Kolloqium: Ralf Seppelt

There is an overwhelmingly rich source of literature that investigates the recent trends of food production, and the interactions of biodiversity, yields and climate. Research that sought for future pathways which eradicate hunger and hold biodiversity loss under a changing climate all identify the same set of levers to achieve these objectives: change to less energy-rich, meat-based diets, close yield gaps, using agroecological principles as well as adopt modern breeding technologies, reduce harvest losses and food waste, etc. While, thus, from a scientific perspective that ship might have sailed, and urgent actions are required now by societies, decision-makers and governments, in this presentation I question, if the challenges and complexity of the issue are fully understood. I do so, by asking a simple question: What will the global food system look like under an unpleasant but likely realistic scenario of a 2°C to 3°C temperature increase. I show the level of evidence for the most important elements of the global agricultural system, but also show, that a systemic integration of the knowledge is lacking. The conclusions that can be drawn are that the urgency for action is unprecedented. Efficiency gains in agriculture will not be enough to achieve food security under climate change and this requests more integrative, systemic research.

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In unserer wöchentlichen Vortragsreihe wechseln sich eingeladene Wissenschaftler aus internationalen Forschungsinstituten (Kolloquien - diese Reihe) mit unseren internen Wissenschaftlern ab (interne Seminare), die über die Fortschritte ihrer Forschungsprojekte berichten. Eingeladene Gäste unserer lokalen akademischen Partner sind zu den Kolloquien herzlich willkommen.