Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Food resilience'

This thesis explored design’s role in transitioning the Swedish food system to one that is more resilient to the shocks caused by climate change and in the context of the project duration, COVID-19. The project’s central question was: What does food citizenship look like in a resilient food system, and what design process is necessary to facilitate such a solution? The project collaborated with a local food ecosystem startup, Harvest, which has the mission to improve the local food supply chain so everyone can eat deliciously and sustainability. Together with Harvest, the project developed a vision of what the local food ecosystem will look like in a viable world. It proposes that collective action around food is a possible vehicle for systems transition. The resulting design is the proposition of a network that connects urban communities to local food producers while facilitating the support required to expand the production capability and stability of the local food ecosystem. The network is grounded in the design principles synthesized from the research conducted with the creative communities in Sweden that are working towards a resilient food system. The ideas of mutual aid and the permaculture ethics of people care and fair share have been guiding forces as supporting those living in transition is an essential element of food systems transition. From this proposition the project sets to explore what disruptive innovations need to occur in order to reach this vision. By framing the project in this way I aim to not only illuminate what the preferable future looks like and how it will function, but also illustrate how it is possible to reach this future.

Food security in urban environments is becoming an increasingly important issue worldwide; urban expansion and urban infilling means that city populations are rising while the amount of available land for growing food is reducing. Accessibility of food, in regards to potential food growing space and food retail locations at the household level, is a key indicator for determining how resilient households are to food insecurity. This thesis investigates accessibility of food in urban environments, and a methodology has been developed that employs a non location-specific data structure that assigns resilience categories to individual households. User-defined input variables for the amount of food-growing space required per person, and the maximum travel distance allowed, mean that different scenarios can be created. Two case studies of Christchurch and Stockholm are used to demonstrate how different datasets can be incorporated to give insight into the levels of resilience to food insecurity. Examples of potential sources of error caused by the variations in input dataset quality have been uncovered in the case studies, and possible strategies for dealing with these sources of error are discussed. Results of this study showed that greater maximum travel distances play a key role in accessibility of food in the urban environment, and that both cities are reliant on food retailers to supply food to the urban population, even when potential food growing space is taken into account. City planners or decision-makers can use the methodology developed in this thesis to make decisions about where potential growing space needs to be protected or allocated. They can also use it to model the potential effects of different scenarios, such as the addition of new subdivisions or changes in land use for public land.

Vermont prides itself on being a national role model in developing innovative models for community-supported, ecologically responsible agricultural practices. However, Vermont's largest sector of agriculture, the dairy industry, has increasingly relied on Latinx* migrant farm laborers who face significant challenges. Due to a lack of a year-round agricultural visa program, most farmworkers on Vermont's dairy farms are unable to receive proper documentation. This circumstance has a significant impact on migrant workers, particularly those living and working closer to the border, as those areas fall within federal jurisdiction of US immigration enforcement. In these borderlands, surveillance is intensified and so the pressure to be invisible is heightened. The current availability of agricultural visas is limited to seasonal migrant farmworkers, and because dairy is year-round work, farmworkers in the dairy industry are barred from accessing proper documentation. Increased patrolling along the northern border results in extreme isolation, fear, and the inability to access basic human rights. For migrant workers on Vermont's dairy farms, just taking a trip to the grocery store is to risk deportation. This thesis examines systemic barriers, complex relationships, and resilient responses of Vermont's farmworkers, drawing upon applied, mixed methods. The first article uses ethnography to examine food access and food sovereignty through Huertas, an applied garden project in northern VT. The second article analyzes the methodologies connected to El Viaje Más Caro/The Most Costly Journey, an applied cartooning project that shares farmworker stories with other migrant farmworkers as a tool to break cycles of isolation and relieve psychological distress. Both projects illustrate resilient responses to the barriers associated with being undocumented along the Northern border. While the thesis is based on research conducted in Vermont, the significance is broader in scope, and representative of national and international trends. The food system is built upon those who are continually stripped of and denied rights. While this is about Vermont, it is not only about Vermont: these stories are symptomatic of a larger structural violence. This thesis situates itself in a multi-scalar context-Vermont, the US, international- in which the stories conveyed are indicative of political and economic systemic obstacles, and the potential for human creativity to subvert and respond to systems of oppression. *I use the term "Latinx" throughout my thesis because it is a gender-neutral alternative to Latino, Latina and even Latin@. It is pronounced "La-teen-ex". This is a term that has been introduced by the trans/queer community, but is increasingly being adopted by scholars, activists, journalists, and social media. (Ramirez & Blay, 2016)

Thesis: M.C.P., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Urban Studies and Planning, 2016.
This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.
"June 2016." Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 116-129).
Some claim Iceland's food security is in grave danger. Farms fear financial failure as they compete with cheaper imports; high import reliance renders the country vulnerable to natural, political, and financial volatility; climate change threatens to exacerbate these food system weaknesses. Yet Iceland has no contingency plan, and adaptation measures are absent from national climate change reports. While this gap could be perceived as negligence, to do so assumes a universalistic framework for risk and resilience -- a trend currently seen in the global proliferation of formulaic, resiliency plans. Ecological resilience is defined as the ability of a system to absorb disturbance so as to retain essentially the same function. In a social-ecological system, what defines that function? Who decides what is at risk? This thesis seeks to understand the defining parameters behind risk and resilience within Iceland's social-ecological food system -- a dynamic and evolving set of tensions between human livelihoods, legal frameworks, biological cycling, and emotive response. Interviews, backed by risk theory and corroborated with survey data, uncover the tendency for risk to be framed in the context of particular value logics. Explored through factor analysis, the aggregate risk scale that focuses on agricultural vitality, for example, correlates with a value scale that embeds preparedness and self-sufficiency, but also cultural heritage. These findings suggest several implications: First, there is a need to go beyond economic valuations in understanding risk. Moral, sentimental, and ideational values shape risk perception, and our current tools -- such as discounting -- cannot adequately consider what a future community will value. Secondly, if a value at stake underpins how risk is defined, then, inversely, preserving that value can define resilience. In other words, value-based resilience offers a framework for defining the function resilience preserves. And yet finally, this logic highlights a powerful hazard in resilience planning -- the risk of systematically establishing preference for certain values and perpetuating a dominant set of social, political, economic ideologies. Value-based resilience is thus a call to planners to recognize the vulnerability built into the plans we make.
by Holly Johanna Jacobson.
M.C.P.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD
Food security is the ability to secure an adequate daily supply of food that is affordable, hygienic and nutritious and it has become a chronic development problem in most urban areas of the global South. This thesis contributes to the urban food security debate by exploring the connection between drought and food security in urban Swaziland. Specifically, the study examines the effects of the 2015/16 drought on access to food in the informal settlement of kaKhoza in the city of Manzini. The study used climate change and food security conceptual framework to interrogate the connection between drought and food security in the urban context. The framework shows how climate change variables like extreme weather events (e.g. drought) impact food security drivers such as agricultural management, demographic, cultural and socio-economic variables, and how these drivers impact the four components of food security (food availability, access, utilization and stability of access). The study drew from both the positivistic and interpretivistic paradigms and adopted a case study approach based on the mixed methods research design. Data was collected from the informal settlement of kaKhoza using a three step procedure involving a questionnaire survey, in-depth interviews, key informant interviews and focus group discussions. A questionnaire was administered to 145 heads of households using systematic sampling technique. Purposive sampling was employed to select 30 and 8 respondents for in-depth and key informant interviews, respectively. The researcher also engaged the observation method approach to capture additional information about effects of drought as observed in the study site. The researcher adhered to all legal and ethical procedures during the data collection and research writing processes. As such, participation in the research was strictly voluntary without any form of coercion, whatsoever. The results reveal that drought contributes to food insecurity in low income urban spaces by reducing the quantity and frequency of free or low priced rural-urban food transfers. As a result, low income households have had to rely more on food purchases, thereby making them increasingly food insecure. The problem is compounded by reverse food flows from urban to rural areas. The drought induced food price hike, compelled many low-income households to be less dependent on the supermarket as the main source of their food, and to buy increased amounts of food from the vegetable markets and tuck shops. Residents employ different coping mechanisms to deal with drought induced food shortage, some of which are too risky and further expose them to food insecurity. These coping strategies include: skipping meals, begging, use of informal credit, over reliance on informal markets and selling of sexual favours, which expose respondents to HIV and AIDS infection.

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 191-222).
Within the context of demographic growth, rapid urbanization and rising urban poverty which characterizes much of Sub-Saharan Africa in the 21st Century, this thesis examines the urban poor's vulnerability to food insecurity and analyses the strategies that households adopt to enhance their resilience in this challenging environment. Harare is the study site, providing an acute example of a city (and country) 'in crisis', and a context in which formal food markets have failed to meet the needs of the urban poor, within a generalized collapse of the economy. The central question, then, is how do the urban poor meet their food needs under such conditions of extreme material deprivation?

I prezzi dei generi alimentari sono cresciuti in modo considerevole in Etiopia a partire dal 2004. Questa tesi esamina a fondo gli effetti distributivi degli alti prezzi dei generi alimentari nelle zone rurali dell’Etiopia. Utilizzando il Rapporto di Beneficio Netto non parametrico ed il Sistema Quadratico di Domanda Quasi Ideale nonché stimando la Variazione Compensata, dimostra come gli alti prezzi dei generi alimentari possano avere effetti positivi sul benessere sociale delle famiglie rurali a livello aggregato. Tuttavia, i guadagni non sono distribuiti uniformemente tra le famiglie; una significativa percentuale di esse sono compratrici nette di cereali e potrebbero essere sfavorite da un aumento dei prezzi dei cereali qualora non beneficiassero di un aumento del reddito associato ad attività diverse dall’agricoltura. Teoreticamente, le famiglie rurali dovrebbero beneficiare di un aumento del prezzo dei generi alimentari poiché sono sia produttori sia consumatori dei prodotti. Un aumento della produttività agricola, attraverso l’intensificazione e la diversificazione delle produzioni, è un’importante strumento di politica economica che può limitare gli effetti negativi, di breve e di lungo periodo, sugli acquirenti netti rurali di generi alimentari derivanti da un aumento del loro prezzo. La tesi esamina anche la resilienza alla mancanza di cibo, la stagionalità nel consumo del cibo e la partecipazione nel mercato così come il ruolo dei trasferimenti monetari e delle preferenze dei beneficiari degli stessi.
Food prices in Ethiopia considerably rose since 2004. This thesis thoroughly examines the distributional impacts of high food prices in rural Ethiopia. Using the non-parametric Net Benefit Ratio analysis as well as Quadratic Almost Ideal Demand System and estimating Compensated Variation, it shows high food prices have positive impact on the welfare of rural households at aggregate levels. The gains, however, are not evenly distributed among households; large proportion of them are net cereal buyers (major staples) and could be adversely affected by rising cereal prices unless compensated by increase in income from off-farm activities. Theoretically, rural households should benefit from rising food prices as they are both consumers and producers of the products. Promoting agricultural productivity, through intensification and diversification, is an important policy tool to overcome short and long-run negative impacts of high food prices on rural net buyers. It also examines resilience to food insecurity, food consumption seasonality and market participation as well as cash transfers and beneficiaries preferences.

I prezzi dei generi alimentari sono cresciuti in modo considerevole in Etiopia a partire dal 2004. Questa tesi esamina a fondo gli effetti distributivi degli alti prezzi dei generi alimentari nelle zone rurali dell’Etiopia. Utilizzando il Rapporto di Beneficio Netto non parametrico ed il Sistema Quadratico di Domanda Quasi Ideale nonché stimando la Variazione Compensata, dimostra come gli alti prezzi dei generi alimentari possano avere effetti positivi sul benessere sociale delle famiglie rurali a livello aggregato. Tuttavia, i guadagni non sono distribuiti uniformemente tra le famiglie; una significativa percentuale di esse sono compratrici nette di cereali e potrebbero essere sfavorite da un aumento dei prezzi dei cereali qualora non beneficiassero di un aumento del reddito associato ad attività diverse dall’agricoltura. Teoreticamente, le famiglie rurali dovrebbero beneficiare di un aumento del prezzo dei generi alimentari poiché sono sia produttori sia consumatori dei prodotti. Un aumento della produttività agricola, attraverso l’intensificazione e la diversificazione delle produzioni, è un’importante strumento di politica economica che può limitare gli effetti negativi, di breve e di lungo periodo, sugli acquirenti netti rurali di generi alimentari derivanti da un aumento del loro prezzo. La tesi esamina anche la resilienza alla mancanza di cibo, la stagionalità nel consumo del cibo e la partecipazione nel mercato così come il ruolo dei trasferimenti monetari e delle preferenze dei beneficiari degli stessi.
Food prices in Ethiopia considerably rose since 2004. This thesis thoroughly examines the distributional impacts of high food prices in rural Ethiopia. Using the non-parametric Net Benefit Ratio analysis as well as Quadratic Almost Ideal Demand System and estimating Compensated Variation, it shows high food prices have positive impact on the welfare of rural households at aggregate levels. The gains, however, are not evenly distributed among households; large proportion of them are net cereal buyers (major staples) and could be adversely affected by rising cereal prices unless compensated by increase in income from off-farm activities. Theoretically, rural households should benefit from rising food prices as they are both consumers and producers of the products. Promoting agricultural productivity, through intensification and diversification, is an important policy tool to overcome short and long-run negative impacts of high food prices on rural net buyers. It also examines resilience to food insecurity, food consumption seasonality and market participation as well as cash transfers and beneficiaries preferences.

Food supply chains reach across the globe and rely on complex and interdependent infrastructures. The vast majority of Australia’s food supply infrastructure is privately owned and operated for commercial purposes. The complex network of producers, processors, manufacturers, distributors and retailers of food depend upon the ability to move freight long distances. This is utterly dependent not only on the vast network of transport infrastructure but also on uninterrupted access to cheap oil. Food supply chain interruptions due to severe weather events have become an emergent issue in terms of understanding our vulnerability to food insecurity. The Australian government recognises that economic costs of climate change will come from floods, droughts, heatwaves and other extreme weather events. Supermarkets are the main distribution points for emergency re-supply, however, they are not immune to the impacts of these weather events. Complicating things further, the growth in urban populations globally is identified as a key trend in urban disaster risk management. South-East Queensland has one of the most rapidly growing urban populations in Australia. The vast majority of this urban population will continue to source its food from supermarkets in times of crisis. The synergies between all these influences may expose our collective vulnerability to unexpected food insecurity. Policies that engage with interconnected systems are caught up in the ambiguity of their causal webs, therefore mistakes are very costly.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Griffith School of Environment
Science, Environment, Engineering and Technology
Full Text

To meet global challenges in food provision and to counteract environmental issues derivingfrom the food system, improved governance is necessary. Resilience is presented as a tool formanaging ecosystem services and for understanding what is required to achieve food security.In Sweden there is a national food strategy describing the continued development needed formeeting challenges in the food system. Several regional food strategies have been producedand an additional food strategy for Stockholm County is in the process of being developed byStockholm County Administrative Board. This food strategy could be of especial interest toevaluate due to Stockholm County being highly populated while having a low degree ofprimary food production. Assessing the governance system for the food strategy was ofinterests due to the large groups of stakeholders to consider in the process. The aim of thestudy was to add further knowledge on how resilience can be applied in practice by exploringthe extent of which the governance system for developing the food strategy promotesresilience. The research questions were formulated to investigate the governance system bymapping what stakeholders were involved in the process, what their responsibilities were andwhat relations existed between them. An additional research question was to test how thegovernance system promoted resilience by applying a set of principles for doing so. For collecting data, several stakeholders involved in developing the food strategy at the timeof the data collection were interviewed. Complementary data was also collected from journalarticles, books, documents provided by Stockholm County Administrative Board, websites,governmental publications and different kinds of reports. Quotes were selected to explain thefindings from the interviews, and a social network analysis was constructed to illustrate thestructure of the governance system. Another tool in the data analysis, which was also thepoint of the departure for constructing the research questions, was the resilience frameworkconsisting of a set of principles. Among these principles, five where applied for evaluating thegovernance system of the food strategy. The results were divided in two parts. The first section presents the results from performinginterviews by describing the governance system; identified stakeholders, their functions aswell as their relations. Two other themes identified from the interviews that were concludedto be important for the resulting governance system and also for the resilience evaluation were“collaboration” and “context”. Several stakeholders were identified, a few were concluded tobe more key than others as they belong to either the management group or the draftingcommittee. The stakeholders had national, regional and local responsibilities and were bothgovernmental and non-governmental organizations. The functions of the stakeholders werefor example to represent a certain part of the food system or contributing with national,regional or local knowledge about the food system. The relations among stakeholders in thegovernance system occurred between stakeholders working within the same geographicalscales and also between national, regional and local scales. In the center of the governancestructure were the management group that are to jointly decide on goals for the final strategydocument. The second part of the results constitutes the resilience evaluation, which was accomplishedby testing the results regarding the governance system (from part I) against the framework forresilience using the selected principles. These principles included maintain diversity andredundancy, manage connectivity, encourage learning, broaden participation and promotepolycentric governance. It was concluded that the governance system did follow all of theseprinciples in several aspects, but critical points were also identified. Among the positive  aspect were the positive attitude for learning among stakeholders in the governance system,the involvement of heterogenous groups interacting with one another and also themanagement group as a strong centre for decision-making. One of the main critical pointsidentified from performing the resilience evaluation suggests a few stakeholders to be lackingin the present governance system. The governance system for the food strategy had a large group of stakeholders, representingdifferent parts of the food system, including national/regional/local and governmental/nongovernmentalorganizations, interacting both within and across geographical scales. Theseaspects are important for promoting resilience according to the principles selected in thisstudy. By adding the suggested stakeholders, for example a few representatives from differentparts of the food system that was not involved in the process at the time of data collection, thegovernance system could promote resilience even more.
För att bemöta de globala problemen inom matförsörjning och miljöförstörelse som vi idagstår inför behövs styrningssystem som lämpar sig för detta. Resiliens är ett koncept som ärnära besläktat med hantering av ekosystemtjänster och som även kan bidra till ökad förståelseför vad som krävs för att uppnå en säker matförsörjning. I Sverige finns en nationelllivsmedelsstrategi som pekar ut en generell riktning för att hantera problemen inomlivsmedelssystemet. Det har även tagits fram flera regionala strategier i Sverige, ytterligare enstrategi tas nu fram av Länsstyrelsen i Stockholm. Denna strategi kommer att omfattaStockholms län och kan vara av särskild betydelse att granska då detta tätbefolkade län har enlåg försörjningsgrad av livsmedel. Styrningssystemet för strategin är relevant att granska i ochmed den stora gruppen aktörer som berörs av livsmedelsstrategin. Syftet med studien var attbidra med ytterligare kunskap om hur resiliensbegreppet kan användas i praktiken genom atttillämpa detta i livsmedelsstrategin för Stockholms län för att undersöka hur välstyrningssystemet bidrar till resiliens. Frågeställningen formulerades således för att undersökastrukturen av styrningssystemet genom att besvara vilka aktörer som ingick i styrningen, vilkaderas ansvarsområden var och vilka relationer som fanns emellan dem. Den sista delfrågan ifrågeställning handlade om att testa livsmedelsstrategins styrningssystem mot olika principersom föreslås gynna resiliens. För att samla in data genomfördes flera intervjuer med aktörer som var inblandade iframtagandet av livsmedelsstrategin under den tid då datainsamlingen ägde rum. Denna datahar även kompletterats med annat material så som vetenskapliga artiklar, böcker, dokumentsom Länsstyrelsen Stockholm bistått med, hemsidor, publiceringar från myndigheter ocholika slags rapporter. Citat användes för att understödja resultaten och en nätverksanalysgjordes för att illustrera styrningssystemets struktur. En ytterligare metod som användes föratt analysera data var ett ramverk för resiliens bestående av flera principer som bistår iutformningen av styrningssystem som gynnar resiliens. Resultaten i denna rapport har delats upp i två avsnitt. Det första avsnittet presenterarresultaten från intervjuerna och visar uppbyggnaden av styrningssystemet förlivsmedelsstrategin: vilka aktörer som var inblandade, vilka ansvarsområden de hade ochvilka relationer som fanns emellan dem. Ytterligare två teman framkom från intervjuerna,dessa ansågs relevanta för att beskriva styrningssystemet och även för resiliensanalysen.Dessa teman kategoriserades som ”samarbetet” och ”kontexten”. Flera aktörer ingick istyrningssystemet, av dessa ansågs några ha mer påverkan på styrningen genom sinmedverkan antingen i styrningsgruppen eller beredningsgruppen. I styrningssystemet fannsbåde nationella, regionala och lokala aktörer, från myndigheter såväl som från andraorganisationstyper. Aktörernas ansvarområdens grundade sig huvudsakligen i vilken del avlivsmedelssystemet de representerade och om de bistod med nationella, regionala eller lokalakompetenser. Relationerna mellan de olika aktörerna skedde både mellan aktörer som verkadeinom samma geografiska skala, men även mellan nationella, regionala och lokala aktörer. Icentrum av styrningssystemet fanns styrningsgruppen som tillsammans ska besluta om måleni strategidokumentet. Den andra delen av resultaten består av en resiliensutvärdering som testar det resulterandestyrningssystemet (del I) mot ett ramverk för resiliens genom att tillämpa några utvaldaprinciper. Dessa principer var ”bibehåll diversitet och överskott”, ”hanterasammankopplingar”, ”uppmuntra lärande”, ”bredda deltagande” och ”uppmuntrapolycentriska styrningssystem”. Styrningssystemet följde dessa principer i flera avseenden,  men det fanns också utrymme för förbättring. Bland aktörerna som ingick i styrningssystemetfanns en inställning som uppmuntrade lärande i enlighet med principerna. Gruppen aktörerbestod av olika slags organisationer som interagerade med varandra, vilket också uppmuntrasav resiliensprinciperna. Utöver detta var också kärnan av styrningssystemet, bestående avstyrningsgruppen med beslutanderätt, en annan egenskap hos styrningssystemet som gynnarresiliens. Det framgick också av resiliens-utvärderingen att ytterligare inblandning av ett antalaktörer kan vara önskvärt. Detta är en av de viktigare slutsatserna om vad som kan ändras föratt förbättra resiliensen i den nuvarande styrningen. Styrningssystemet av livsmedelsstrategin består av en stor grupp aktörer som representerarolika delar av livsmedelssystemet. Dessa är nationella, regionala och lokala aktörer, bådemyndigheter och andra slags organisationer. Relationer finns också mellan aktörer som verkarbåde inom samma geografiska område likväl som över sådana gränser. Dessa egenskaper ärviktiga för ett styrningssystem som gynnar resiliens enligt de principer som har använts i denhär studien. Genom att involvera ytterligare några aktörer, exempelvis från några delar avlivsmedelssystemet som inte fanns representerade i strategin vid datainsamlingen, kanstyrningssystemet till en ännu högre grad bidra till att stödja resiliens.

This thesis compares conventional agriculture and Ecological Recycling Agriculture (ERA) in terms of their environmental and socio-economic effects. Environmental effects include greenhouse gas emissions and energy use, but this analysis focuses on nutrient losses. Socio-economic effects include production, costs and benefits at macro, firm and household level. Comparisons were made at regional (Baltic Sea), national (Swedish) and local (community/municipality) level. At regional level, the main challenge is to make agriculture more environmentally friendly and reduce nutrient losses, while maintaining food production. At national level, the challenges are to shift the product mix towards more vegetables and less meat and to address the geographical division between animal and crop production. At local level, the challenge is to achieve sustainable environmental, economic and social rural development. At regional level, the empirical findings were scaled up to create three scenarios. In one scenario, agriculture in Poland and the Baltic States was transformed to resemble the Swedish average structure and resource use, which gave increased nitrogen and phosphorus surplus and substantially increased food production. Two other scenarios in which agriculture in the entire Baltic Sea area converted to ERA gave reductions in nitrogen surplus and eliminated the phosphorus surplus, while food production decreased or remained stable, depending on the strategy chosen. At national level, the environmental effects of different production methods, transport and different food baskets were compared. A household survey was performed to construct an alternative food basket, which was high in vegetables, low in meat and high in locally produced organic food compared with the average Swedish food profile. It was also 24% more expensive. Food basket content was found to be as important as production method in reducing environmental effects. Local production and processing was less important. At local level, an importer and wholesaler of organic fruit and vegetables and a group of environmentally concerned consumers were studied. The business was found to be resilient, i.e. well-suited to adapt to turbulence, and with a history of being innovative.
I den här avhandlingen jämförs konventionellt jordbruk med ekologiskt kretsloppsjordbruk. Jämförelsen görs med avseende på miljöeffekter och socio-ekonomisk påverkan. Av miljöeffekterna är fokus på läckage av växtnäring men utsläpp av växthusgaser samt energianvändning studeras också. Till de socio-ekonomiska effekterna räknas effekter på produktionsvolym samt kostnader och nyttor på såväl samhälls- som företags- och hushållsnivå. Jämförelsen görs på regional (Östersjöområdet), nationell (Sverige) och lokal (Järna/Södertälje kommun) nivå. På regional nivå är den stora utmaningen att omvandla jordbruksproduktionen i miljövänlig riktning och att minska närsaltsbelastningen samtidigt som produktionen hålls uppe. På nationell nivå är en utmaning att ändra produktionssammansättningen mot mer vegetabilier och mindre kött samt att minska den geografiska uppdelningen av djurhållning och spannmål. På lokal nivå är utmaningen att uppnå en hållbar landsbygdsutveckling ur miljömässigt såväl som ekonomiskt och socialt perspektiv. Resultat: på regional nivå beräknas miljöpåverkan och påverkan på livsmedelsproduktion i tre olika scenarier. Enligt ett scenario omvandlar Polen och de baltiska staterna sina jordbrukssektorer efter samma struktur och resursanvändning som ett genomsnittligt svenskt jordbruk. Det resulterar i att överskottet av kväve och fosfor i jordbruket ökar med 58% respektive 18% samtidigt som livsmedelsproduktionen ökar betydligt. Två andra scenarier där jordbruket i hela Östersjöregionen ställer om till ekologiskt kretsloppsjordbruk resulterar i reduktion av kväveöverskottet från jordbruket med 47-61% samt att fosforöverskottet elimineras. I de här scenarierna skulle livsmedelsproduktionen minska eller vara i princip oförändrad beroende på vilken strategi som väljs. På nationell nivå jämförs miljöpåverkan av olika produktionsmetoder, av transporter samt av olika matkassar. En hushållsstudie genomfördes i en grupp miljömedvetna konsumenter för att konstruera en alternativ matkasse. Matkassen innehöll en stor andel grönsaker, en liten andel kött och mycket lokalt och ekologiskt producerad mat jämfört med en genomsnittlig svensk matkasse. Den var även 24% dyrare i inköp. Det visade sig att miljöbelastningen påverkades väl så mycket av matkassens innehåll som av produktionsmetod. Lokal produktion och förädling var inte lika betydelsefullt. På lokal nivå studerades en grossist och importör av ekologiska frukter och grönsaker samt en grupp av miljöengagerade konsumenter (hushållsstudien ovan). Semistrukturerade intervjuer användes för att studera företaget, som visade sig vara resilient, det vill säga väl förberett för att klara turbulens på marknaden. Företaget karaktäriserades av ekonomisk stabilitet och en tradition av att vara innovativt. Ett exempel är Ekolådan, den första helt ekologisk hemleveransen av frukt och grönsaker i Stockholmsområdet. I den studerade regionen (Södertälje kommun) är efterfrågan på ekologiska livsmedel – från såväl hushåll och företag och andra organisationer som kommunen själv – hög jämfört med övriga Sverige. EU:s utvidgning innebär en möjlighet till förändrad förvaltning av Östersjön och jordbrukssektorn. En omställning i stor skala till ekologiskt kretsloppsjordbruk skulle leda till miljöförbättringar. En hållbar förvaltning av Östersjön, något som överenskommits inom ramen för HELCOM, kan inte uppnås samtidigt som jordbruksproduktionen maximeras i länderna runt Östersjön. Jordbruket orsakar betydande externa kostnader. Betalningsviljan för en förbättrad Östersjömiljö är stor vilket motiverar investeringar i ett miljövänligare, hållbart jordbruk. Medlemmarna i HELCOM, däribland Sveriges regering, har såväl ekonomiska som miljömässiga incitament att utnyttja möjligheten som Polens och de baltiska staternas EU-medlemskap innebär.

QC 20160523

The purpose of this study is to contribute to efforts to measuring and assessing resilience properties of household livelihoods, constructed in the risky environments, explaining why some households are more resilient than others. Based on resilience theory as applied to social-ecological systems with an application of Modern Portfolio Theory, this study adapted and measure the four properties of resilient livelihood systems and tested the expected relationships between system properties. It also examines risk coping behaviors of households and its role in shaping resilience trajectories of livelihoods towards a positive food security outcome. This study suggests that the major source of poor household resilience is both structurally constrained adaptive capacity and high shock exposure. Therefore, resilience programs that are designed in a similar risk prone and chronically food insecure districts of the country, should promote risk reduction measures while implementing programs designed to address structural causes of food insecurity.
El propósito de este estudio es contribuir a los esfuerzos para medir y evaluar las propiedades de resiliencia de los medios de vida de los hogares, construidos en entornos de riesgo, explicando por qué algunos hogares son más resistentes que otros. Basado en la teoría de la resiliencia aplicada a los sistemas socioecológicos con la aplicación de Modern Portfolio Theory, este estudio adapta y mide las cuatro propiedades de los sistemas de medios de vida resilientes y prueba las relaciones esperadas entre las propiedades del sistema.

This project explores the phenomenon of urban agriculture and the benefits of access to horticultural space in a low income community in the city of Santa Ana, California. Based conducted over a one year period, the author utilized participant-observation, conducted 20 personal interviews, coded 120 pages of field notes, analyzed original data on plant species, used demographic data, and food distribution data at the garden. Conclusions drawn from the research include that community gardens can be utilized as spaces which promote social cohesion, a place of food distribution, a place to grow medicinal plants, and a place to grow culturally important plants. This work contributes to the literature on urban gardens by developing an original concept called cultural plant memory—a theory that treats plants as public symbols, which can enact personal and shared cultural values, memories, and customs. This thesis demonstrates the potential of these spaces and aids in the promotion of horticultural space in urban areas.

Food crises and global climate change, along with natural system depletion, placed food security and environmental sustainability at the top of the political agenda. Analyses of the dynamic interlinkages between food consumption patterns and environmental concerns recently received considerable attention from the international community. Using the lens of a broad sustainability approach and recognizing the systemic dimension of sustainability - as the capacity of a system to maintain its functions over time - the thesis aimed at developing a multidimensional framework, to identify metrics for assessing the sustainability of food systems and diets, applicable at a subregional level. Building on Social-Ecological Systems frameworks, the Mediterranean Latin Arc presents several socioeconomic and biophysical drivers of change making the food system vulnerable in its functions. A vulnerability/resilience approach was applied to analyze the main issues related to food and nutrition security. Formalizing the food system as a dynamic complex system, a model originates from this framework. Several causal models of vulnerability were identified, describing the interactions where drivers of change directly affect food and nutrition security outcomes, disentangling exposure, sensitivity, and resilience. This theoretical modeling exercise allowed the identification of a first suite of indicators. A reduced pool of metrics was then obtained through an expert-based elicitation process (Delphi Survey), moving beyond subjective evaluation and reaching consensus.

This thesis presents research undertaken to understand and enhance resilience in the UK Food and Drink Manufacturing Sector. It focuses on the development of a conceptual framework which establishes how specific vulnerabilities link to individual mitigation strategies available to the sector and the impact of such strategies on wider sustainability. The research in this thesis is divided into four main parts. The first part consists of three complementary review chapters exploring resilience as a theoretical concept, resilience in the UK Food and Drink Manufacturing sector and existing methods used to study and/or enhance resilience. The second part of the thesis begins by describing how the pragmatic philosophy and abductive stance underpinning the research, in combination with review findings, helped to determine the research techniques used in this work, which included the systematic review process and the mixed methods case study. Next, the research facilitating a novel conceptual framework describing how real-time vulnerabilities can be identified and mitigated in a way that is complimentary to the wider sustainability of the organisation is discussed. The third part of the thesis describes the practical set of tools, presented in the form of a workbook, which enable a Food and Drink Manufacturer to utilise the conceptual framework teachings to enhance their own resilience. The final section details key conclusions regarding the conceptual nature and practical enhancement of resilience for Food and Drink Manufacturers and the wider food system, as well as opportunities for future work. The conceptual integrity and practical usefulness of the conceptual framework and its derivative workbook toolset have been demonstrated through case studies with two UK Food and Drink Manufacturers. Results suggest two major benefits of the framework are the ability to identify an organisation's vulnerabilities based on actual mapping of their supply network and the ability to evaluate mitigating resilience strategies based on their broader impacts elsewhere within the organisation. In summary, the research reported in this thesis has concluded that resilience cannot be seen as a one-off solution for returning to how things were before disruption, but instead is a constant process of learning and adaptation in response to a company's ever-changing operating environments. The framework and workbook presented provide a novel and practical method for UK Food and Drink Manufacturers, of all sizes and production ranges, to identify and respond to their evolving vulnerabilities, as well as providing much needed synthesis and directions for future work at an academic level.

Food is, of course, essential to the continuation of human life, and today’s food supply networks or as they are also known “farm to fork” are becoming more diverse and dynamic. It is an undeniable fact that the changing climate has resulted in more extreme weather conditions than before. Simultaneously, the world has become more interconnected, and the population continues to grow and get richer, thus demand for food is increasing, whilst natural resources are depleting quickly. Risks due to considerable environmental degradation have the potential to spread through the food system and adversely affect access and availability of food. According to the UK Government (2014), food supply chains play a significant role in the country’s economy, accounting for seven percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and food manufacturing is still the largest manufacturing sector in the United Kingdom (UK Government, 2014). It is a sector which is making an important contribution to growth, including through the expansion of exports. However, to fulfil the demand for food by its growing population, the UK also relies significantly on imported food. The aim of this study is to investigate “resilience” as a form of capability for risk mitigation within food supply chains. This research identifies the influencing factors, that can affect supply chain resilience, such as building blocks and their interactions. To achieve this aim, three major food companies, that have an active presence in British food supply chains, have contributed to this study. This empirical research adapted a multiple case study approach and used qualitative data to interpret answers to the research questions. The main sources of evidence were the interviewee responses to the semi-structured interview questions. The interviewee’s answers relating to each case study company were analysed through a qualitative data pattern matching analysis technique. Furthermore, the findings of the case study companies were compared against each other. To increase the credibility and validity of the research findings, observational studies and document archival reviews were conducted and their findings were triangulated against the findings of interview responses. Finally, this research drew a theoretical framework for resilient food supply chains in which the drivers of resilience and their interactions in food supply chains were identified. It also sheds light onto the common misconceptions between risk management and resilience, and provides an unambiguous definition for resilient food supply chains.

Building resilient communities has emerged as a dominant agenda in the policy arena and in academia in the wake of recent disasters. However, there is a lack of clarity on the specific interventions required to build resilience. Current challenges associated with resilience include ambiguity, unclear measures, and problematized applicability. This thesis evaluates the determinants of resilience to drought in community food systems as a basis for contributing towards a more advanced understanding of resilience. A schematic model linking the key concepts associated with resilience was developed on the basis of literature review. This model was subsequently applied to a sample of 195 farm households, 16 community meetings and about 45 interviews with key informants across eight villages in Nsanje and Mzimba districts in Malawi interviewed between October 2010 and February 2011. Analysis at household level focused on exploring the causes of vulnerability, the role of livelihood assets and institutions in shaping coping and adaptation, and the implication of these to the meaning of resilience. The thesis concluded that vulnerability to food insecurity was produced by an interaction of slow and fast moving factors and processes, some of which were highly persistent. Access to livelihood assets and institutions increased short term coping and adaptive capacity but did not effectively predict resilience given unknowns regarding asset availability and liquidity over the long term. Different socio-economic groups associated different meanings with the concept of resilience, and in some cases, one group achieved ‘resilience’ at the expense of the larger community. In integrating vulnerability into resilience thinking, the analysis suggested that resilience could be analysed as existing in desirable and undesirable forms. Undesirable resiliencies reinforced the vulnerable state. By addressing the factors that sustain vulnerability, response capacity could be enhanced. This being the case, advanced by this thesis is a shift from focusing on resilience as a utopian goal, in favour of practices that enhance response capacity and letting communities learn for themselves and transform their value sets to ones that are more likely to ensure coping with adverse conditions. The study concludes that the concept of resilience in its current form is of more value as an organising framework within the re-engineering of food, agricultural, development and disaster management policy can be undertaken.

This thesis presents a comparison of conventional agriculture and Ecological Recycling Agriculture (ERA) in terms of their environmental and socio-economic effects. Environmental effects include greenhouse gas emissions and energy use but the focus is on leakage of nutrients. Socio-economic effects include production, costs and benefits at macro, firm and household levels. The comparison is made at regional (Baltic Sea), national (Swedish) and local (Järna community/Södertälje municipality) levels. At regional level the main challenge is to transform agricultural production in an environmentally friendly direction and reduce nutrient loads while sustaining food production. At national level the challenges are to shift the product mix towards more vegetables and less meat, and to address the geographical division of animal and crop production. At local level the challenge is to achieve sustainable rural development in environmental, economic and social terms. Results: at regional level the empirical findings were scaled up to calculate three scenarios. A scenario where the agriculture sectors of Poland and the Baltic States transform in such a way that their structure and use of resources resembles the Swedish average resulted in a 58% increase of nitrogen and an 18% increase in phosphorus surplus from agriculture and increased food production. Two other scenarios where agriculture in the entire Baltic Sea area converts to ERA resulted in reductions of 47-61% in nitrogen surplus from agriculture and eliminated the phosphorus surplus. In these scenarios food production decreased or remained stable depending on the strategy chosen. At national level, the environmental effects of different production methods, transport and different food baskets were compared. A household survey was performed to construct an alternative food profile. This food basket was high in vegetables, low in meat and high in locally produced organic food compared to the average Swedish food profile. It was also 24% more expensive. Food basket content was found to be as important as production methods in reducing the environmental effects. Localized production and processing was less important. At local level, a network of entrepreneurs engaged in the production, processing and distribution of organic food was studied. Semi-structured interviews were used to assess the network, which was found to be a resilient self-organized network characterized by economic stability and social capital. A high share of locally produced and consumed food was coupled with social and economic sustainability. This was facilitated by well-functioning cooperation within the network and between entrepreneurs, consumers and the municipality. EU expansion can be seen as a window of opportunity for governance of the Baltic Sea and the agriculture sector. A new agricultural regime with large-scale ERA production would result in several environmental gains. Sustainable governance of the Baltic Sea as agreed on in HELCOM cannot be achieved while simultaneously maximizing agricultural production in the surrounding countries. Agricultural production bears large external costs. There is substantial willingness to pay for an improved Baltic Sea environment among the public: this justifies environmentally sound farming practices. The contracting parties of HELCOM, including the Swedish government, have both environmental and economic incentives to use this window of opportunity before it closes. This thesis is the result of a collaboration between Mälardalen University and Stockholm Resilience Centre at Stockholm University. Both universities contributed with supervision and financial support at different stages of the research process.
I den här avhandlingen jämförs konventionellt jordbruk med ekologiskt kretsloppsjordbruk. Jämförelsen görs med avseende på miljöeffekter och socio-ekonomisk påverkan. Av miljöeffekterna är fokus på läckage av växtnäring men utsläpp av växthusgaser samt energianvändning studeras också. Till de socio-ekonomiska effekterna räknas effekter på produktionsvolym samt kostnader och nyttor på såväl samhälls- som företags- och hushållsnivå. Jämförelsen görs på regional (Östersjöområdet), nationell (Sverige) och lokal (Järna/Södertälje kommun) nivå. På regional nivå är den stora utmaningen att omvandla jordbruksproduktionen i miljövänlig riktning och att minska närsaltsbelastningen samtidigt som produktionen hålls uppe. På nationell nivå är en utmaning att ändra produktionssammansättningen mot mer grönsaker och mindre kött samt att minska den geografiska uppdelningen av djurhållning och spannmål. På lokal nivå är utmaningen att uppnå en hållbar landsbygdsutveckling ur miljömässigt såväl som ekonomiskt och socialt perspektiv. Resultat: på regional nivå beräknas miljöpåverkan och påverkan på livsmedelsproduktion i tre olika scenarier. Enligt ett scenario omvandlar Polen och de baltiska staterna sina jordbrukssektorer efter samma struktur och resursanvändning som ett genomsnittligt svenskt jordbruk. Det resulterar i att överskottet av kväve och fosfor i jordbruket ökar med 58% respektive 18% samtidigt som livsmedelsproduktionen ökar. Två andra scenarier där jordbruket i hela Östersjöregionen ställer om till ekologiskt kretsloppsjordbruk resulterar i reduktion av kväveöverskottet från jordbruket med 47-61% samt att fosforöverskottet elimineras. I de här scenarierna skulle livsmedelsproduktionen minska eller vara i princip oförändrad beroende på vilken strategi som väljs. På nationell nivå jämförs miljöpåverkan av olika produktionsmetoder, av transporter samt av olika matkassar. En hushållsstudie genomfördes i en grupp miljömedvetna konsumenter för att konstruera en alternativ matkasse. Matkassen innehöll en stor andel grönsaker, en liten andel kött och mycket lokalt och ekologiskt producerad mat jämfört med en genomsnittlig svensk matkasse. Den var även 24% dyrare i inköp. Det visade sig att miljöbelastningen påverkades väl så mycket av matkassens innehåll som av produktionsmetod. Lokal produktion och förädling var inte lika betydelsefullt. På lokal nivå studerades ett nätverk av entreprenörer engagerade i produktion, förädling och distribution av ekologiska livsmedel. Semistrukturerade intervjuer användes för att studera nätverket. Ett resilient, självorganiserande nätverk karaktäriserat av ekonomisk stabilitet och socialt kapital observerades. En hög andel av lokalt producerad och konsumerad mat samt ett väl fungerande samarbete i nätverket av entreprenörer och mellan entreprenörer, konsumenter och kommunen bidrog till ekonomisk hållbarhet. EU:s utvidgning innebär en möjlighet till förändrad förvaltning av Östersjön och jordbrukssektorn. En omställning i stor skala till ekologiskt kretsloppsjordbruk skulle leda till miljöförbättringar. En hållbar förvaltning av Östersjön, något som överenskommits inom ramen för HELCOM, kan inte uppnås samtidigt som jordbruksproduktionen maximeras i länderna runt Östersjön. Jordbruket orsakar betydande externa kostnader. Betalningsviljan för en förbättrad Östersjömiljö är stor vilket motiverar investeringar i ett miljövänligare, hållbart jordbruk. Medlemmarna i HELCOM, däribland Sveriges regering, har såväl ekonomiska som miljömässiga incitament att utnyttja möjligheten som Polens och de baltiska staternas EU-inträde innebär. Den här avhandlingen är ett samarbetsprojekt mellan Mälardalens högskola och Stockholm Resilience Centre vid Stockholms universitet. Båda lärosätena bidrog med handledning och finansiering under avhandlingsprojeket.

Background: COVID-19 has brought so many changes in the business environment and in the ways of doing business. Food retail companies in Sweden have been trying to cope with the changes and challenges and have made necessary decisions to become resilient. It is in their urge to become resilient; however, the implementation is arduous at times. Purpose: The purpose of the thesis is two-folded. One is to know the supply chain inefficiencies, and the other is to understand how the inefficiencies can be mitigated through the actions of the supply chain professionals. Method: Semi-structured questions have been asked in the interviews to gather in-depth insights from the industry expert. The interviews were taken from the branch managers of food retail stores in Sweden. The analysis has been done based on the content analysis. Findings: Content analysis assisted the emergence of the factors. It was done by analyzing the quotes from the branch managers. Therefore, the relationship between the characteristics and the RBV theory has been scrutinized. Conclusion: The purpose of the thesis was to find the inefficiencies of the food retail supply chain in pandemic times. Also, it was to find the solution about how the supply chain inefficiencies can be tackled to ensure supply chain resilience in the food retail stores in Sweden. For that purpose, data have been collected right from the field where the action takes place, and therefore, the data have been analyzed. Hence, the problems have been found, and the solutions have been recommended.

Alternative food networks (AFNs) are the focus of an ‘explosive growth’ of research in Europe (Goodman 2004), and the term covers a wide range of activities, from food banks, community gardens, and farmers’ markets, to community supported or organic agriculture. However, there is an impasse in differing positions over whether AFNs represent an exclusionary place-based ‘quality turn’ (Ilbery and Kneafsey 2000), or whether they contribute to inclusive local communities, sustainability and food security (Tregear 2011, Kirwan and Maye 2013). This research aimed to clarify these debates, through exploration of UK allotments as a benchmark for AFNs, using the case of Plymouth, SW England. A political ecology perspective of social-ecological systems (Ostrom 2008) was used to investigate the activities, relations and governance involved in allotments and AFNs, organised through the concepts of multidimensional capital assets (Bebbington 1999). This research demonstrates how activities on allotments involve human, social, cultural, natural and political capital assets, encompassing both basic food security and a quality turn towards ‘good food’ (Sage 2003). Taking the long view, it is seen that the relative importance of the different asset dimensions are contingent on wider socio-political settings. Relations on allotments illustrate the building of social capital, which extends to wider communities of interest, practice and place (Harrington et al. 2008), and which involves values of social justice that can be explained as diverse or care economies (Gibson-Graham 2008, Dowler et al. 2010). However, the politics and governance of allotments are largely influenced by neoliberal policies that favour oligopolistic and transnational food systems and restrict urban land allocations for place-based food initiatives. Present-day urban population densities are at levels far higher than envisaged for the original garden cities. Nevertheless, alliances at neighbourhood, city, regional, national and transnational scales are coalescing around the values represented in the original setting up of the UK allotment system: of self-reliance, human-scale settlements and the restorative value of the natural environment. Any realization of the potential contribution of allotments and AFNs to the sustainability and resilience of food supplies for urban populations (Armitage et al. 2008, Folke et al. 2010) ultimately depends on multilevel responses to a large range of challenges. Finally, the thesis contends that, in the present day, evidence is building up around the potential of allotments and many other AFN activities, or place-based food systems, to meet multiple policy objectives through aligned values.

Achieving global food security whilst reconciling demands on the environment and on scarce resources is a significant challenge. To address this challenge, the research described in this thesis evaluated the sustainability and resilience of existing food production systems by applying systems thinking, the principles of food sovereignty, and systems modelling. Practical applications must integrate productivity, the natural environment, economic return and socio-cultural considerations in order to be sustainably viable. To help elucidate system differences, three specific research questions were formulated and applied to case studies from the United Kingdom, Cuba and Australia. Findings from this research found that: 1. For the developed world, a modified conventional agricultural system that increases ecological complexity through greater adoption of environmentally sensitive practises provides the greatest potential to improve sustainable viability. 2. For the developing world, where off-farm inputs are not easily accessible by farmers, policies should continue to support traditional farming and agro-ecology. Further, support for organic certification of traditionally farmed and agro-ecologically produced food, will: a. Encourage a technical skills transfer to increase productivity, and b. Provide a value added and profitable marketing opportunity. 3. When the global community recognises the right to food over economic rights, then the internationally agreed and supported framework that accommodates the principles of food sovereignty provides an opportunity for all people everywhere to choose their own food future. 4. Addressing complex systems relationships between the environment and food production systems requires a holistic approach and an understanding of a system’s interacting parts at the most basic level if any meaningful interpretation of complex systems is to be achieved and communicated.

While it is clear that urban food systems need to be made resilient so that broader sustainability goals can be maintained over time, it has been a matter of debate as to how resilience should be conceptualised when applied to social-ecological systems. Through a case study of peri-urban Wuhan, this research develops and applies a resilience based conceptual framework for periurban food systems analysis in order to explore the potential for an enhanced understanding of resilience that can contribute to promoting sustainability in urban food systems. The evidence of this thesis suggests that the current approach to governance of Wuhan's periurban vegetable system is building an increasingly exclusionary pattern of resilience. It is a form of resilience building which is likely to undermine broader normative sustainability goals around social justice and environmental integrity and have mixed future implications for food system resilience as a whole, particularly in relation to livelihood outcomes for peri-urban farmers and food safety outcomes for urban consumers in general. The key lessons from this research are that the concept of resilience can be used to support either a narrowing down or an opening up of normative framings of system outcomes and can contribute to obscuring or revealing the multiple processes of change unfolding across the levels of system context, structures and actors. These dualities in the way that resilience thinking can contribute to normative and analytical framings need to be explicitly acknowledged if serious unintended consequences of resilience building interventions are to be avoided. Six important principles for conceptualising resilience in urban food systems are suggested: to 1) disaggregate system outcomes, 2) differentiate function and structure, 3) analyse positive and negative resilience, 4) identify external and structural shocks and stresses, 5) analyse resilience in relation to multiple and multi-scale processes of change and 6) recognise the impacts of those processes on marginalised system actors. Finally, a heuristic framework is presented for guiding the design of resilience analyses of human dominated social-ecological systems.

This thesis used the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework to explore the lived experience of women with children living with household food insecurity in south-east Queensland. The research was a phenomenological, qualitative longitudinal study that involved women from diverse economic backgrounds with a variety of household structures. The thesis identified that women used food and financial strategies that were pragmatic and were willing to sacrifice their self-identity in order to maintain social identity. The research highlighted that food insecurity in high income countries is a complex condition that involves a range of trade-offs that focus on maintaining household livelihoods.

Progress in human development is threatened by the complexities of global environmental change - a defining challenge of our time. Appropriate societal responses are needed to address disturbances and increasing vulnerability of social-ecological systems. This changing context calls current development thinking into question and requires new approaches, policies, and tools to cope with growing uncertainty. With a focus on capacities instead of vulnerabilities, an approach is needed emphasizing the role of communities in planning interventions and strengthening community resilience. This research draws on vulnerability, social-ecological systems and drylands development theory to advance an integrated understanding of resilience at community level and its role towards sustainable development. To develop a general approach for development actors to characterize a community's resilience and plan locally targeted interventions is the overall objective of this research. A participatory approach towards defining and assessing community resilience forms the basis, as it is assumed this would enable development actors to more efficiently address development concerns and empower communities to strengthen their resilience. Underlying factors that determine community resilience in selected dryland communities in Tigray, northeastern Ethiopia are identified. Here, most of the population depends on subsistence agriculture, while food insecurity and poverty persist despite concerted regional development efforts. This research compares and consolidates local perceptions of determinants of community resilience that form the basis for guidelines towards a methodological framework for determining levels of community resilience in Tigray. The guidelines were used to compare levels of community resilience of communities, with implications for operationalizing community resilience in the context of drylands development practice. Findings reflect the importance of recognizing that resilience is not about maintaining a status quo, but about addressing how societies can develop in a changing environment. Prominence of resilience thinking can promote a development practice better suited to address the challenges and opportunities that changes create for poor dryland communities. Resilience thinking does not provide quick solutions, but contributes a long-term, multi-dimensional perspective of building capacities for improved responses to current needs and future change. Resilience is not a solution in itself but can contribute towards developing more resilient trajectories for drylands development.

This thesis examines the interactions between climate change, food security and public health outcomes in Kiribati. Food security is known to be a strong determinant of health outcomes. This study found Kiribati to be overly reliant on imported food of low nutritious quality, with strong negative public health outcomes such as increasing prevalence of diabetes and hypertension. Identified environmental problems are worsening with climate change; these affect and imperil domestic food production. This study also identifies the strengths of Kiribati communities, providing recommendations on improving food security and climate resilience based on suggestions of islanders and scientific evidence.

Sweden is becoming increasingly dependent on the import of foodstuffs from a globalfood system that is unsustainable due to its responsibility for environmental degradation and itsdependency on finite resources like fertilizers and fossil fuels. The diminishing ability to be selfsufficientin a time when peak oil, climate change, environmental degradation, exponentialpopulation growth, and a troublesome global economy might reshape the structures of the currentsystems, in a not so distant future, could be a cause for great worry. Skåne County has functioned asa case study to investigate the level of self-sufficiency in foodstuffs at the present time and theprospects for self-sufficiency in the future. Forecasts for the years 2030 and 2050 have been madebased on five different variables: population size, production and consumption, climate change,available agricultural land, and the transition toward a sustainable agricultural system. At thepresent time, with today’s consumption patterns, the foodstuffs that are produced in Skåne Countycan sustain around 78% of the population. For the forecasts, different scenarios have been generatedby adjusting the five variables within a reasonable range. Scenarios are also in the forecasts inwhich suggested proactive implementations to enhance the possibilities for self-sufficiency havebeen included. Due to these proactive implementations and the high degree of uncertainty withinsome variables, the result ranges from a 16.7% self-sufficiency level up to 111.6%. In order to reacha 100 % level of self-sufficiency there are strong indications that this will require structural systemchanges as well as behavioral changes

Contemporary supply chain management (SCM) issues are multiplex and continually evolving catalysed by complexities and dynamism. The perishable food industry exemplifies this phenomenon, driven by globalisation, technological advancements and a highly competitive business environment. Inescapably, food supply chains are increasingly operating as supply chain networks (SCN). SCNs are typified by a higher level of interdependence and connectivity amongst firms, consequently evolving from dyad and triad relationships, which have dominated SCM research. These changes generate divergent risks and vulnerabilities that perturb perishable food supply chains in unconventional ways. Thus, the purpose of this empirical study is to investigate how firms within a perishable food supply chain network can build resilience and sustainability. The research focuses on advancing the management of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG). Methodologically, an empirical qualitative study is undertaken within a food manufacturer (focal firm) and 18 independent firms operating across all tiers of its SCN. Applying a pragmatic philosophical positioning, the study draws concepts from key supply chain theories to investigate the phenomena. The investigation uses Nicolini’s Zooming in and Zooming out as an analytical lens. The zooming in and out is established by shifting analytical lenses and re-positioning actors’ praxis, to ensure certain facets of their actions are fore-grounded while others are put in a background position and contrariwise moving the background to the foreground. The purpose of this technique is to draw meaning from everyday practices and trace the actions of actors across the entire SCN. The results uncover four distinct but intertwined main categories; whose subtle and often ignored interplay is crucial in attaining SCN resilience and sustainability. These main categories are Collaboration, Power Dynamics, SCN Culture and Information Systems. Current supply chain literature argues that collaboration is an essential enabler of resilience and sustainability. Building on this, the findings make a significant contribution by teasing out the intangible and predominately unacknowledged antecedents and salient sustaining factors of effective SCN collaboration. Furthermore, the study develops a resilience and sustainability (RS) matrix, which renders different impacts and outcomes of varying levels of SCN collaboration between firms operating in a perishable food SCN. Therefore, this thesis contributes knowledge towards constructing resilient and sustainable perishable food SCNs by proffering pragmatic propositions. These aim to address challenges facing industry stakeholders and ignite pertinent future research avenues for scholars.

This paper considers the contribution of urban agriculture to the local food system and the role of the city council in this system. Using an interdisciplinary mixed method approach, the study explores local stakeholders’ perspectives of these aspects in the city of Bristol, UK. The findings were viewed through the lenses of two conceptual frameworks, resilience and social justice. The results reveal that urban agriculture increases resilience through building community, maintaining a diverse food supply network, and strengthening adaptability by retaining the knowledge and skills to produce food. Urban agriculture also supports social justice, by providing access to healthy food, promoting equality and inclusion, and encouraging healthier living through education. Furthermore, the results indicate that the city council can increase resilience and support social justice in the local food system through four key interventions; their procurement policy, urban planning, assisting urban agriculture initiatives, and developing a holistic urban food policy. In conclusion, urban agriculture is regarded as more than a form of food production because local stakeholders use it to support a broad range of social objectives. Developing an urban food policy is the shared responsibility of the city council as well as private and voluntary sector actors. Resilience and social justice are advocated as normative goals of the food system, and can be used as frameworks to guide the complex process of urban food system reform.

Climate change is rapidly reducing the Arctic Ocean summer sea ice cover, consequently altering the patterns of primary production, with reducing ice algal-, but increasing phytoplankton primary production. As benthic consumers rely on the sinking phytodetritus for food, changes to food availability could render the benthos vulnerable if they prefer ice algae as a food source. The aim this thesis was to investigate the benthic macroinfaunal dietary reliance on ice algae and phytoplankton in North Water Polynya (NOW) and Lancaster Sound (LS) in Canadian Arctic Archipelago, and how a shift from one food source to another impacts the benthic community resource utilisation and nutrient cycling processes. I hypothesised that ice algae would be preferentially consumed and respired by the benthos. Natural abundance stable isotope analysis showed that phytoplankton is the main food source for macroinfauna in NOW and LS. 13C-15N isotope tracer experiments showed that while in NOW the accumulative macroinfaunal uptake of ice algal C was higher than uptake of ice algae, in LS more ice algal C and N was consumed. None of the major taxonomic groups exclusively preferred ice algae. No difference in bacterial uptake of the two algal types was observed at either site, but the respiration of phytoplankton C was significantly higher than respiration of ice algal C. The processing rates of phytoplankton-derived C were 39–46% higher than processing rates of ice algal C. Therefore, the hypothesis of ice algal preference by benthos must be rejected. I conclude that benthic macroinfauna exhibit great dietary flexibility, making them resilient against climate mediated changes in food sources, and that increasing availability of phytoplankton food can benefit the benthos in the future. Additionally, the transition from ice algae to phytoplankton dominated food can significantly enhance benthic organic matter processing, and especially respiration, rates in the future.

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Management from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics
In times of crisis, firms need to take measures to survive and prepare for the economic recovery. Nevertheless, many are the firms that simply retract during crisis and hope for it to pass. The present case study gives the successful example of Café3 Restauração S.A., a Portuguese food service firm that was able to grow during the recession that occurred in Portugal in the past years, thanks to the launch of a new fast food concept. The central questions of the case, and its relevance, relate to opportunities that downturns and changing consumer behaviours bring to entrepreneurial projects. Using its previous experience the firm was able to bring novelties to a market that offered better possibilities of growth. Between 2007 and 2012, the firm multiplied its revenues by eight and more than fifty outlets were opened, including overseas and other brands' outlets. The case discusses the introduction of standardised procedures and their implications in the operational efficiencies, as well as employee motivation. Moreover, it implies that the firm's success is due to the sum of each action and that h3 was the first of more casual dining fast food concepts.

Magister Artium (Development Studies) - MA(DVS)
Food security is a challenge for most developing countries (Yahaya, 2018). In South Africa, poverty continues to be a stumbling block to food security for most of the population. Due to the socio-economic challenges plaguing the country, a large proportion of the population struggles to access sufficient food which meets dietary needs. Poverty and unemployment are the key contributory factors of food insecurity in South Africa. Against this backdrop, this study sought to investigate the perceived impact of urban agriculture on food insecurity in Khayelitsha. As a survival strategy, urban agriculture has been advocated to improve food security in most developing countries. Moya Wekhaya Peace Gardens is the study organization of this thesis. The aim of the research is (1) To investigate the extent of food insecurity in Khayelitsha; (2) To investigate the coping strategies adopted by households to be more food secure (3) To investigate the perceived impact of urban food gardens on household food security and (4) To identify challenges faced by urban farmers in Khayelitsha.

An interview study was undertaken to explore Swedish broiler producers´ views for the potential of hops (H. lupulus L.) to reduce reliance on ionophorous coccidiostats in broiler production. The design was a mixed methodology between grounded theory and case study with a semi structured interview method. Nine producers, four using ionophorous coccidiostats and five without reliance in production accepted interview. During interviews participants were presented to research conducted with hops in production and consequences from ionophores in production. All participants thought the risk from pathogen pressure was too great to cut reliance in intensive production owed to the lower efficacy of hops. Therefore owed to how actors in the Swedish food system behave only small producers with enough economical freedom for reduced stocking densities were regarded to be able to uphold animal health with hops. Six parameters within food systems were regarded as leverage points for a potential of hops in production on a larger societal scale if encouraging a more extensive nationwide production system. Those were: purchase will, small local production, increased responsibility within trade, law, elevated consumers and research. Law was seen as a necessity to enforce all other denominators since economical in food systems tend to override social and ecological dimensions. Consequences from power struggle in food systems disfavoring producers has although resulted in a great distrust towards other system actors such as consumers, legal institutions or wholesalers. That has created a reluctance to interact with other system actors even for common goals. A stronger position to other actors in food systems was regarded as increasing a meaningful outcome from interaction. Four parameters emerged as impacting power relations in a system the most: Purchase will, contracts, own designed production and law. Favorable purchase will and law would contribute the most for increasing adaptivity for alternatives in production by impacting on power relations. No producers had observed indicators of bacterial resistance from ionophorous coccidiostat usage. Lack of research for many years in the field was troublesome for how to develop the enterprise according to participants. Especially in relation to Norway that has abolished the static use of ionophorous coccidiostats in production. About half of the participants although regarded a shift in research towards consequences from intensive production as equally important as focusing on alternative antimicrobials.

This study addresses the question of how climate variability, in terms of seasonal rainfall variation, might affect food security in Malawi. It hypothesizes that seasonal rainfall variation could cause food insecurity and that the consequences of weather hazards possibly differ within the country. An additional aim of this study is therefore to map local resilience in Malawi to estimate the adaptation ability by analyzing two subsamples. The hypothesis is tested by using a two-way fixed effect regression analysis and panel data for 28 districts in Malawi covering the years 2000, 2004, 2010 and 2015. This study finds no statistically significant effect of seasonal rainfall variation on children’s health for the examined years.

The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks exposed vulnerabilities to U.S. homeland security and defense, leading U.S. officials to analyze threats to domestic and international interests. Terrorist attacks against food and water supplies (agro-terrorism), were deemed a national security threat because of the assessed fear, economic instability, and social instability that could occur following a food shortage. Research indicated a comprehensive response plan does not exist across the federal, state, and local levels of government to mitigate the public's possible responses to a perceived threat to food security and food shortages following an agro-terrorist attack. This ethnographic case study analyzed the perceived threats to food security and the possible responses to food shortages in Yuma, Arizona (the 'winter lettuce capitol of the world'). Coleman and Putnam's theories of social capital served as the theoretical framework for this study. Data were collected through semistructured interviews of nine residents and six experts from Yuma's departments of government to examine the relative atmospherics between the citizens and government officials. Findings indicated that a comprehensive plan does not exist, and perceived fears and the lack of knowledge about emergency preparedness in a society with high social capital and community resilience can still create the conditions for chaos and anomie. Recommendations include improving communication, education, and expectation management of citizens. Implications for social change include improving public awareness and individual responsibility for preparedness, as well as assisting policymakers in maintaining social capital to deter social disorganization and anomie during disasters.

Contemporary towns and cities in developing countries are faced with myriads of challenges. And, scholars have been suggesting various approaches, methods and tools to improve local resilience against these challenges. Some of the approaches and movements that proliferated recently in urban studies are Urban Metabolism, Sustainable Spatial Planning, the specified resilience approach, and the circular economy. Although these movements played an important role in improving local resilience and sustainability in the western world, their impacts on towns and cities of the developing world remains minimal. This is mainly because these movements were conceived and born in western countries and most of them are targeted at solving their own local problems. So, there is a very strong need to contextualize and modify them so that they fit into the existing local conditions in towns and cities of developing countries. In addition, lack of institutions and usable data makes it very difficult to undertake similar studies in countries like Ethiopia. That is why contextualizing these movements and searching resource efficient paths to local resilience and sustainability have become important tasks in recent years. In addition, developing a methodology that helps to operationlize and spatialize these concepts (resilience and sustainability - concepts usually criticized for being too general and normative) is also very crucial.This research, therefore, developed a robust diagnostic and analytical tool to study the nexus between major challenges (in small towns) and their impact on local resilience and sustainability in Ethiopia. The urban metabolism approach is mainly used (as a tool) to understand the nature of these challenges and to diagnose resilience in small towns. It specifically focuses on the flow food and housing construction materials (the two most stressed flows) in the case towns. These case towns are selected to represent the two ends of the sustainable town planning continuum in Ethiopia (Amdework is an organically growing old town and BuraNEST is a new planned town based on principles of sustainability). This research is mainly conducted at three stages: at regional level, at local level and at sub-system level. The first task done to achieve this objective is, therefore, characterization of the role of the case town in the regional urban system. This is done mainly using the urban metabolism approach. The deployment of this tool helped the researcher to pinpoint weak links, unsustainable flows, and vulnerable paths that simultaneously impact local resilience and sustainability in the case towns. This preliminary exploratory research clearly indicated the role of the town in the regional urban system and revealed the two most stressed (but important) sub-systems in the localities: the food and the housing sub-systems.Following this preliminary finding, the research has been narrowed down to the aforementioned two most stressed sub-systems. The food sub-system is first studied using the urban metabolism and the 'specified resilience' approaches. The research adopts a tri-tiered method (resilience at the source, resilience in the chain and resilience in consumption) to investigate local food resilience and metabolism and their relationship with the spatial configuration of the case town. The deployment of this method helps to operationalize and reduce the normative content of the concept (of resilience). This study reveals that urban agriculture is a highly marginalized agenda at all the three stages. Furthermore, the research investigates various bottom-up informal initiatives in the case town and other innovative planning endeavors (such as the planning of BuraNEST) that are aimed at improving sustainability and resilience in the food sub-system. The other focus area of the research is the housing sub-system. The urban metabolism approach, again, is primarily used to characterize, map and quantify the flow of materials used in the construction of residential houses in the town. The research developed a new bottom-up data generation technique to undertake this analysis. This method dominantly relied on estimations and conversions (of traditional measurements to the metric system) to get quantified data that was finally used as an input to develop metabolic models. Models (Sankeys) developed in this research reveal that the vast majority of inputs used in the construction are sourced locally. However, certain recent worrisome trends challenging sustainability have been observed in the housing sub-system due to the increased tendency of transporting important construction inputs from distant sources (mainly due to local construction regulations). The research, on the other hand, found that housing in BuraNEST, a town claimed to have been planned based on principles of sustainability, is more reliant on local sources and recognizes local needs and challenges. However, there are some critical pending questions (related with governance and affordability) that need to be addressed to improve sustainability in the housing sub-system in the long-run. Lastly, the research also investigates planning system challenges in small towns of Ethiopia. This is done mainly because many of the challenges found in the previous two analyses point to the presence of certain systemic problems in the policies, laws and manuals used in the planning of small town of Ethiopia. Such disorientations obviously negatively impact local resilience and sustainability in the long-run. Various definitions, wordings, phrases, and criteria identified in the federal planning law and manual were found to be on a direct collision course with principles of sustainability in many instances. By doing these, this research, therefore, systematically analyzed how the nexus between population pressure, resource flows and planning system challenges impact local resilience and sustainability (in the food and housing sub-systems) in small towns of Ethiopia. More importantly, it successfully spatialized and operationalized critical concepts such as urban resilience and sustainability using a new bottom-up approach. Clarity of the methodology vividly spells out the starting point when dealing with such important topics. This research can, therefore, serve as an important material to other researchers who are interested to study issues related to urban resilience and metabolism in small towns of developing countries. It clearly shows how the urban metabolism (as a tool) can be deployed to diagnose resilience in specific systems and sub-systems of towns and cities. It also provides a step-by-step procedure on how to generate data in data poor contexts and build metabolic models that can be used to study resilience in urban areas.
Les villes contemporaines des pays en développement sont confrontées à une multitude de défis. Les chercheurs ont suggéré diverses approches, méthodes et outils pour améliorer la résilience locale face à ces défis et parmi les approches qui ont proliféré récemment dans les études urbaines, nous pouvons citer le Métabolisme Urbain, l’urbanisme durable, l'approche de la Résilience Spécifiée et l'économie Circulaire. Bien que ces mouvements et ces outils aient joué un rôle important dans l'amélioration de la résilience et de la durabilité locales dans le monde occidental, leur application et leur impact sur les villes des pays en développement sont négligeables. Cela est principalement dû au fait que ces mouvements ont été conçus et sont nés dans les pays occidentaux et que, par conséquent, la plupart d'entre eux visent à résoudre des problèmes qui leur sont propres. Il existe donc un besoin important de contextualiser et d'adapter ces outils, mouvements et méthodologies pour étudier, comprendre et résoudre les problèmes des villes du monde en développement. En outre, le manque d'institutions et de données utilisables rend difficile la réalisation d'études similaires dans des pays comme l'Éthiopie. La recherche de chemins efficaces pour la résilience et la durabilité locale est donc une tâche difficile dans les pays en développement. De plus, il est très important de développer une méthodologie qui aide à opérationnaliser et à spatialiser ces concepts (résilience et durabilité, des concepts généralement critiqués pour être trop généraux et normatifs).Cette recherche a donc permis de mettre au point un solide outil de diagnostic et d'analyse pour étudier le lien entre les principaux défis et leur impact sur la résilience et la durabilité locale dans les petites villes d'Éthiopie. L'approche du métabolisme urbain est principalement utilisée pour comprendre la nature des défis urbains et diagnostiquer la résilience dans les villes concernées. Cette approche se concentre spécifiquement sur les flux des deux sous-systèmes les plus sollicités :les flux de nourriture et de matériaux de construction de logements. Les deux villes étudiées sont sélectionnées pour représenter les deux extrêmes du continuum de la planification urbaine durable en Éthiopie :une nouvelle ville planifiée (BuraNEST) et une vieille ville à croissance organique (Amdework). Cette recherche est organisée selon trois échelles :au niveau régional, au niveau local et au niveau des sous-systèmes. La première tâche effectuée pour atteindre cet objectif a donc été de caractériser le rôle de la ville prise comme cas d’étude dans le système urbain régional, en s’appuyant sur l'approche du métabolisme urbain. Le déploiement de cet outil a permis d'identifier les trajectoires non durables, les flux vulnérables et les activités qui ont simultanément un impact sur la résilience locale et sur la durabilité des villes étudiées. Cette recherche exploratoire préliminaire a clairement souligné le rôle de la ville dans le système urbain régional et a révélé deux sous-systèmes particulièrement sous tension: les sous-systèmes de l'alimentation et du logement.Suite à cette première constatation, la recherche se concentre sur ces deux sous-systèmes. Le sous-système alimentaire est d'abord étudié en utilisant le métabolisme urbain et les approches de « résilience spécifiée ». La recherche adopte une méthode suivant trois niveaux (résilience à la source, résilience dans la chaîne et résilience dans la consommation) pour étudier la résilience alimentaire locale et sa relation avec la configuration spatiale urbaine. Le déploiement de cette méthode permet d’opérationnaliser et de réduire le contenu normatif du concept de résilience. La recherche révéle que l'agriculture urbaine est un programme très marginalisé aux trois stades du métabolisme alimentaire. En outre, la recherche examine diverses initiatives informelles ascendantes dans la ville en question et d'autres initiatives de planification innovantes (telles que la planification de BuraNEST) qui visent à améliorer la durabilité et la résilience du sous-système alimentaire.Le second domaine d'étude de la recherche concerne le sous-système du logement. L'approche du métabolisme urbain est utilisée pour caractériser, cartographier et quantifier le flux de matériaux utilisés dans la construction des bâtiments résidentielles. La recherche développe une nouvelle technique de génération de données ascendantes pour entreprendre cette analyse. Cette méthode repose principalement sur de nombreuses estimations et conversions (des mesures traditionnelles vers le système métrique) pour obtenir des données quantifiées qui peuvent être utilisées comme intrants pour développer des modèles métaboliques. Les modèles (Sankeys) développés dans le cadre de cette recherche ont révélé que la grande majorité des matériaux intrants utilisés dans la construction proviennent de sources locales. Cependant, certaines tendances récentes inquiétantes remettant en cause la durabilité ont été observées dans le sous-système de logement en raison de la tendance croissante à importer d'importants éléments de construction provenant de sources éloignées (principalement en raison des réglementations locales en matière de construction). D'autre part, la recherche a révélé que les logements de BuraNEST, une ville qui déclare avoir été planifiée sur la base des principes de durabilité, dépendent davantage des ressources locales et considèrent les besoins et défis locaux. Cependant, le programme de logement de BuraNEST suscite d'importantes préoccupations en raison de la présence de quelques enjeux la gouvernance et l’économie de la construction des maisons, qui peuvent menacer la durabilité du programme à long terme. Enfin, la recherche s'est également penchée sur les problèmes liés au système de planification dans les petites villes d'Éthiopie. Cela est principalement dû au fait que de nombreuses questions relevées dans les deux analyses précédentes indiquent la présence de certains problèmes systémiques dans les politiques, les lois et les manuels utilisés dans la planification des petites villes d'Éthiopie. De telles désorientations ont évidemment un impact négatif sur la résilience et la durabilité locales à long terme. Dans de nombreux cas, diverses définitions, formulations, phrases et critères identifiés dans la loi et les règles de planification fédérale se sont révélés être en conflit direct avec les principes de durabilité.Par conséquent, cette recherche analyse de manière systématique le lien entre la pression démographique, les flux de ressources et les défis du système de planification qui ont un impact sur la résilience et la durabilité des petites villes d'Éthiopie. Plus important encore, cette recherche a réussi à spatialiser et à opérationnaliser des concepts critiques tels que la résilience et la durabilité urbaines en utilisant une nouvelle approche bottom-up. La rigueur de la méthodologie définit clairement le point de départ lorsqu'il s'agit de traiter des sujets aussi importants. Cette recherche peut donc constituer un matériel important pour les chercheurs qui souhaitent étudier les questions liées à la résilience et au métabolisme urbains dans les petites villes des pays en développement. Elle montre clairement comment le métabolisme urbain, en tant qu'outil, peut être déployé pour diagnostiquer la résilience dans les systèmes et sous-systèmes spécifiques des villes. Il fournit également une procédure étape par étape sur la façon de générer des données dans des contextes de manque d’information ,permettant ainsi deconstruire des modèles métaboliques qui peuvent être utilisés pour étudier la résilience dans les zones urbaines.
Doctorat en Art de bâtir et urbanisme (Polytechnique)
info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Inherent in their living and working conditions, Migrant and Seasonal Farm Workers (MSFWs) are exposed to a multitude of environmental and psychosocial stressors that make them susceptible to adverse health outcomes. Utilizing a resilience framework, the current study examined both the physical and psychological health functioning of MSFWs in Georgia, a state heavily reliant on farm worker labor where relatively few research studies with MSFWs have been conducted to date. Based on a sample of 120 Latino, male, MSFWs in South Georgia, results indicated that approximately 1 out of 3 farm workers were at risk for iron-deficiency anemia. Similar to other psychological health studies conducted with MSFWs located in the Eastern U.S., the prevalence rate of depression in the current sample was elevated. MSFW stress was found to be a risk factor for psychological health and positive well-being and accurate farm worker expectations were found to be assets associated with better psychological health outcomes. Farm worker expectations was also found to be a protective factor for physical health such that having accurate expectations buffered the relationship between MSFW stress and adverse biomedical health. Results show the usefulness of the resilience framework, and highlight the importance of establishing prevention, intervention, and policy efforts for MSFWs that aim to increase assets and minimize risk in this population.

Magister Artium (Development Studies) - MA(DVS)
It is well established that the modern global food system is highly unsustainable, distorted by industrialisation and corporate consolidation, with negative repercussions on the environment and biodiversity as well as human health. Innovative approaches are necessary to push food systems to be more sustainable, equitable, and healthy for all people regardless of income and wealth. In the Cape Town area, the food system is failing to adequately nourish the poor, while climate change poses increasing challenges to the region’s agricultural system. Conceptualising food systems as complex adaptive social ecological systems and utilising the Multilevel Perspective (MLP) framework, this thesis looks at the burgeoning economy in neglected and underutilised species (NUS) in the Cape Town area as a potential innovation that could make the local food system more socially and ecologically resilient. Though at present NUS are only marginally included in the local food system and policy debates, they are increasingly appearing in the food service industry, driven by international gastronomic trends. They hold potential as climate resilient, nutritionally dense, and socially and culturally significant foods in the region, but also carry ecological and social risks. This thesis critically examines the fledgling NUS economy in the Cape Town area, using participant observation and semistructured interviews to unpack its primary motivations and challenges, and ultimately contributes towards a better understanding of the NUS economy as it develops locally. This research shows that the main risks associated with NUS are negative ecological repercussions, privatisation of the NUS economy, and the reproduction and further entrenchment of unequal power dynamics in the region. In order to mitigate these risks and actualise the related benefits associated with NUS, engagement with the ecological, social, and political context of NUS needs to be significantly deepened. This is particularly true for those working in food service, who appear to be driving the NUS economy, and will require education around sustainability and TEK as well as a foregrounding of power-awareness.

Globalization and industrial agriculture have enabled consumers in Sweden and other countries in the Western world to enjoy foodstuffs from many parts of the world at very affordable monetary prices, but at the same time involving a lot of external costs in the form of environmental degradation, and a high dependency on foreign agricultural ecosystems as well as on oil and other non-renewable inputs, thus degrading sustainability and resilience in the food system. Accelerated climate change and the upcoming peak oil crisis call for a reorientation and a transition to a more locally-based system. The prospects for a re-localized food system have been investigated in a case study of Uppsala Municipality, Sweden. The results consist of a study of the current primary food production in Uppsala, also including an allotment garden survey, a study of how much additional food may be produced on idle land, and an analysis of opportunities and challenges for a re-localized food system in Uppsala. The allotment garden survey revealed that c. ten percent of the total area of plots containing cottage houses was used for food production, while the figure for plots without cottages was several times higher, c. 65 percent. The total estimated yield for allotment gardens in Uppsala Municipality was about 90 tons of vegetables and 48 tons of fruits and berries. Quantitative calculations on the yield produced by local farmers, horticulturists and leisure gardeners were made for the five categories grain, dairy products, eggs, meat, and vegetables, fruits and berries, together constituting about 85 percent of the total Swedish food consumption. The estimated balance of supply and demand differed a lot between food categories, ranging from 400 percent for grain to 20 percent for meat as well as for vegetables, fruits and berries. Due to empirical uncertainty, the latter figure should be interpreted with caution. For eggs and dairy products the balance of supply and demand was 67 percent and 50 percent respectively. A quantitative estimation for idle land showed that the greatest potential for an increased food production is within leisure gardening, which could be increased by 3.5 to 6 times. A transition to full self-sufficiency would, however, require drastically altered consumer habits towards seasonal vegetables and fruits and less beef in favor of vegetarian proteins. The qualitative analysis of possibilities and obstacles concluded that the greatest assets for a re-localized food production were the large production capacity within rural agriculture, the abundance of mostly unutilized private garden land, the increased interest for urban agriculture among the population, positive attitudes among consumers towards local food, and a relatively high general awareness of climate change and the need for a more sustainable society. Among the challenges were found lacking economic viability and access to suitable farmland, the centralized food industry, an imbalanced agricultural output, unsustainable consumer habits, the tendency among Swedish municipal planners to support exploitation of fertile soil, and a low awareness among both the population and decision makers regarding peak oil and social resilience generally.
Globaliseringen och det industriella jordbruket har möjliggjort för konsumenter i Sverige och andra västländer att få tillgång till matvaror till låga priser och från många olika delar av världen. Samtidigt har detta medfört ett högt pris i form av miljöförsämringar och ett stort beroende av utländsk jordbruksproduktion, samt av olja och andra råvaror som inte är förnybara. Resultatet har blivit ett livsmedelssystem med urholkad hållbarhet och ökad sårbarhet. Accelererande klimatförändringar och den kommande krisen i samband med oljetoppen manar till nyorientering och en övergång till ett mer lokalbaserat system. Denna fallstudie av Uppsala kommun har undersökt utsikterna att återknyta matproduktionen till lokala system. Resultaten omfattar både en studie av den nuvarande matproduktionen i Uppsala, vilken även inkluderade en enkätundersökning av kolonilotter, en studie av potentialen att öka matproduktionen på mark som idag inte används aktivt för det ändamålet, samt en analys av möjligheter och utmaningar för en lokal matproduktion i Uppsala. Enkätundersökningen visade att på kolonilotter med stugor användes ca tio procent av den totala ytan för matproduktion, medan motsvarande siffra för kolonilotter utan stugor var flera gånger högre, ca 65 procent. Den totala skörden för alla kommunala kolonilotter i Uppsala uppskattades till 90 ton grönsaker och 48 ton frukt och bär. För den totala matproduktionen från jordbruket, trädgårdsnäringen och fritidsodlingen gjordes beräkningar för fem olika kategorier: Spannmål, mejeriprodukter, ägg, kött samt grönsaker, frukt och bär, som tillsammans utgör ca 85 procent av den totala svenska matkonsumtionen. Den uppskattade försörjningsbalansen varierade starkt mellan olika kategorier, från 400 procent för spannmål till 20 procent för kött samt för grönsaker, frukt och bär. Osäkerheten kring det vetenskapliga underlaget gällande fritidsodlingen är dock stort, vilket gör att siffrorna för grönsaker, frukt och bär bör tolkas försiktigt. För ägg och mejeriprodukter var försörjningsbalansen 67 procent respektive 50 procent. Studien av obrukad mark visade att den största potentialen för en ökad matproduktion finns inom fritidsodlingen, som beräknades skulle kunna öka med 3.5 till 6 gånger. En övergång till full självförsörjning skulle dock kräva drastiska förändringar i konsumtionsvanorna mot säsongsbetonade grönsaker och frukt samt mindre nötkött till förmån för mer vegetabiliskt protein. Analysen av möjligheter och utmaningar för en återgång till en mer lokal matproduktion pekade på att de största fördelarna är den stora produktionskapaciteten inom jordbruket, den stora sammanlagda arealen privat trädgårdsmark som till stor del är outnyttjad för matproduktion, det ökande intresset för stadsodling bland befolkningen, positiva attityder till lokal mat bland konsumenter, och en relativt hög medvetenhet kring klimatförändringar och behovet av ett mer hållbart samhälle. Bland de viktigaste utmaningarna fanns den bristande ekonomiska lönsamheten inom yrkesodlingen, den centraliserade livsmedelsindustrin, obalansen inom jordbruksproduktionen, med överskott på spannmål och underskott på andra livsmedelsråvaror, ohållbara konsumtionsvanor, tendenser hos svenska kommunala tjänstemän att stödja exploatering av bördig mark, samt den låga graden av medvetenhet hos både befolkningen och beslutsfattarna kring oljetoppen och samhällets sårbarhet generellt.

Dissertação de Mestrado Integrado em Arquitetura, com a especialização em Arquitetura apresentada na Faculdade de Arquitetura da Universidade de Lisboa para obtenção do grau de Mestre.
Somos 7, 75 mil milhões de pessoas no planeta. Todos os dias comemos. O sistema alimentar global, a produção de lixo, as alterações climáticas, a produção industrial, a tecnologia smart, o consumo desenfreado, a libertação de Gases de Efeito de Estufa (GEE) ou o uso de combustíveis fósseis são alguns dos fenómenos insustentáveis associados ao estilo de vida atual. Por essa razão, a sociedade contemporânea tem resistido à confrontação com a dimensão e gravidade destes fenómenos. Essa confrontação é, no entanto, inevitável e convoca-nos para uma análise e ação urgentes. Os alertas da comunidade científica para a insustentabilidade do sistema alimentar são inúmeros, mas a resposta da população, das entidades governamentais e dos grupos económicos é dramaticamente insuficiente. Ser vegetariano, ter um saco de pano para comprar fruta ou uma escova de dentes de bambu, não chega. A dimensão do problema é muito superior e exige uma resposta institucional de mudança urgente. Uma mudança global, num mundo de desigualdades gritantes, o que torna este objetivo muito difícil, porventura inalcançável. No entanto, a comunidade científica já nos alertou: essa mudança ocorrerá, eventualmente pelas piores razões. Esta tese procura questionar o papel da arquitetura e do urbanismo neste contexto. De que forma pode o planeamento contribuir para a mudança de trajetória, que ferramentas podem colaborar numa ocupação resiliente do território? A natureza, a biodiversidade e os ecossistemas são uma escola que tem sido afastada da ocupação urbana. Hoje a ocupação do território questiona a dicotomia cidade – campo. Próteses urbanas ou territórios transgénicos são alguns dos conceitos que ajudam a compreender as dificuldades de planeamento dos espaços que não se integram nem no campo nem na cidade, mas que preenchem o território por todo o lado. E a natureza? Por vezes, em nenhum dos dois. A existência de território selvagem também está ameaçada. Se o destruirmos, o que é que fica? A arquitetura, o planeamento urbano e paisagístico, o ordenamento do território, a natureza e o sistema alimentar condicionam-se mutuamente e é por essa razão que esta dissertação procura compreender estas relações dando ênfase à importância da visão holística. Analisar o padrão do geral ao detalhe permite contextualizar, relacionar e reestruturar a aprendizagem. O contributo do arquiteto pode ser tão mais pertinente quanto maior a capacidade de conhecer o problema. A fauna e a flora não produzem desperdício. Apenas nós, seres humanos, o fazemos. Como podemos aprender com a natureza? Como podemos agir com e não contra a natureza?
ABSTRACT: We are 7, 75 billion people on the planet. Every day we eat. The global food system, waste production, climate change, industrial production, smart technology, rampant consumption, Greenhouse Gases (GHG) emissions, or fossil fuels’ use are some of the unsustainable phenomena associated to today's lifestyle. For this reason, contemporary society has been resisting the confrontation with the phenomena’s significance and severity. This confrontation is, however, inevitable and calls on us for urgent analysis and action. There are numerous warnings from the scientific community about the unsustainability of the food system, but the response from the population, government entities and economic groups is dramatically insufficient. Being vegetarian, having a cloth bag to buy fruit or a bamboo toothbrush is not enough. The dimension of the problem is much larger and requires an institutional response to bring about an abrupt change. A Global change in a world of flagrant inequalities, which make this goal very difficult, maybe unreachable. However, the scientific community has already warned us: this change will occur, eventually for the worst reasons. This thesis seeks to question the architects and urbanists’ role in this context. How can design planning contribute to trajectory change, which tools can provide a resilient occupation of the territory? Nature, biodiversity and ecosystems are topics that have been removed from the issue of urban occupation. The occupation of the territory today challenges the city - country dichotomy. Urban prosthetics or transgenic territories are some of the concepts that help to understand the planning difficulties of these spaces that are, neither integrated in the countryside, nor in the city but fill the territory everywhere. What about nature? Sometimes it is nowhere. The existence of wild territory is also threatened. If we destroy it, what will remain? Architecture, urban and landscape planning, territory management, nature and the food system are mutually conditioned, and this is why this thesis seeks to understand those relationships, emphasizing the importance of an holistic view. Analyzing from pattern to detail allows to contextualize, relate and restructure learning. The architect's contribution may be as relevant as his ability to understand the size of the problem. The fauna and the flora do not produce waste. Only we humans do it. How can we learn from nature? How can we act with and not against nature?
N/A

The food allergies are a very common illness; their incidence is increasing at around 8% of the pediatric population (Branum and Lukacs, 2009; Sicherer, 2011). The food allergies have a strong impact on the quality of life of patients and their families. The recent literature has extensively documented the impact of illness’ management; it feeds and makes chronic the feelings of uncertainty (Kemp and Hu, 2008) and insecurity (Marklund et al., 2007), the symptoms of stress and anxiety (Teufel et al., 2007), the severe limitations of daily activity (Bollinger et al ., 2006) and the social isolation (Munoz-Furlong, 2003). The psychological experience of patients and families is affected by the knowledge that, to date, the food allergy is a chronic illness; there is no cure and the dietary avoidance is the only recognized treatment. Unfortunately it does not defend the patient from the accidental ingestion, forcing him and his family to a state of constant alert. Many researches have turned their attention to the psychosocial issues related to food allergies, focusing in particular on reducing the quality of life. However, consistently with the salutogenic approach proposed by Antonovsky (1979, 1987), there is a lack of studies on the psychological dimensions that can provide support for effective adaptation to the illness. In this complexity the resilience resources of the parents may represent the crucial dimensions to face the challenges of the child’s illness. Consistently with what has been described, the main objective of this research is to explore the theme of complex parenthood in the severe food allergies; in particular, it has sought to clarify the role that the resilience resources play in promoting quality of life and well-being of parents of children suffering from this illness who are undergoing an experimental therapy: the oral desensitization (SOTI). To evaluate the efficacy of SOTI in improving the quality of life of both patients and parents and to understand the role of resilience resources during the therapy was implemented a follow-up step. To understand any specific elements of the experience connected with severe food allergies this group was compared with another group of parents facing a situation of complex parenthood caused by the diagnosis of autism spectrum syndrome son and a group of parents living the experience of normative parenthood. The applied nature of this work is highlighted by the interventions reported that integrate the research part.

La resilienza alimentare, definizione approvata in tutto il mondo a seguito di molti studi che analizzano questo argomento, è la "capacità nel tempo di un sistema alimentare e delle sue unità a più livelli, di fornire cibo sufficiente, appropriato e accessibile a tutti, a fronte di diverse e disturbi anche imprevisti ”1; In Libano, la resilienza e la sostenibilità del sistema agricolo e alimentare sono sempre state discutibili. In una regione instabile con politiche e istituzioni di governance fragili, distorsione del commercio e bassa qualità del cibo, tra molti altri fattori, meritano attenzione la resilienza e la sostenibilità del sistema agricolo e alimentare. Questo studio analizzerà l'impatto di questi sistemi sulla resilienza e sostenibilità alimentare, concentrandosi su 7 sotto-pilastri del sistema agricolo e alimentare in Libano: (1) Economico, (2) Sociale, (3) Governance, (4) Istituzioni, (5) pratiche ambientali, (6) sicurezza alimentare e nutrizione e (7) risorse naturali; fusa in tre capitali: (1) Capitale socioeconomico, (2) Capitale di governance e istituzioni e (3) Pratiche ambientali, Sicurezza alimentare e nutrizione e Capitale delle risorse naturali. Per ogni pilastro verrà analizzata una serie di indicatori e di conseguenza verrà presentato ai ministeri un elenco di raccomandazioni e pianificazione. Le interconnessioni tra tutti questi pilastri / capitali rappresenteranno l'ultimo legame tra tutte le componenti del sistema agricolo e alimentare e come una performance ideale richieda attenzione a molti indicatori. Molti aspetti trascurati dagli indici internazionali, come il GFSI (Global Food Security Index) e il Food Sustainability Index, si aggiungeranno all'indice che andremo a disegnare. Inoltre, verrà effettuata un'analisi comparativa utilizzando l'indice prima e dopo la crisi siriana al fine di testare la capacità di questo indice di anticipare i meccanismi di coping e di capire come funziona il sistema quando è colpito da uno shock. L'indice creato verrà utilizzato per monitorare lo stato ogni anno e non è utilizzabile una tantum. L'indice per il Libano, dopo aver applicato il quadro di analisi, è compreso tra 0,25 e 0,5, indicando che il Paese sta funzionando in modo inadeguato ed è altamente a rischio se non vengono effettuati interventi, e continuerà a comportarsi in questo modo di fronte a un nuovo shock . Ciò supporta la conclusione che il sistema alimentare in Libano non è resiliente e che la sicurezza alimentare e la sicurezza delle persone in Libano sono a rischio, il che potrebbe portare alla conseguenza finale: la fame. Parole chiave: crisi, sostenibilità, resilienza, indice, indicatori, sicurezza alimentare, sicurezza alimentare, politiche, correlazione.
Food resilience, definition approved worldwide as a result of many studies analyzing this topic, is the “capacity over time of a food system and its units at multiple levels, to provide sufficient, appropriate and accessible food to all, in the face of various and even unforeseen disturbances”1; In Lebanon, the resilience and sustainability of the agricultural and food system have always been questionable. In a volatile region with fragile governance policies and institutions, trade distortion, and low food quality, among many other factors, the resilience and the sustainability of the agricultural and food system are worth the attention. This study will analyze the impact of these systems on food resilience and sustainability, focusing on 7 sub-pillars of the agricultural and food system in Lebanon: (1) Economic, (2) Social, (3) Governance, (4) Institutions, (5) Environmental Practices, (6) Food Safety and Nutrition and (7) Natural resources; merged under three capitals: (1) Socio- Economic Capital, (2) Governance and Institutions Capital and (3) Environmental Practices, Food Safety and Nutrition and Natural Resources Capital. For each pillar, a set of indicators will be analyzed and a list of recommendations and planning will be presented to the ministries accordingly. The interlinks between all these pillars/capitals will portray the ultimate link between all components of the agricultural and food system, and how an ideal performance requires attention to many indicators. Many aspects missed from international indexes, such as the GFSI (Global Food Security Index) and the Food Sustainability Index, will be added to the index we will be designing. In addition, a comparative analysis will be done using the index before and after the Syrian crisis in order to test the capacity of this index to anticipate coping mechanisms and to understand how the system works when affected by a shock. The index created will be used to track the status each year and is not of a one-off use. The index for Lebanon, after applying the framework of analysis, is between 0.25 and 0.5, indicating that the country is performing inadequately and is highly at risk if no interventions take place, and will continue to perform this way in the face of a new shock. This supports the conclusion that the food system in Lebanon is not resilient, and that the food security and safety of people in Lebanon is at risk, which overtime might lead to the ultimate consequence – hunger.

La resilienza alimentare, definizione approvata in tutto il mondo a seguito di molti studi che analizzano questo argomento, è la "capacità nel tempo di un sistema alimentare e delle sue unità a più livelli, di fornire cibo sufficiente, appropriato e accessibile a tutti, a fronte di diverse e disturbi anche imprevisti ”1; In Libano, la resilienza e la sostenibilità del sistema agricolo e alimentare sono sempre state discutibili. In una regione instabile con politiche e istituzioni di governance fragili, distorsione del commercio e bassa qualità del cibo, tra molti altri fattori, meritano attenzione la resilienza e la sostenibilità del sistema agricolo e alimentare. Questo studio analizzerà l'impatto di questi sistemi sulla resilienza e sostenibilità alimentare, concentrandosi su 7 sotto-pilastri del sistema agricolo e alimentare in Libano: (1) Economico, (2) Sociale, (3) Governance, (4) Istituzioni, (5) pratiche ambientali, (6) sicurezza alimentare e nutrizione e (7) risorse naturali; fusa in tre capitali: (1) Capitale socioeconomico, (2) Capitale di governance e istituzioni e (3) Pratiche ambientali, Sicurezza alimentare e nutrizione e Capitale delle risorse naturali. Per ogni pilastro verrà analizzata una serie di indicatori e di conseguenza verrà presentato ai ministeri un elenco di raccomandazioni e pianificazione. Le interconnessioni tra tutti questi pilastri / capitali rappresenteranno l'ultimo legame tra tutte le componenti del sistema agricolo e alimentare e come una performance ideale richieda attenzione a molti indicatori. Molti aspetti trascurati dagli indici internazionali, come il GFSI (Global Food Security Index) e il Food Sustainability Index, si aggiungeranno all'indice che andremo a disegnare. Inoltre, verrà effettuata un'analisi comparativa utilizzando l'indice prima e dopo la crisi siriana al fine di testare la capacità di questo indice di anticipare i meccanismi di coping e di capire come funziona il sistema quando è colpito da uno shock. L'indice creato verrà utilizzato per monitorare lo stato ogni anno e non è utilizzabile una tantum. L'indice per il Libano, dopo aver applicato il quadro di analisi, è compreso tra 0,25 e 0,5, indicando che il Paese sta funzionando in modo inadeguato ed è altamente a rischio se non vengono effettuati interventi, e continuerà a comportarsi in questo modo di fronte a un nuovo shock . Ciò supporta la conclusione che il sistema alimentare in Libano non è resiliente e che la sicurezza alimentare e la sicurezza delle persone in Libano sono a rischio, il che potrebbe portare alla conseguenza finale: la fame. Parole chiave: crisi, sostenibilità, resilienza, indice, indicatori, sicurezza alimentare, sicurezza alimentare, politiche, correlazione.
Food resilience, definition approved worldwide as a result of many studies analyzing this topic, is the “capacity over time of a food system and its units at multiple levels, to provide sufficient, appropriate and accessible food to all, in the face of various and even unforeseen disturbances”1; In Lebanon, the resilience and sustainability of the agricultural and food system have always been questionable. In a volatile region with fragile governance policies and institutions, trade distortion, and low food quality, among many other factors, the resilience and the sustainability of the agricultural and food system are worth the attention. This study will analyze the impact of these systems on food resilience and sustainability, focusing on 7 sub-pillars of the agricultural and food system in Lebanon: (1) Economic, (2) Social, (3) Governance, (4) Institutions, (5) Environmental Practices, (6) Food Safety and Nutrition and (7) Natural resources; merged under three capitals: (1) Socio- Economic Capital, (2) Governance and Institutions Capital and (3) Environmental Practices, Food Safety and Nutrition and Natural Resources Capital. For each pillar, a set of indicators will be analyzed and a list of recommendations and planning will be presented to the ministries accordingly. The interlinks between all these pillars/capitals will portray the ultimate link between all components of the agricultural and food system, and how an ideal performance requires attention to many indicators. Many aspects missed from international indexes, such as the GFSI (Global Food Security Index) and the Food Sustainability Index, will be added to the index we will be designing. In addition, a comparative analysis will be done using the index before and after the Syrian crisis in order to test the capacity of this index to anticipate coping mechanisms and to understand how the system works when affected by a shock. The index created will be used to track the status each year and is not of a one-off use. The index for Lebanon, after applying the framework of analysis, is between 0.25 and 0.5, indicating that the country is performing inadequately and is highly at risk if no interventions take place, and will continue to perform this way in the face of a new shock. This supports the conclusion that the food system in Lebanon is not resilient, and that the food security and safety of people in Lebanon is at risk, which overtime might lead to the ultimate consequence – hunger.

In times of disaster, local churches often respond to community need and provide physical needs, such as food and blankets. Intangible needs such as a safe place, opportunities for symbolic actions like lighting a candle, wanting to help others, and face-to-face interactions, are also sought from churches. The assumption that the local church meets these needs in response to a specific threat to the community suggests an invisible connection between a church and a community. The main aim of this research was to evaluate the general and specific community resilience activities of parishes in bush fire prone communities of the Perth Hills. Secondly, to evaluate how the parish clergy engage in local-level interactions and acquire local knowledge as part of their role. A review of literature on community resilience identified Ross et al. (2010) framework for evaluating communities based on local level activities as a suitable tool for this research. This framework correlates with the findings from the literature on the role of churches in disaster resilience. These findings suggest that in times of disaster, communities are looking for local people, local knowledge and local resources for assistance. However, there is little literature on the concept of churches having a role in building community resilience to general threats. Northcott (2000), coined the term “parochial ecology” to describe the local-level interactions that the parish churches engage in and placed the church in the social-ecological system of the community. As a wife of an Anglican Priest who is Rector of a parish in the Perth Hills, I am an insider researcher. Case studies with semi-structured interviews provided the best method of collecting the stories of church-community interactions. The research found that local parish churches with a sense of being part of the community, and not separate to the community, are engaging in activities that build resilient communities; however, there is no name for that in the vocabulary of parish clergy. Recommendations from this research include the need for recognition of the circumstances surrounding a parish in a bush fire prone community and on the usefulness of adopting a term like parochial ecology to help explore the deep connections that parish churches could have in their communities. This research suggests further areas of research in the importance of local groups to building resilient communities.

Les crises alimentaires récurrentes, les changements globaux, l'épuisement des ressources naturelles et les carences alimentaires en micronutriments placent la sécurité alimentaire et la durabilité environnementale au centre de l'agenda politique. Les analyses des interactions dynamiques entre les modes de consommation et les préoccupations environnementales ont reçu une attention considérable. Les changements socioéconomiques et biophysiques affectent les fonctions du système alimentaire, y compris la sécurité alimentaire et nutritionnelle. Ainsi, la durabilité du système alimentaire est menacée. La construction de systèmes alimentaires durables est devenue un effort majeur pour réorienter les systèmes et les politiques alimentaires vers des objectifs adaptés et vers l'amélioration du bien-être sociétal. L'identification et la modélisation des propriétés intrinsèques du système alimentaire peuvent contribuer à suivre les progrès accomplis vers la durabilité, et participer à la mise en place de politiques de transformation et d'innovation.L'objectif général de cette thèse est d'analyser la durabilité du système alimentaire à travers l'identification d'un ensemble d'indicateurs dans la région méditerranéenne. Spécifiquement il s'agit de développer un cadre multidimensionnel pour évaluer la durabilité des systèmes alimentaires, d'identifier les principales variables pour formaliser et opérationnaliser le concept abstrait et multidimensionnel des systèmes alimentaires durables, et de définir une série d'indicateurs pour évaluer la durabilité des systèmes à un niveau sous-régional.A travers une approche de la durabilité dans son sens large, la démarche méthodologique s'appuie sur les théories de la vulnérabilité et de la résilience. Suivant les étapes de l'évaluation de la vulnérabilité aux changements globaux, une analyse causale a été présentée à une échelle géographique concernant trois pays méditerranéens: l'Espagne, la France et l'Italie. Huit modèles causaux de la vulnérabilité ont été identifiés. Une enquête Delphi a ensuite été menée pour sélectionner les indicateurs.Un cadre conceptuel hiérarchique a été identifié pour modéliser les relations complexes entre la sécurité alimentaire et nutritionnelle et la durabilité. Il a ainsi été possible de formaliser huit modèles causaux de la vulnérabilité et de la résilience. Outre cela, les propriétés intrinsèques du système alimentaire qui modélisent les interactions directes entre les facteurs de changement (l'épuisement des ressources en eau; la perte de la biodiversité; la volatilité des prix; les changements dans les modes de consommation) et les enjeux de la sécurité alimentaire et nutritionnelle au niveau sous-régional (la qualité nutritionnelle de l'approvisionnement; l'accès économique, l'équilibre énergétique; la satisfaction des préférences) ont pu être identifiées. Chaque interaction a été déclinée en exposition, sensibilité et résilience. Ce cadre théorique a été opérationnalisé par l'identification d'une série de 136 indicateurs. L'étude Delphi a révélé des consensus de niveau majoritaire, faible, modéré ou fort sur les indicateurs dans 75% des interactions. Les résultats obtenus, en ce qui concerne les taux de réponse globale, des taux de participation d'experts, et de consensus sur les indicateurs, sont considérés plus que satisfaisants. Aussi, les experts ont confirmé la validité des enjeux et des interactions proposés.Cet exercice de modélisation théorique, ainsi que l'enquête Delphi, ont permis l'identification d'une première série d'indicateurs des systèmes alimentaire durables, et d'obtenir un consensus tout en évitant le risque d'une évaluation individuelle et subjective, afin de supporter le processus décisionnel. L'opérationnalisation des théories de la vulnérabilité et de la résilience, grâce à une approche basée sur des indicateurs, a fourni une démarche spécifique pour l'analyse des problèmes de la durabilité du système alimentaire
Recurrent food crises and global change, along with habitat loss and micronutrient deficiencies, placed food security and environmental sustainability at the top of the political agenda. Analyses of the dynamic interlinkages between food consumption patterns and environmental concerns recently received considerable attention from the international community. Socioeconomic and biophysical changes affect the food system functions including food and nutrition security. The sustainability of food system is at risk. Building sustainable food systems has become a key effort to redirect our food systems and policies towards better-adjusted goals and improved societal welfare. Food systems involve multiple interactions between human and natural components. The systemic nature of these interactions calls for systems approaches and integrated assessment tools. Identifying and modeling the intrinsic properties of the food system can help tracking progress towards sustainability and setting policies towards positive transformations.The general objective of this thesis is to analyze and explore the sustainability of the food system through identifying a set of metrics at the Mediterranean region level. The specific aims consist of developing a multidimensional framework to evaluate the sustainability of food systems and diets, identifying the main variables to formalize and operationalize the abstract and multidimensional concept of sustainable food systems, and defining metrics for assessing the sustainability of food systems and diets, at a subregional level.Through a broad understanding of sustainability, the methodological approach of this thesis builds on the theories of vulnerability and resilience. Following the steps of the global change vulnerability assessment a causal factor analysis is presented concerning three Mediterranean countries, namely Spain, France and Italy. Formulating "what is vulnerable to what" hypotheses, we identified eight causal models of vulnerability. A three-round Delphi survey was then applied to select indicators on the basis of the vulnerability/resilience theoretical framework.A conceptual hierarchical framework was identified for modeling the complex relationships between food and nutrition security and sustainability for developing potential indicators of sustainable diets and food systems. A feedback-structured framework of the food system formalized eight selected causal models of vulnerability and resilience and identified intrinsic properties of the food system, shaping the interactions where a set of drivers of change (Water depletion; Biodiversity loss; Food price volatility; Changes in food consumption patterns) directly affect food and nutrition security outcomes at a subregional level (Nutritional quality of food supply; Affordability of food; Dietary energy balance; Satisfaction of cultural food preferences). Each interaction was disentangled in exposure, sensitivity and resilience. This theoretical framework was operationalized through the identification of a set of 136 indicators. The Delphi study revealed low, medium, and high consensus and majority level on indicators in 75% of the interactions out of the 24 initial ones. The results obtained in terms of global response, expert participation rates, and consensus on indicators were then satisfactory. Also, expert confirmed with positive feedback the appraisal of the components of the framework.This theoretical modeling exercise and the Delphi survey allowed the identification of a first suite of indicators, moving beyond single and subjective evaluation, and reaching consensus on metrics of sustainable diets and food systems for supporting decision-making. The operationalization of the theories of vulnerability and resilience, through an indicator-based approach, can contribute to further analyses on the socioeconomic and biophysical aspects and interlinkages concerning the sustainability of diets and food systems