Scholar Talks Global Food Security

Scholar Talks Global Food Security

Last week the Clinton School welcomed Robert L. Thompson, a visiting scholar at Johns Hopkins University and expert on global agriculture, to discuss the challenge of feeding the world’s growing population. He tackled the issue from numerous angles, addressing food security at all levels – household, national and global.

It takes at least 1,800 daily calories to sustain a human being, and one in every seven people cannot afford the amount of food necessary to meet this caloric intake, Thompson said. As the price of food continues to rise, the growing population continues do demand more and more food, he said.

Maps detailing croplands of the earth, climate constraints, and grain yields around the world helped illustrate difficult concepts. Thompson stressed the importance of nutrition, climate and income in the struggle to meet the needs of the world’s expanding population.

“We have an immense challenge in front of us,” he said.

But he did not leave the audience without hope. He ended his discussion with long-term solutions, including an emphasis on water use, market prices and agricultural production.

*This post was written by Clinton School student Maggie Carroll ’13.