A framework for examining justice in food system transformations research

Whitfield, Stephen J.; Apgar, Marina; Chabvuta, Chikondi; Challinor, Andrew J.; Deering, Karl; Dougill, Andrew J.; Gulzar, Abid; Kalaba, Felix Kanungwe; Lamanna, Christine; Manyonga, David; Næss, Lars Otto; Quinn, Claire H.; Rosentock, Todd S.; Sallu, Susannah M.; Schreckenberg, Kate; Smith, Harriet Elizabeth; Smith, R. J.; Steward, Peter; Vincent, Katharine

doi:10.1038/s43016-021-00304-x

Cited by 32 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 16 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In addition, their wider environmental footprint related to biodiversity loss, deforestation, soil degradation and water pollution is a key driver of environmental degradation (21). As currently organized, the food system also falls short on providing equal economic opportunities to food system actors and social equity outcomes (15,22) (see Figure 1).…”

Section: Designing a Menu Of Mitigation (And Adaptation) Measuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate change and the urgency to transform food systems

Zurek

Hebinck

Selomane

2022

Science

108

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Without rapid changes to agriculture and food systems, the goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change will not be met. Food systems are one of the most important contributors to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but they also need to be adapted to cope with climate change impacts. Although many options exist to reduce GHG emissions in the food system, efforts to develop implementable transformation pathways are hampered by a combination of structural challenges such as fragmented decision-making, vested interests, and power imbalances in the climate policy and food communities, all of which are compounded by a lack of joint vision. New processes and governance arrangements are urgently needed for dealing with potential trade-offs among mitigation options and their food security implications.

show abstract

Section: Designing a Menu Of Mitigation (And Adaptation) Measuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate change and the urgency to transform food systems

Zurek

Hebinck

Selomane

2022

Science

108

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…A professional facilitator was hired to ensure safe and constructive discussions. Whilst the researchers were observers during the workshops to evaluate the process and the outcomes of each workshop, we acknowledge of course that the researchers had a prior steering role, in terms of organizing the workshops, selecting the participants, structuring the workshops and preparing the videos (Whitfield et al, 2021). At the start of each workshop, participants were also asked to complete and sign a consent form, which described the aims/process of the research, and asked for specific permission to use photos during the day and to contact them after the workshop for an evaluation.…”

Section: Films and Transformation Labsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The above focus on reducing power imbalances also contributed to trust-building, a key outcome of transdisciplinary processes, and highly relevant in the context of transformative change and conflict (Young et al, 2016;Whitfield et al, 2021). The trust-building between researchers and other actors was a process that evolved and made use of opportunities.…”

Section: Lessons Learned For Promoting Inclusiveness and Fairnessmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, whilst we still have funding to work on the project for 1 year, we cannot guarantee involvement as part of an ongoing processan issue faced in other transdisciplinary research (Ely et al, 2021). These considerations around the roles of researchers need to be discussed with the communities with whom we work in transdisciplinary research, including the potential benefits and limitations of changing roles (Whitfield et al, 2021).…”

Section: Limitations and Suggestions For Improvementmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Addressing the sustainable agriculture transformations challenge requires changing how decisions are made and strategies are developed by bringing together the competing knowledge claims of "experts, " academics, practitioners, policy makers and citizens (Kenter et al, 2019;Wyborn et al, 2019;Ainsworth et al, 2020). Researchers have considerable agency and responsibility in participating in or creating conditions for transformations (Pereira et al, 2020;Whitfield et al, 2021). In this respect, many alternative types of research processes that aim at being more participatory and thus more democratic, inclusive and transdisciplinary have emerged (Wyborn et al, 2019;Pereira et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Advancing Food System Transformation and Addressing Conflicts Through Transdisciplinary Methodologies: Strengths and Limitations of the Community Voice Method, T-Labs, Film-Making and the Miracle Question

Calla

Lécuyer

Skrimizea

et al. 2022

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Food systems are changing through various socioeconomic and policy processes. For example, in France, following concerns over the effects of pesticides on ecosystems and health, the French government launched the “Ecophyto II+” plan in 2019 that aims for a 50% reduction in the use of pesticides by 2025. This top-down food system transformation is leading to conflicts between stakeholders over how to enact such a policy, and its implications for farmers and their practices. By adopting a transdisciplinary research approach, we explore conflicts linked to food system transformations in the context of three case studies in France. The case studies revolve around conflicts over pesticide use and reduction in three agricultural settings in Bourgogne Franche-Comté, namely (a) water management near Auxerre, (b) apiculture-agriculture relations in the Jura, and (c) viticulture-local resident relationships near Macon. We use four innovative transdisciplinary techniques to integrate inclusively the viewpoints of diverse stakeholders with the aim of generating actionable responses to transform food systems. First, the Community Voice Method (CVM) includes filmed semi-structured interviews and integrates a number of opportunities for participation and successive rounds of data analysis. Second, the interviewees were asked a “miracle question” that encouraged them to step back from conflicts and practices toward their ideal vision of agriculture and food systems. Third, the CVM resulted in the production of four films that relate the visions and perception of each case study interviewees in their own words and in their own setting. Finally, Transformation Labs (T-Labs) conveyed the main results of the CVM knowledge synthesis through the films produced and opened a dialogue toward the development of solutions. We review the four techniques, how they were implemented in the three case studies, and with which outcomes. Thus the aim of this paper is to offer reflections and lessons learnt from different transdisciplinary processes as a means of strengthening their application in other contexts. We argue that such methodologies, whilst resource-consuming, are essential to fully understand the complexity of food system transformations from the often-conflictual perspectives and competing knowledge claims of the multiple actors involved. In addition, we highlight the role of these techniques in building long-term trust between researchers and other stakeholders, and the benefits in terms of opening up dialogue and developing long-term solutions, as determined by the stakeholders themselves.

show abstract

Easier said than defined? Conceptualising justice in food system transitions

et al. 2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The transition towards sustainable and just food systems is ongoing, illustrated by an increasing number of initiatives that try to address unsustainable practices and social injustices. Insights are needed into what a just transition entails in order to critically engage with plural and potentially conflicting justice conceptualisations. Researchers play an active role in food system transitions, but it is unclear which conceptualisations and principles of justice they enact when writing about food system initiatives. To fill this gap this paper investigates: Which conceptualisations of justice emerge from the literature related to food system initiatives and which principles of justice do authors use? We developed an initial framework for which we drew on political philosophy literature. We then undertook an extensive review of the food system transitions literature using this framework and were able to identify a range of recognition, distributive, and procedural justice conceptualisations and associated principles of justice. Recognised as subjects of justice were those with a particular role in the food system, people who are marginalised, Indigenous communities, those with experiences of negative consequences of the food system, future generations, and nonhumans. The identified conceptualisations and the developed framework can be used by those involved in food system initiatives to reflect on how they conceptualise justice. We challenge them to be more explicit about who they do and do not recognise as subjects of justice and which principles of justice they use. Such clarity is needed to reflexively enact a just transition towards sustainable and just food systems.

show abstract

A framework for examining justice in food system transformations research

Cited by 32 publications

References 16 publications

Climate change and the urgency to transform food systems

Climate change and the urgency to transform food systems

Advancing Food System Transformation and Addressing Conflicts Through Transdisciplinary Methodologies: Strengths and Limitations of the Community Voice Method, T-Labs, Film-Making and the Miracle Question

Easier said than defined? Conceptualising justice in food system transitions

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About