Sustainable Food Security: The value of systems thinking

Understanding and working with the complexity of sustainable food production systems requires training in different disciplines and an approach that can address this complexity at the system level. This environmental studies course enables participants to apply the principles of a systems approach to food production systems with a focus on environmental sustainability. We will analyze production systems at both ends of the spectrum: highly productive systems with relatively high inputs and emissions to the environment, and low productive systems with low input use and depletion of soil fertility. Crop-livestock interaction is a focal point.

The course includes:

• Introduction to the complexity of food production systems
• Introduction to systems thinking
• Analysis and comparison of the productivity of food production systems and the environmental issues
• The assessment of environmental sustainability using indicators (this last topic allows students to integrate topics of previous modules)

This course is part of the Programme Food Security and Sustainability, which learns you more about how we can feed the world with its growing population and wealth in a sustainable way. The other MOOCs in this programme are Sustainable Food Security: Crop Production and Sustainable Food Security: Food Access.