Newsletter – July 2024
This is our newsletter for July 2024. Please note that this page is not updated, so deadlines may have passed and links may no longer work. To receive future newsletters, please join our network.
News
AFN Network+ at Groundswell 2024
Thank you to everyone who came to visit our stand at Groundswell 2024. It was a fantastic chance to chat to people about the work of the AFN Network+ and our funding opportunities. We were delighted to see one of our co-leads, Professor Tim Benton, talk about our scenarios work in his Big Top session: An Uncertain World: How Will it Drive Food System (R)evolution?
We are very grateful to everyone who took the time to come and talk to us, hope to see you again next year! Read AFN Champion Charlotte Wheeler’s LinkedIn post on Groundswell 2024.
GO Falkland
Following on from Groundswell, the GO Falkland Regenerative Agriculture Gathering is taking place on July 17 and 18 in Fife, Scotland, supported by Groundswell Agriculture.
GO Falkland brings together farmers and those who work the land, with experts, practitioners and activists in soil and human health, food systems and sustainable food places, to co-design and collaborate on creating a healthier and fairer future for Scotland’s land use and food system.
The event includes an information gathering project to assess gaps and future needs to develop that better system. This has received funding as one of our Stakeholder FlexFund projects (see more below).
More details on GO Falkland, including tickets
New Stakeholder FlexFund projects awarded – why not apply for one?
More organisations are benefiting from our Stakeholder FlexFund, which now has an increased upper limit on funding (you can now apply for between £1,000 and £5,000).
The new projects funded are: the Devon Food Partnership (for an in-person event for small, local food businesses interested in exploring how sustainability and net-zero can fit within their activities), LEAF (a farmer-focused workshop exploring carbon mitigation strategies for ruminant farmers – more information in the Events section) and SingleDadSW/Dominic Watters (a good practice toolkit for research will examine strategies for co-development and co-production that are inclusive of those communities that are often overlooked in net zero forums). Read more about our funded projects.
The Stakeholder FlexFund is a rolling flexible fund for UK-based food system stakeholders to implement activities that support our mission to help achieve net zero through the agri-food sector by 2050. There are four deadlines throughout the year, with the next one on 1 August 2024.
Open to members of the Network, the fund supports any UK-based activity that explores, develops and trials solutions to tackle greenhouse gas-emitting practices of the agri-food system. All activities should be based on knowledge exchange and engagement. Please note the fund is not open to academic staff working in Higher Education (our scoping studies fund supports projects led by academics).
More details about the Stakeholder FlexFund.
Webinars
Using systems thinking to transform our food: Beans as an analytical lens
This webinar looked at a systems approach to food system transformation, through the lens of the BeanMeals project, which was designed to explore systemic innovations using beans as the case study. In this webinar, John Ingram used the example of beans to show why thinking about the wider system is so important when trying to create large-scale change in diets and food production.
If you missed it, or would like to watch it again, the video is available on YouTube. You can also see John Ingram’s slides from the webinar on our website.
News from the wider agri-food sector
The contribution of pulses to net zero in the UK
A new review published in Environmental Research: Food Systems, looks at the contribution pulses might make to the UK’s net zero commitments. Written by Marcus Horril, Rosanne Maguire and John Ingram (one of last year’s AFN Champions) this review takes a food systems perspective on the potential of pulses to help achieve net zero in UK agri-food. While it identifies many opportunities in all food system activities along the entire value chain, it also discusses the significant social, economic and technological barriers to increasing the production and consumption of pulses in the UK. A coordinated shift is required across the pulse system to capitalise on the overall net zero opportunities from ‘fork to farm’.
Looking for land
Wild Natured are developing a nature regeneration project for a client and are seeking landowners in the Essex, Eastern Greater London, and Northern Thames Basin (NCA) areas. If you are a landowner, farmer or estate owner in this area please get in touch. You will have a positive impact on nature and biodiversity and could expect to receive £44,000 to 130,000+ per ha to create a long-term habitat bank under the Natural England/Defra Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) scheme.
Contact the team on hello@wildnatured.co.uk for more information.
2024 Blue Planet Prize Laureates
The laureates of the 33rd Blue Planet Prize have been announced and include one of last year’s AFN Champions, Robert Costanza, Professor of Ecological Economics at the Institute for Global Prosperity (IGP) at University College London (UCL). Congratulations to Bob. The commemorative lectures by the laureates will be held at The University of Tokyo and Kyoto University in October. More details about the Blue Planet Prize.
Events
Understanding your carbon footprint as a livestock farmer
Thursday 18 July 10am – 4pm
This farm workshop at LEAF Innovation Centre, Newcastle University Farms, will explore how to manage emission sources on livestock farms and the innovative solutions for working towards net zero. It will also provide you with support on how to interpret carbon footprint tool outputs, whilst also providing expert advice on topics such as herbal leys, livestock nutrition and methane management. Participants are encouraged to complete a carbon footprinting tool for their farm before attending, and to bring along any information on their main emissions sources. Check out this online tool which can be used to decide which carbon calculator is best.
This event is funded by the AFN Network+ as one of our Stakeholder FlexFund projects.
Vacancies
The Sustainable Soils Alliance
The Sustainable Soils Alliance (SSA) is looking for a Communications Executive and a Communications and Public Affairs Intern. The roles will help deliver, manage and communicate the Alliance’s workstreams relating to one of the emerging, critical environmental issues of our age: healthy soil and its role in farming, sustainable land use and climate change.
Deadline: 10 July
More information:
Communications and Public Affairs Executive
Communications and Public Affairs Intern
