AVANZAR 2030: INNOVATING FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRIFOOD SYSTEMS
Avanzar2030 is an evidenced-based process to identify promising innovations in agrifood systems and estimate the cost of implementing such innovations with the aim of adapting to climate change, creating decent livelihoods, improving diets, and protecting food security in the midst of an expanding technological revolution.
The program was created in response to the Ministerial consensus reached by the countries of the Americas in the lead up to the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit, which highlights the fact that agri-food systems of the Americas are not failed, but can be improved, that agriculture is part of the solution to the problems of the world, and that agricultural producers are a central link of food systems.
Avanzar2030 will convert the Ministers’ call into action, by providing much needed evidence on what works to build more nutritious, productive, inclusive, and sustainable food systems in LAC and globally. Experts from over twenty organizations have been organized into three teams that will explore questions related to innovative policies, technologies, and institutions. The program will go a step further by estimating costs of implementing change so that decision makers can achieve their goals by optimally allocating financial resources among the portfolio of policy instruments found by the evidence.
Evidence synthesis to find out what works for building sustainability
Latin American and Caribbean countries have already implemented numerous policies and programs to promote sustainability in food systems. In parallel, a wealth of knowledge about these policies has been created by researchers, policy makers, producers, consumers, and other actors. What is needed now is a systematic and thorough examination of this evidence to identify critical lessons that can be used to refine the policy landscape for greater impact.
Avanzar2030 is implementing an evidence synthesis with support from the Juno Evidence Alliance to map existing research on innovative policy, assess the quality of this information, and provide conclusions on the state of the field. Building off the success of CERES2030, this project will focus specifically on innovative agricultural policies across LAC, incorporating literature in Spanish, Portuguese, and English.
“Evidence synthesis’ refers to the process of bringing together information from a range of sources and disciplines to inform debates and decisions on specific issues… An accurate, concise and unbiased synthesis of the evidence is therefore one of the most valuable contributions the research community can offer policymakers.”
Source: The Royal Society, 2018
The figure above outlines the process and key characteristics of evidence synthesis. Unlike traditional literature reviews, the aim of this process is to find all existing literature on a clearly defined and bounded research question. Databases, search strategies, and criteria for including/excluding publications are meticulously selected and recorded to ensure a transparent process and account for the risk of bias. Machine learning tools assist a team of researchers with combing through thousands of documents to find and assess relevant information. Several rounds of screening are conducted to ensure the quality of included publications. Once a core set of materials are identified, researchers conduct a thorough review to extract data and qualitative findings.
The end result is a comprehensive look at existing research on the question of interest. In the case of Avanzar2030, three research questions have been established related to sustainable policies, technologies, and institutions. After the initial synthesis to identify effective strategies in these areas, a cost model will analyze the extracted data to determine the level of investment in these innovations that will allow for the creation of a sustainable food system.
More than 20 organizations are taking part in Avanzar2030
AVANZAR2030 is also proud to contribute to the CGIAR Initiative on Livestock and Climate.
