At the March CIIC workshop it was great to see a growing number of regular participants, as well as a growing number of students and researchers from AUT. The results of the discussions on topics at the intersection of agriculture and health are available here.
For the next CIIC workshops on 9 June (Auckland) and 16 June (Melbourne) we are encouraging submissions of questions that help explore the full value of human, non-human, and ecosystem health from different viewpoints and perspectives.
Ultimately the most valuable export goods of New Zealand and Australia could be health related products and services. Such services and products will in many cases be based on techniques and outputs from the agriculture sector, but they may also include other goods and services.
In this context the interests of the wider population in terms of access to high quality and healthy food and ecological sustainability significantly overlap with the export interests of farmers and the agriculture sector.
The longer term perspective and in particular the ecological viewpoint on health extends far beyond the mandate of current human healthcare providers and the perspectives within the agriculture sector.
Ecosystem health is concerned in particular with values that are often sidelined by reference to established economic dogma and by interests of powerful economic players:
- Happiness and mental health
- Non-human health in the broadest sense
- Biodiversity
- Knowledge about food production and preparation
- Democratic production
- Ethical considerations, transparency and fairness
- Communal rituals
The following documents and reports from the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food) contain relevant background information:
- 10 Principles to guide the transition to Sustainable Food Systems
- Unravelling the Food–Health Nexus: Addressing practices, political economy, and power relations to build healthier food systems
- From Uniformity to Diversity : A paradigm shift from industrial agriculture to diversified agroecological systems
The Hauraki Gulf provides a “good” example of an ecosystem that is under unprecedented pressure from pollution and over-fishing. The recent Hauraki Gulf Forum’s stock take concludes that the gulf is now deteriorating faster than any management efforts could tackle the degradation.
We looking forward to your perspectives and insights on human, non-human, and ecosystem health.
Join us on 9 June and on 16 June 2018 in open space to explore the challenges and elements of potential solutions at AUT Colab in Auckland and at RMIT in Melbourne. At each workshop we discuss one or more wicked problems that have been submitted by participants.
Interdisciplinary Innovation and Collaboration 