Posted in News, Sustainable Food Cymru News Item on Sep 11, 2024.
Fantastic first day of the Sustainable Food Cymru workshop, held at the beautiful Lampeter campus, University of Wales Trinity Saint David, on Tuesday 10 September 2024.
Excellent ‘Visually mapping expertise’ ice-breaker session led by Luci Attala, UNESCO-MOST BRIDGES Coalition, to get to know each other, explore who we all are & what connects us.
Lively discussion in breakout groups, led by Thora Tenbrink, Bangor University, addressing themes that arose from the Sustainable Food Cymru webinar held earlier this year, March 2024, while considering the barriers to realising our objectives.
And a series of thought provoking presentations by, Katherine Steele, Bangor University setting the scene with an introduction to the Sustainable Food Cymru network, its aims and ambitions; Louise Steel & Gareth Thomas, UWTSD, on Transdisciplinarity as a research method; Kevin Hodson, UWTSD, with a catering and hospitality insight ‘The real life difficulties in catering’; and Katie Palmer, Food Sense Wales, on “Re-establishing our connections with food through veg.’
The workshop ended the first day with a consolidation by Katherine Steele and Louise Steel, assessing what we have all learned from each other with a cross group Q&A on the barriers.
Bringing together academic representatives from universities and a diverse group of stakeholders engaged in the food industry in Wales, the overall aim of the workshop is to think about Welsh food as a route to NetZero. Seeking to better understand and strengthen local and community food pathways from soil (or net) to plate, to create policy that supports sustainable local production and contribute to holistic food system change.
Transdisciplinary research requires collaborating with societal partners from the outset, to understand their concerns and to co-develop appropriate research strategies. Our aim is to build research that attends to their needs, and which can effectively inform Welsh food policy for a better future. Research and case studies developed in Wales will act as exemplars for UK adaptation to climate change.
The workshop, continuing on Wednesday 11th September, is organised & led by the UNESCO-MOST Bridges Coalition UK Hub, University of Wales Trinity Saint David, in partnership with Bangor University, supported by funding from the Wales Innovation Network (WIN).