Category Archives: Interviews

Vulnerability and resilience of Pacific Island food systems in the face of climate change

Posted on 10 September 2021 by Geoff Tansey

I’m grateful to an old Fijian friend of mine for linking me up with Dr Mary Taylor. She was a lead editor for an exhaustive 573 page book on the ‘Vulnerability of Pacific Island agriculture and forestry to climate change’. … Continue reading →

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Clean drinking #water and safe #sanitation are essential parts of healthy #food systems

Posted on 2 July 2021 by Geoff Tansey

While COVID-19 has focussed attention on lack of clean water for millions people to wash their hands, clean water and proper sanitation are also essential for healthy food and farming. Here, Rick Johnston from the World Health Organisation explains the … Continue reading →

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Civil society must collaborate in a long food movement for sustainable food systems by 2045

Posted on 12 April 2021 by Geoff Tansey

Lead author, Pat Mooney, of the report ‘A Long Food Movement? Transforming food systems by 2045’ explains why civil society must act to cut waste and avoid an “agribusiness-as-usual” approach in which power in the food system is handed over to data platforms, private equity firms, and e-commerce giants. Continue reading →

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Food in a Changing Climate – an Australian perspective from Prof Alana Mann

Posted on 4 March 2021 by Geoff Tansey

Australian Professor Alana Mann discusses some key themes from her recent book ‘Food in a Changing Climate’ in this wide-ranging conversation. She believes Australia could be seen as a case study in what can go badly wrong if you are naive about climate change and our food systems. Continue reading →

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Pharma, food and innovation – time for a rethink, says Prof Graham Dutfield

Posted on 26 February 2021 by Geoff Tansey

Rules on intellectual property and other legal requirements affect food, farming, medicines, biodiversity and are changing the meaning of property. Continue reading →

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Creating #foodsecurity post COVID-19 and reaching zero #hunger – in conversation with Jennifer Clapp

Posted on 28 January 2021 by Geoff Tansey

Prof Clapp discusses the meaning of food security (0-10’25”), the impact of COVID-19 (10’25”-16’10”), issues arising for the Food Systems Summit (16’10”-25’02”) and the challenges to current trade, finance, industry,  and research structures Continue reading →

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We need a small farm future argues Chris Smaje

Posted on 17 December 2020 by Geoff Tansey

In this interview, Chris Smaje discusses his book ‘A Small Farm Future: making the case for a society built around local economies self-provisioning agricultural diversity and a shared earth’. He argues that multiple connected crises facing humanity require a rethink … Continue reading →

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Seed sovereignty under threat – time to reform seed laws, nationally and internationally, says Dr Clare O’Grady Walshe

Posted on 27 November 2020 by Geoff Tansey

Dr Clare O’Grady Walshe studies politics and international relations and wanted to understand the power and political dynamics inherent in changing seed laws, policies, and practices inside countries in the face of globalisation. After a careful study of how the … Continue reading →

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How do you measure the number of hungry people in the world – and why did the numbers drop by some 130 million between 2018-19?

Posted on 26 October 2020 by Geoff Tansey

Although the number of hungry people in the world has been rising for the past 5 years, reaching 690 million in 2019, according to the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World Report 2020, that total number shows … Continue reading →

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Slavery lies behind today’s diets says historian James Walvin

Posted on 2 October 2020 by Geoff Tansey

What we eat and drink has a history. And when it comes to some ubiquitous things like sugar and coffee, as well as plantation-based commodities, slavery lies at the heart of that history. From his first book ‘A Jamaican Plantation: … Continue reading →

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