Future of Food seminar: Professor Roberta Sonnino

Food system transformation: Towards a policy-relevant research agenda

Professor Roberta Sonnino, University of Surrey

Date: Thursday 26 November, 16:00, Oxford Martin School seminar room 1 and online

Abstract: How to grapple with the complexity of 'food system transformation' without being analytically overwhelmed by it? This presentation will address this question through a focus on 'place' as an exploratory prism that enables researchers to disrupt oppositional narratives and dichotomies and engage with the diverse forms of power that hinder (or facilitate) change. Based on insights from the EU-funded project FoodCLIC (2022-2027), the presentation will argue that a place-based approach is vital to turn 'food system transformation' into a socially meaningful and politically relevant project.

About Roberta: Roberta Sonnino is Professor of Sustainable Food Systems at the University of Surrey. Over her career, she has produced more than 100 publications on sustainable food systems, some of which have been translated into French, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese and Korean. Professor Sonnino has an established track record of creating impact and engagement at the interface of food systems research and policy. In recent years, she has been Vice-Chair of the FOOD2030 Expert Group, which led the development of four priority areas of the FOOD 2030 European research framework; lead author of FAO's Framework for the Urban Food Agenda; and Rapporteur of the High Level Expert Group assembled by the EC to explore ways to improve food systems governance through more effective science-policy-society interfaces. Professor Sonnino is currently principle investigator of the €12m FOODCLIC project, funded by the European Commission's Horizon Europe Programme, researching the transformation of city-region food systems in European and African city-regions.