Leverage points to pathways for the transformation of agri-food systems
Achieving large-scale, transformative climate change adaptations in agriculture while mitigating further climate impacts and supporting sustainable and equitable rural livelihoods is a grand challenge for society. Transformation of the agri-food system is necessary and inevitable, but the extent to...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Environmental Research: Food Systems |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1088/2976-601X/adeca9 |
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| author | Nicholas R Magliocca Emily K Burchfield Emma Chapman Busby Eve Brantley Olivia Cleveland Walter L Ellenburg Kaitlin Fischer Mukesh Kumar Vikalp Mishra Darrell McGuire Udaysankar S Nair Arlo Pate Ruchie Pathak Wendiam P M Sawadgo Andre Luiz Biscaia Ribeiro da Silva Andrew T White Andrew Williams Michelle Worosz |
| author_facet | Nicholas R Magliocca Emily K Burchfield Emma Chapman Busby Eve Brantley Olivia Cleveland Walter L Ellenburg Kaitlin Fischer Mukesh Kumar Vikalp Mishra Darrell McGuire Udaysankar S Nair Arlo Pate Ruchie Pathak Wendiam P M Sawadgo Andre Luiz Biscaia Ribeiro da Silva Andrew T White Andrew Williams Michelle Worosz |
| author_sort | Nicholas R Magliocca |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Achieving large-scale, transformative climate change adaptations in agriculture while mitigating further climate impacts and supporting sustainable and equitable rural livelihoods is a grand challenge for society. Transformation of the agri-food system is necessary and inevitable, but the extent to which transformation can be intentionally guided toward desirable states remains unclear. We argue that, instead of targeting leverage points (LPs) in isolation, coordinated interventions at multiple LPs and their interactions are necessary to create a broader system transformation toward more adaptive futures. Using the southeastern United States of America as a case study, we conceptualize a way of doing transformation research in agri-food systems that integrates multiple theoretical and practical perspectives of how transformative pathways can be constructed from ‘chains’ of interacting LPs. We outline several principles for transformative research, the core of which are participatory, transdisciplinary, and convergence research methods needed for articulating a shared vision. These principles embrace an action-oriented approach to research in which the act of assembling diverse networks of researchers, stakeholders, and community partners itself can activate community- and regional-level LPs to scale up changes. Finally, we present tangible examples of specific LPs and their interactions targeted by agri-food system interventions currently underway or planned. This work offers an ‘anticipatory’ vision for agri-food system transformation research that recognizes the need to normatively create an enabling environment to build momentum toward shared visions of secure, equitable, and sustainable regional agri-food systems. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-fbf9d13f24cb4be0881e4dba1b0935f5 |
| institution | Matheson Library |
| issn | 2976-601X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Environmental Research: Food Systems |
| spelling | doaj-art-fbf9d13f24cb4be0881e4dba1b0935f52025-08-04T11:43:57ZengIOP PublishingEnvironmental Research: Food Systems2976-601X2025-01-012303500710.1088/2976-601X/adeca9Leverage points to pathways for the transformation of agri-food systemsNicholas R Magliocca0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0971-0207Emily K Burchfield1https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0459-6270Emma Chapman Busby2Eve Brantley3https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0346-6151Olivia Cleveland4Walter L Ellenburg5Kaitlin Fischer6https://orcid.org/0009-0006-3643-3475Mukesh Kumar7https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7114-9978Vikalp Mishra8https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1436-8044Darrell McGuire9Udaysankar S Nair10Arlo Pate11Ruchie Pathak12Wendiam P M Sawadgo13Andre Luiz Biscaia Ribeiro da Silva14Andrew T White15Andrew Williams16Michelle Worosz17Department of Geography and the Environment, University of Alabama , Tuscaloosa, AL, United States of AmericaDepartment of Environmental Sciences, Emory University , Atlanta, GA, United States of AmericaAlabama Sustainable Agriculture Network , Birmingham, AL, United States of AmericaAlabama Cooperative Extension System, Auburn University , Auburn, AL, United States of America; Department of Crop, Soil, and Environmental Sciences, Auburn University , Auburn, AL, United States of AmericaIndependent , Prospect, TN, United States of AmericaEarth System Science Center, University of Alabama , Huntsville, AL, United States of AmericaDepartment of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, Auburn University , Auburn, AL, United States of AmericaDepartment of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering, University of Alabama , Tuscaloosa, AL, United States of AmericaEarth System Science Center, University of Alabama , Huntsville, AL, United States of AmericaDeep South Food Alliance , Linden, AL, United States of AmericaDepartment of Atmospheric and Earth Sciences, University of Alabama , Huntsville, AL, United States of AmericaAlabama Sustainable Agriculture Network , Birmingham, AL, United States of AmericaDepartment of Geography and the Environment, University of Alabama , Tuscaloosa, AL, United States of AmericaDepartment of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, Auburn University , Auburn, AL, United States of America; Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, Auburn University , Shorter, AL, United States of AmericaAlabama Agricultural Experiment Station, Auburn University , Shorter, AL, United States of America; Department of Horticulture, Auburn University , Auburn, AL, United States of AmericaEarth System Science Center, University of Alabama , Huntsville, AL, United States of AmericaDeep South Food Alliance , Linden, AL, United States of AmericaDepartment of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, Auburn University , Auburn, AL, United States of America; Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, Auburn University , Shorter, AL, United States of AmericaAchieving large-scale, transformative climate change adaptations in agriculture while mitigating further climate impacts and supporting sustainable and equitable rural livelihoods is a grand challenge for society. Transformation of the agri-food system is necessary and inevitable, but the extent to which transformation can be intentionally guided toward desirable states remains unclear. We argue that, instead of targeting leverage points (LPs) in isolation, coordinated interventions at multiple LPs and their interactions are necessary to create a broader system transformation toward more adaptive futures. Using the southeastern United States of America as a case study, we conceptualize a way of doing transformation research in agri-food systems that integrates multiple theoretical and practical perspectives of how transformative pathways can be constructed from ‘chains’ of interacting LPs. We outline several principles for transformative research, the core of which are participatory, transdisciplinary, and convergence research methods needed for articulating a shared vision. These principles embrace an action-oriented approach to research in which the act of assembling diverse networks of researchers, stakeholders, and community partners itself can activate community- and regional-level LPs to scale up changes. Finally, we present tangible examples of specific LPs and their interactions targeted by agri-food system interventions currently underway or planned. This work offers an ‘anticipatory’ vision for agri-food system transformation research that recognizes the need to normatively create an enabling environment to build momentum toward shared visions of secure, equitable, and sustainable regional agri-food systems.https://doi.org/10.1088/2976-601X/adeca9transformative adaptationland systemstransdisciplinary researchconvergence researchsustainability transitions |
| spellingShingle | Nicholas R Magliocca Emily K Burchfield Emma Chapman Busby Eve Brantley Olivia Cleveland Walter L Ellenburg Kaitlin Fischer Mukesh Kumar Vikalp Mishra Darrell McGuire Udaysankar S Nair Arlo Pate Ruchie Pathak Wendiam P M Sawadgo Andre Luiz Biscaia Ribeiro da Silva Andrew T White Andrew Williams Michelle Worosz Leverage points to pathways for the transformation of agri-food systems Environmental Research: Food Systems transformative adaptation land systems transdisciplinary research convergence research sustainability transitions |
| title | Leverage points to pathways for the transformation of agri-food systems |
| title_full | Leverage points to pathways for the transformation of agri-food systems |
| title_fullStr | Leverage points to pathways for the transformation of agri-food systems |
| title_full_unstemmed | Leverage points to pathways for the transformation of agri-food systems |
| title_short | Leverage points to pathways for the transformation of agri-food systems |
| title_sort | leverage points to pathways for the transformation of agri food systems |
| topic | transformative adaptation land systems transdisciplinary research convergence research sustainability transitions |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1088/2976-601X/adeca9 |
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