AMES, Iowa — Iowa State University is taking part in the Challenge of Change Commission, a new effort to address food nutrition and security challenges by leveraging the academic, research and community expertise and experience of land-grand universities.
The commission was convened by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and includes leaders from university, government, non-governmental organizations and business.
The Challenge of Change Commission’s report (PDF) addresses the findings of the working groups, outlines conclusions and suggested actions.
Who: Kendall Lamkey, Iowa State Department of Agronomy chair and professor, is a commission member and chair of the Sustainable Production Systems working group
Steven Leath, former Iowa State president, is a commission member
When: Released today (news release)
Quotes: “What I like about this report is that it embraces systems thinking and modeling,” Lamkey said. “We need this kind of strategy to understand how production systems work, to define appropriate measures of sustainability and to appropriately account for the spatial and temporal scales of agriculture operation. If implemented at the federal and state levels, this kind of thinking could usher in a new era of agricultural research and have tremendous impacts for the people involved in food production.”
“This report lays out pathways and tactics for these pathways that show how public universities can leverage their research, teaching, and extension mission to increase yields, profitability, and environmental sustainability simultaneously to improve our food production systems,” Lamkey said.