1st Edition

Biodiversity, Food and Nutrition A New Agenda for Sustainable Food Systems

Edited By Danny Hunter, Teresa Borelli, Eliot Gee Copyright 2020
    334 Pages 60 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    334 Pages 60 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    This book examines the challenges and impacts of poor diets and nutrition from current food systems and the potential contribution of biodiversity and ecosystem services in addressing these problems.

    There is a strong need for a multi-level, cross-sectoral approach that connects food biodiversity conservation and sustainable use to address critical problems in our current food systems, including malnutrition. Building on research from the Biodiversity for Food and Nutrition Project (BFN), which aims to better link biodiversity, diets and nutrition, the book presents a multi-country, cross-sectoral analysis of initiatives that have promoted local food biodiversity in four countries: Brazil, Kenya, Turkey and Sri Lanka. This book offers a comprehensive summary of the BFN Project results in each of the four countries along with lessons learned and how this work could be upscaled or applied in other regions. It argues that the strategic promotion and use of food biodiversity is critical in uniting attempts to address conservation, nutrition and livelihood concerns. The book is structured around chapters and case studies encompassing the BFN Project with specific experiences related by partners who played key roles in the work being done in each country. By offering a comparative view capable of furthering dialogue between the respective countries, it is also meant to connect the individual cases for a “greater than the sum of its parts” effect. This means consideration of how localized activities can be adapted to more countries and regions. Therefore, the book addresses global issues with a foot planted firmly in the grounded case study locations.

    This book will be of great interest to policymakers, practitioners and NGOs working on food and nutrition, as well as students and scholars of agriculture, food systems and sustainable development.

    Part I: Why biodiversity for food and nutrition?

    Chapter 1: Nourishing people, nurturing the environment: biodiversity for food systems transformation and healthier diets

    Danny Hunter, Eliot Gee, Teresa Borelli

    Chapter 2: Challenges and impacts of poor diets and nutrition

    Barbara Burlingame

    Chapter 3: Evidence for the role of biodiversity in supporting healthy, diverse diets and nutrition

    Libby Hattersley, Bruce Cogill, Danny Hunter, and Gina Kennedy; Bioversity International

    Chapter 4: From uniformity to diversity: the potential of agroecology to transform food systems

    Nick Jacobs, Chantal Clément, and Emile Frison

    Part II: The Biodiversity for Food and Nutrition (BFN) Project

    Chapter 5: The ABC of mainstreaming biodiversity for food and nutrition: concepts, theory and practice

    Eliot Gee, Teresa Borelli, Daniela Moura de Oliveira Beltrame, Camila Neves Soares Oliveira, Lidio Coradin, Victor Wasike, Aurillia Manjella, Gamini Samarasinghe, Birgül Güner, Ayfer Tan, Kürşad Özbek, Saadet Tuğrul Ay, Sevinç Karabak and Nurcan Aysar Güzelsoy and Danny Hunter.

    Part III: Future opportunities and directions

    Chapter 6: Biodiversity, food systems and urban-rural linkages

    Florence Egal and Thomas Forster

    Chapter 7: Diversifying public food procurement and school feeding

    Luana F. J. Swensson and Florence Tartanac

    Chapter 8: Food biodiversity, local sourcing and consumers: gastronomy as a critical interface

    Willy Legrand, Clare Hindley, and Gabriel Laeis

    Chapter 9: Linking food biodiversity and food traditions to food tourism in Small Island Developing States (SIDS)

    Tracy Berno

    Chapter 10: Start me up! Food biodiversity and youth-led innovations

    Eliot Gee and Hyunju Lee

    Chapter 11: Neglected no more: reframing the food systems narrative using agricultural biodiversity

    Teresa Borelli, Eliot Gee and Danny Hunter 

    Biography

    Danny Hunter is Senior Scientist at Bioversity International and the Global Project Coordinator for the BFN Project.

    Teresa Borelli is a Programme Specialist at Bioversity International, providing research and communication support to the BFN Project.

    Eliot Gee is a Research Fellow at Bioversity International, providing research and communication support to the BFN Project.