Food

Can green growth address today’s agricultural challenges?

Agriculture is a key part of the social, economic and environmental aspects of people’s lives. It can increase employment, improve nutrition and mitigate climate change effects. It can boost economic growth in many countries. However, evidence shows that economic growth has a positive impact on food security only when it is inclusive.[1].

While growth is necessary to alleviate poverty, it is unlikely that growth will be sustainable in the long run unless it is green and environmentally sound [8]. In other words, green growth requires earth’s natural assets, such as water, land, air, ecosystems etc., to be protected as well as physical and human capital. The rationale behind this is that humanity’s well-being is dependent on earth’s natural capital. Green growth aims to make economic growth more resource-efficient, cleaner and more resilient without slowing the process in the meantime.

World leaders recognised the necessity of sustainable growth in the United Nation’s 2030 Agenda for sustainable development. The agenda emphasises the correlation between all of the seventeen Sustainable Development Goals. The SDG framework provides a basis to rethink the international debate over growth, which should not come at the expense of the environment [9]

 

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The Euro-Mediterranean AGORA is a way to engage the civil society in the institutional and policy dialogue on research and innovation with the aim of becoming an integral part of the decision making and governance processes.

The Agora is an important component of the broader MEDSPRING project, supported by the European Union with the aim of strengthening the Euro-Mediterranean dialogue and cooperation on research and innovation.