feed those who work it—little or nothing produced for sale or trade

Question 7

T/F subsistence farm produces most food in developing countries

Answer 7

T

Question 8

name some developmental issues of subsistence farming

Answer 8

local rights, infrastructure, rural incomes, empowering women

Question 9

How might existing knowledge and future technological advances sustainably increase production?

Answer 9

Examples from using new pesticides in intensive agriculture, to intensifying the use of indigenous knowledge in local farming practices

Question 10

how does GPS allow for accurate land management?

Answer 10

Enables farmers to apply fertilizers and harvest crops with great precision

Question 11

what are GMOs

Answer 11

Genetically Modified Crops/ organisms

Question 12

what are 3 elements of climate-smart agriculture

Answer 12

increasing agricultural productivity and incomes
adapting and building resilience to climate change
mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions

Question 13

why has climate-smart agriculture been criticized?

Answer 13

for justifying nearly any form of agriculture and for not addressing inequalities in production and distribution

Question 14

what does climate-smart agriculture do?

Answer 14

Increase input efficiency
* Change management practices
* Carbon sequestration
* Waste reduction
* On-farm energy production

Question 15

what defines precision farming?

Answer 15

Technologies that allow application of water, nutrients, pesticides to the places and at the times they are required
Reduces inputs and environmental impacts

Question 16

Examples of precision farming?

Answer 16

Include measuring, modelling, and responding to site-specific data, including weather forecasts, soil properties, soil water content, pests, and weeds

From GPS, robotics, and drones, to low-tech measures such as using bottle caps for applying fertiliser to individual plants

Question 17

what would create a sustainable food system?

Answer 17

increased supply
improved efficiency
reduced environmental impacts

Question 18

what things must a sustainable food system consider?

Answer 18

economic
social
environmental issues
and tradeoffs between biodiversity and food production

Question 19

what are 3 principle of the sustainable development of agriculture and for Sustainable intensification

Answer 19

A frozen agricultural land footprint
Reduced environmental impacts
Increased yields (where possible)

Question 20

what does SI stand for (in terms of food security)

Answer 20

Sustainable intensification

Question 21

what techniques does SI involve?qCould

Answer 21

Could incorporate innovations from biotechnology, precision farming, agroecology, organic farming and socio-economics…

Question 22

what are the aims fo SI

Answer 22

environmentally sustainable, equitable, productive and resilient ecosystems that improve the well-being of farms, farmers and families

Question 23

is SI a policy goal or set trajectory?

Answer 23

policy goal
so must operate within broader governance frameworks

Question 24

why shouldn’t intensification of farming not be confused with intensive farming?

Answer 24

Agricultural land is managed to maximize outcomes across economic, environmental, and social dimensions
Genuinely radical if taken seriously
it is not business- as usual with marginal improvements in environmental impact

Question 25

name 5 ideas that will help create a sustainable food system together

Answer 25

1 SI
2 demand management
3 governance of land, markets, access, livelihoods, food and utilisation
4 family planning
5 reduction of food waste and loss

Question 26

other than focussing on food production, how can we improve sustainability of food security?

Answer 26

change diet
reduce waste
moderate demand
improve governance
to integrate socio-economic factors: policy, equity, and diversity

Question 27

what is regenerative farming?

Answer 27

Refers to farming that uses soil conservation to regenerate and deliver ecosystem services, and to enhance the environmental, social and economic aspects of food production

Use of practices such as cover crops, crop rotations, minimal tillage, organic compost, agroforestry and crop-livestock integration (also associated with organic farming and agroecology).

Question 28

the 5 principles of regenerative farming?

Answer 28

1. minimise soil disruption
2. keep soil covered with plants
3. plant diverse crops
4. no synthetic chemicals
5. planned grazing

Question 29

how does no-tilling support regenerative farming?

Answer 29

allows co2 and h20 to remain in the ground

Question 30

for regenerative farming to be sustainable, what do we need to do?

Answer 30

need to reduce demand/limit consumption
And therefore reduce pressure on land
Requires radical social change (e.g. in trade and governance)