From September 3 to 11 (2021) will be held the World Conservation Congress organized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Organized every four years, the French government had initially committed to hold it in June 2020 in Marseille. However, this event had to be postponed because of Covid-19. The objective of the congress is to seek “to improve the way we manage our natural environment to foster human, social and economic development” (IUCN, 2021).
The last congress was held September 1-10, 2016 at the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu, in coordination with the U.S. Department of State. Since then, the global pandemic has exacerbated the glaring link between biodiversity and economic and human well-being. The IUCN Congress will be a milestone for nature conservation and the development of a new global framework for biodiversity (IUCN, 2021).
In the wake of this congress, the ClubU2B, led by the Ligue de Protection des Oiseaux France, is organizing the 29th edition on the theme “Biodiversity and International Projects” on September 22, 2021 (LPO, 2021). It is about discovering and exchanging around international projects honoring biodiversity in the city.
More information on the next IUCN: https://www.iucn.org/about/world-conservation-congress
More information about ClubU2B and the event: https://urbanisme-bati-biodiversite.fr/presentation/actualites/article/biodiversite-et-projets-a-l-international
In recent years, and particularly since the post-Rio years (EMELIANOFF, 2004), the concept of sustainable development has emerged as a new imperative for urban and metropolitan public action. Moreover, the city as we know it cannot continue to develop and grow as it has until now. Indeed, cities emit more than 70% of the world’s greenhouse gases, while they are home to more than 50% of the world’s population. Road traffic, industrial activities, and the buildings themselves, through their design and the materials used, create and store heat, generating and feeding the now well-known phenomenon of “heat islands”. Faced with this observation, the desire to see a change in the way cities are designed and lived in has continued to grow. For it is here, at the very heart of the city, that the major ecological, economic and social issues of tomorrow will be played out. (SAGELOLI, 2018).
Urbanism, by definition, aims to conceive material forms of habitat of the life of relation associating the social and the environment. Sustainable development undoubtedly brings a new perspective, but which could give fully its effects only if it were declined on the scale of the urban geography and the urban planning. This perspective has strengthened the attention paid to the environment, while modifying its conception somewhat (GUERMOND, 2006). It is no longer a question of “mastering” the environment, but of better adapting to it: “the crisis of modernity encourages us to consider the environment no longer as a constraint to be overcome, but rather as an organizing principle in development, and, consequently, in urban planning,” (BERDOULAY, 2002). Sustainable development also adds a third pillar, the economy, to the social and environmental pillars. The latter makes it possible not to limit sustainable urbanism to housing for the most privileged.
To succeed in this challenge, many actors need to be mobilized at the national level (ministries, federations, agencies and associations) as well as within communities (project owners, elected officials, public and private developers, engineering firms, etc.) (ADEME, 2021). This implies a reflection on the construction of an interdisciplinary approach that meets the requirements of public action and the needs of modern societies, which raises issues of articulation between research and action and redefinition of the relationship between science and society (GAUTHIER, 2009). It remains now to continue this common work, where everyone has a role to play, in order to develop a modern and sustainable urbanism, respectful of Human and his environment.
The use of the term “agroecology” has gone beyond the scientific niches, where only specialists could really understand what it meant. It is now part of everyday language, where it evokes “an evolution of agriculture that is considered positive: an evolution that carries the hope of breaking with the negative consequences of contemporary agriculture” (DORE, 2019). On March 8, 2011, the report “Agroecology and the Right to Food” was presented to the UN Human Rights Council by Olivier De Schutter, UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food. It “calls for a fundamental shift towards agroecology as a means to increase food production and reduce rural poverty” (DE SCHUTTER, 2010). This model is thought to be the best way to face the food, ecological and energy crises that affect the world today and whose effects seem to intensify every year (ROBIN, 2014).
Massive deforestation, standardization of animal and plant species, weakening of ecosystems… The impact of intensive agriculture on the environment is brought to the attention of citizens through whistleblowers and environmental organizations. The crisis of this model, which was generalized in the 20th century, is there. The limits of the sustainability of this agriculture are more and more perceptible every day. The intensive use of phytosanitary products also has a considerable impact on ecosystems (LASBLEIZ).
So, when Bruno le Maire, French Minister of Agriculture, Food, Fisheries, Rural Affairs and Land Management, says in 2011: “let’s not make the French believe that we can grow apples, pears or fruits without any pesticides: it has always existed and it will continue to exist, because otherwise you will not produce enough products and then you will have worms, you will have other risks of food poisoning related to the absence of use of pesticides” (LE MAIRE), before adding “the major risk is to weaken French agriculture, to decrease the French production” (LE MAIRE), would this be the case? Could agroecology be “profitable”?
Yes, according to a study by Alice Gremillet and Julien Fosse, which sifts through the scientific literature and modeling of twenty-three agro-ecological reference systems. Organic agriculture in particular appears to be the most efficient from an economic and environmental point of view today (GREMILLET, 2020). The study concludes, however, with the expression of a necessary “evolution of practices at the farm level [which] will have to be extended by the evolution of consumers’ food practices, in order to ensure the transition of our food system towards sustainability, in a global way” (GREMILLET, 2020).
But what is agroecology in concrete terms? How to face these problems, how to avoid them? For Lasbleiz (2015), “Agroecology can be defined as an interdisciplinary scientific approach that questions the agronomic works that were decisive in the establishment of productivist agriculture. Unlike the intensive agriculture model that relies primarily on agronomic science, agroecology additionally draws on social science and ecology.” (LASBLEIZ, 2015). According to Altieri, one of the pioneers of this model, the agroecological approach has three main dimensions. First, the technical dimension consists of applying the principles of ecology to agriculture with some attention paid to the idea of the “agroecosystem” with which the farmer adapts his work. The socio-economic and cultural dimension of agroecology aims at the transformation of the economic environment of agricultural production with a new relationship to nature. Finally, the socio-political dimension of agroecology is intended to be based on “access to and the correct use of nature to raise the standard of living within social systems” with a view to correcting the inequalities caused by conventional agriculture ( DESERTIFICATION WORKING GROUP, 2013).
In view of the crisis that agriculture and the world in general are going through, agroecology seems to offer new perspectives. Given the potential offered by this new model, joining Olivier De Schutter in his call for a fundamental shift in favor of agroecology and advocating that elected officials integrate the concept into their community and national policies for tomorrow’s agriculture, seems to be the path to take (LASBLEIZ, 2015).
The Food Systems Summit 2021 is part of the programme to achieve Sustainable Development Objectives by 2030. The summit will allow to work on new daring actions, to develop new ideas and to co-construct innovations, through 5 action tracks:
Action Track 1: Ensure access to safe and nutritious food for all Action Track 2: Shift to sustainable consumption patterns Action Track 3: Boost nature-positive production Action Track 4: Advance equitable livelihoods Action Track 5: Build resilience to vulnerabilities, shocks and stress
Key actors from various backgrounds will be present and will work together: political, agricultural, scientific, business, academic, health, etc. as well as farmers, youth representatives, indigenous people, activists and consumer groups.
More specifically, Action Track 5 calls for ensuring the continued functionality of sustainable food systems in areas that are prone to conflict or natural disasters. To this end, the development of artificial intelligence as an innovation in the agri-food system could be a solution. Artificial intelligence as a “collaborative intelligence” between their collaborators and machines, which is still in the form of a prototype in a number of technological discussions, would make it possible not to create artificial supermen, but to increase man’s ability to act and learn”. “The real power of artificial intelligence (AI) is to enable leaders to rethink and transform their organisations through human-machine collaboration, which will reshape businesses and industries,” explains the book “Human + Machine: Reimagining Work in the Age of AI”, co-authored by Paul Daugherty, Accenture’s Chief Technology and Innovation Officer, and Jim Wilson, Chief Information Officer and researcher at Accenture Research. Human + Machine explains how artificial intelligence redefines business processes in this new territory through three types of human-machine interaction: amplification, whereby AI provides humans with new data-based insights, often in real time; interaction, whereby AI uses interfaces such as natural language processing; and embodiment, whereby AI, through sensors, motors and various mechanisms, enables robots to share the workspace with humans and collaborate with them.
Artificial intelligence has an important role to play in the transformation of food systems and in the fight against food and nutritional insecurity. At the event “AI, Food for All. Dialogue and Experiences”, it was stressed that AI in the agricultural sector is developing along three main lines: agricultural robotics, soil and crop monitoring, and predictive analysis. Advances in these areas can, in the context of climate change, population growth and depletion of natural resources, play an important role in soil and water conservation, which are increasingly crucial for achieving sustainable food security. The importance of keeping people and nature at the heart of the reflections was also stressed, and of thinking AI in the service of the latter and of these causes.
To date, several projects are under development, others have already been implemented, in connection with AI in the agricultural system, to develop the resilience of populations and ensure a sustainable food system. Microsoft, in conjunction with Danone, launched in January 2020 the third session of its “AI factory” programme to develop responsible AI in the agri-food sector. The start-up Sowit, for example, has benefited from this training programme. Their mission is to “empower African farmers to better understand their farms, optimize their activities and make strategic decisions during the most critical times”. By mobilising different technologies, imagery and algorithms, they feed their data-science and build models that allow users to better run their operations and optimise their use of inputs. Users thus develop increased resilience in the face of major climatic events that could alter their production.
Use of drones by Sowit for agricultural survey work
Thegreendata is also a strategy-up that has benefited from this programme. The decision support tools developed by this start-up are designed to make food chains more collaborative, sustainable and resilient. They aggregate data from the field to provide relevant indicators in order to steer the support strategy for farmers. The solution proposes to the food industry to accelerate the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices in consultation with their producers, through the AI.
Thegreendata – Smart Farm tools (a part of the start-up proposal) simulate the technical, economic and strategic choices of a farm in order to assess the impacts, risks and benefits.
CIRAD has also developed an innovative project, since 2019, in connection with AI to model complex agroforestry systems. The Deep2PDE project aims to design tools – based on artificial intelligence – to support mathematical modelling for a better understanding of cocoa-based agroforestry systems in Cameroon.
Artificial intelligence, developed as such in agro-food systems, would therefore make it possible to develop increased resilience in the face of major climatic events, stress, shocks and vulnerabilities: by anticipating them, by anticipating the reaction of crops to them, but also by creating the possibility of a rapid and efficient response.
These different examples illustrate the interest that the deployment of artificial intelligence can have for the development of a resilient agro-food system. However, it is important to keep in mind that this digitisation and artificialisation of the system must not be to the detriment of humans and nature. Its accessibility must therefore be questioned, both in terms of availability and use. Thus, several essential principles underpin the Rome Call for AI Ethics, namely: “transparency (artificial intelligence systems must be explainable), inclusion (the needs of all human beings must be taken into account and they must benefit from the best possible conditions to express themselves and develop) and impartiality (technologies must not create or present a bias that would benefit only a few people).”
References :
Agromedia, Artificial intelligence at the doorstep of the food industry, Conjoncture, 17/07/2019.
CIRAD, Using artificial intelligence to model complex agroforestry systems, 20/05/2019.
FAO, Artificial Intelligence best-practices in agriculture can help bridge the digital divide while tackling food insecurity, Rome, 24/09/2020.
Herrero, M., Thornton, P.K., Mason-D’Croz, D. et al. Innovation can accelerate the transition towards a sustainable food system. Nat Food1, 266–272 (2020).
UN Action Tracks, https://www.un.org/en/food-systems-summit/action-tracks
At a time when natural resources are dwindling, inequalities are more and more present, and climate change is impacting on environmental change, the circular economy is emerging as an important piece of the global work puzzle to address these issues. To better understand this system and its sustainability, this article illustrates it through the revaluation of oyster shells, and the opportunities created by its implementation.
Inspired by the workings of nature, a circular economy is a systemic approach to economic development designed to benefit businesses, society, and the environment (Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2021). The circular economy aims at a paradigm shift from the linear economy, limiting resource waste and environmental impact, and increasing efficiency at all stages of the product and service economy. It can be based on three major areas of action: production and supply of goods and services, consumption (demand and behaviour) and waste management (Agency for Ecological Transition, 2021), at different scales. The diagram below illustrates the way it works:
At a local scale, a French company is recovering and transforming shellfish bio-waste into new products. Oyster shells have many trace elements which are positive in several areas. Until now, the shells from the Bassin de Thau (12,000 tons per year), were incinerated or went to the quarry as fill. Bulky, they have an ecological cost as well as a cost for oyster farmers and communities. This French society, Providentiel coquillages decided to change the way they are used thanks to the integration of the circular economy into their operations, as illustrated in the figure bellow. In addition to creating employment on the territory and creating a market for bio-fertilizers, the benefits are numerous:
– In agriculture as an amendment: The shells neutralise the acidity of the soil. Limestone soil improvers also improve the structure of the soil, making it more permeable and easier to work. Finally, they provide calcium, a fertilising element necessary for plant nutrition. – In poultry feed: In addition to providing calcium, oyster shells help the hen to assimilate the phosphorus it needs. – In gardening: Oyster shells are a natural mineral mulch. It prevents the growth of weeds, protects against frost and heat and limits evaporation by keeping the soil moist and cool. They are therefore used to make planters, copings and borders. – In water treatment: By acting as a filter, oyster shells ensure a stable level of pH values in the water. – In cosmetics: Mother-of-pearl is highly valued for its applications in cosmetics and nail polish. (Providentiel coquillages, 2021)
The company works in direct partnership with farmers, winegrowers, poultry farmers, communities, landscapers etc. These partners thus have less need to produce raw materials and use fewer resources. A real network is then created, making possible to contribute to the change of way of thinking and the injection of the functioning of the circular economy to other fields and on a larger scale (Providentiel Coquillages, 2021).
The circular economy approach by valuing food losses and wastage is just an entry point for rethinking the principles of today’s economy. From pasta to oyster shells, there are still many other areas where work is possible. On different scales and at different levels, the aim is to work together to preserve and develop natural capital, optimise the exploitation of resources and create the conditions for the development of a sustainable virtuous system.
