1.2 Dialogue Session – Competing visions for a sustainable future: the challenge of biomass within the post-2015 development agenda

The year 2015 will be an important year for shaping the planet’s future: the international community will agree on universal Sustainable Development Goals and a new climate agreement. Meeting food and energy needs are central to human development, and a growing supply of biomass is the foundation of many strategies to meet sustainability goals related to food security, renewable energy and land-based climate mitigation. Yet, the production of biomass depends on finite land and soil resources. Trade-offs may emerge between a growing necessity to expand and intensify land use to produce more biomass and other sustainable land use objectives such as biodiversity protection, afforestation, and halting land degradation. Moreover, the competition for land poses a great challenge for land governance and rural development. Similarly, goals to ensure secure and equal access to productive resources should not be compromised.

The importance of plant-based biomass – used for food, feed, fuel and industrial purposes – is insufficiently addressed in the visions informing the future global development agenda. Due to population growth, changing consumption patterns and industrial transformation, demand for biomass, in all its forms, is expected to increase. Yet, biomass is a limited resource. If not managed and governed appropriately, the production and consumption of biomass can aggravate environmental challenges and undermine social development. Against this background, the dialogue session discusses the trade-offs and repercussions associated with biomass in the context of the competing demands of the Post-2015 Development Agenda. Together with stakeholders from different backgrounds, the session will reveal interconnections between social, economic and ecological trends of biomass production and consumption, and holistically assess whether the proposed development visions are sustainable.

You may also be interested in the following Lunch Break Forum (LBF) contributions:
–> LBF-20: Wageningen Soil Network

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Download the session description here.

Programme

Contact: Ira Matuschke