Zero hunger within reach, using agrobiodiversity for sustainable food systems

Invitation to a lunchtime seminar

Monday, 23 May (12.15-13.45) - FAO, Iran Room (Room B116, Building B)

Context

Healthy diets are key to preventing malnutrition and ensuring human well-being. The world needs sustainable food systems – systems that secure access to healthy, high-quality and safe food in an environmentally sustainable manner. Only through collaborative actions to achieve sustainable food systems can we end hunger, improve nutrition and fight biodiversity loss, soils and forest degradation, greenhouse gas emissions, and water scarcity and pollution. Increasing the use and safeguarding of agricultural and tree biodiversity in production and consumption systems – in both landscapes and in diets - will be an important part of the solution to these challenges.

Farm households and rural communities have long used agricultural and tree biodiversity to diversify their diets, increase productivity and manage pests, diseases and weather related stress. Genetic resource diversity and identification of preferred traits provides the building blocks for developing new varieties that are better adapted to production demands and changing local environments. The safeguarding of the diversity in genetic resources for food and agriculture is of the utmost importance therefore to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 agenda. Making the best use of genetic, species and landscape diversity provides the means to improve ecosystems, soils, nutrition, income and other livelihood benefits.

In light of the International Day for Biodiversity, Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the UN, Gerda Verburg, will join Ren Wang, FAO ADG for Agriculture and Consumer Protection, and Bioversity International’s Director General Ann Tutwiler and agrobiodiversity experts in an interactive discussion with the audience on the ways in which using agrobiodiversity and partnerships can help us to achieve sustainable food and agriculture systems and contribute to the 2030 Agenda.

Agenda

Zero hunger within reach, using agrobiodiversity for sustainable food systems
Snacks and refreshments will be served (12.00-12.15)
The importance of agrobiodiversity to achieving sustainable food systems and the SDGs (12.15 – 12.45)
H.E. Gerda Verburg, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organizations in Rome, and Moderator for the seminar
Ren Wang, Assistant Director-General, Agriculture and Consumer Protection Department, FAO
Ann Tutwiler, Director General Bioversity International
Strong partnerships in the field: video testimonial from Government of Ethiopia on using seed genetic diversity to increase productivity and resilience to climate change
Interactive audience and panel discussion (12.45-13.45)
Moderated questions and answers with panel composed of Dr Gina Kennedy (Healthy diets from sustainable food systems), Dr Laura Snook (Forests, trees and agroforestry) and Dr Michael Halewood (Effective genetic resources conservation and use).
Closing remarks