Issue Leadership: Establishing a Domain for a Food Systems Leadership Model.

A sustainable food system is a fundamental requirement for the ongoing functioning and growth of society. However, despite the critical importance of the food system from both economic and social perspectives, there are several political, environmental, and human capital issues which represent barriers to sustainable production. For example, in the United States, the need for more production capacity to feed a growing population is juxtaposed with a shrinking and aging food system workforce. The nexus of such fundamentally opposed issues represents a situation in which technical solutions may be insufficient. Using a three-round Delphi process with an expert panel, a total of 106 unique leadership competencies or behaviors were identified. The resulting behaviors and competencies were then thematically analyzed using the constant comparative method. The proposed food systems leadership model, named Issue Leadership, includes 39 subthemes and 7 primary themes. The primary themes include action; change; communication; critical thinking, strategic planning and visioning; interpersonal traits and characteristics; leadership skills; and leadership processes. This study establishes the unique context that agriculture and food systems represent and the necessity for leadership models that are competency- and practice-based.

Assessing Leadership Capacity in the Food System: The Issue Leadership Scale.

The food system represents a complex, interrelated, and interdependent network of individuals and organizations. Despite the unique characteristics of the food system domain, there has never been a comprehensive analysis of leadership capacity amongst food system professionals. The present study provides an empirical assessment of food system leadership capacity using many leadership instruments. The study included pilot (n = 125) and primary (n = 4185) data collection across 27 food system-related leadership development programs. The results validate the Issue Leadership scale, which comprises seven capacity areas: action, change, communication, critical thinking, strategic planning and visioning, interpersonal traits and characteristics, leadership process, and leadership skills. The Issue Leadership scale captures both perception of importance and current skill level. The study results indicate that food system professionals perceived communication and critical thinking, strategic planning and visioning as the most important leadership capacity areas. Furthermore, respondents indicated the highest level of self-perceived skill in critical thinking, strategic planning and visioning, and interpersonal traits and characteristics. Overall, respondents had higher perceived importance levels (m = 4.17) than skill (m = 3.44), indicating the need for additional leadership capacity development amongst food system professionals. Respondents also indicated similar levels of opinion leadership (m = 3.92), servant leadership (m = 3.82), transformational leadership (m = 3.78), and transactional leadership (m = 3.70), providing an additional empirical assessment of food system professional leadership capacity.

A Needs Assessment to Inform Research and Outreach Efforts for Sustainable Agricultural Practices and Food Production in the Western United States.

Increasing the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices can help maintain sufficient food production while reducing its environmental impact. To ensure this adoption, it is important to assess the research and training needs of those helping farmers and producers adopt sustainable agricultural practices. However, there is a gap in the literature related to the training needs of producers in the Western United States for sustainable agriculture. Needs assessments help organizations, such as the Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program and Cooperative Extension, to address the demonstrated needs of intended audiences. This study presents the results of a needs assessment with the objective of examining training needs and barriers to adoption to help direct extension programming for sustainable agricultural practices in the western region of the United States, to identify gaps, and to inform sustainable agriculture outreach programs. Using a modified Borich method with an inferential statistical method, the discrepancies between the level at which sustainable agricultural practice training competencies "should be addressed" and the level at which they were "currently being addressed" were examined. Competencies with the largest gaps included financial disparity, food waste, and policy/communicating with decision makers. The top three barriers to adopting sustainable agricultural practices included the potential for financial loss, perceived risk of adoption, and time investment associated with adoption. Results indicated that training needs varied and that these were not all on-farm training needs. The results imply that future funding from Western SARE and other groups looking to support sustainable agricultural food system efforts, may wish to focus on requesting proposals for programs that address these competency gaps and barriers in novel and supplementary ways in combination with existing programmatic efforts.

The Influence of Sustainability on Identities and Seafood Consumption: Implications for Food Systems Education for Generation Z.

Seafood is a vital source of nutrition yet many consumers in the United States have been exposed to competing discourse about the industry's environmental impacts, influencing consumption habits. Generation Z, a generational cohort whose members value the sustainability of their purchasing decisions, may have unique opinions regarding sustainable seafood given their sustainability values. This qualitative study explored Generation Z undergraduate students' experiences with seafood and how they perceive the role of seafood in feeding people while sustaining the future natural environment. Data were collected using 11 focus groups in undergraduate classrooms. Researchers conducted an emergent thematic analysis and sufficient interrater reliability was established. Themes identified based on participants' experience with seafood included geographic location, experience fishing or with fishermen, and seafood and family, implying place attachment and family identity were intertwined with consumption behaviors. Themes identified based on participants' perception of seafood's role in feeding people included sustainability, regulations, limited seafood consumption, and limited knowledge, implying Generation Z's emerging status as the sustainability generation. Results indicate educators should focus on how sustainability can be emphasized in the classroom with clear actions undergraduate Generation Z students can take to improve sustainability.

Teaching Systems-Thinking Concepts with Hypothetical Case Scenarios: An Exploration in Food-Systems Science Education.

BACKGROUND: The ability to solve complex challenges facing the food system is an increasingly important skill for undergraduate students entering into the global workforce. However, the curriculum tools to enhance systems thinking in the undergraduate agricultural and natural resource classroom are limited, specifically related to food systems education. METHODS: The current study explored the use of hypothetical case scenarios in a teaching curriculum related to the seafood industry, in order to determine the use of these tools as a mechanism for increasing undergraduate students' systems-thinking capacity. The mixed-method study used a survey and focus groups. Results indicated that participants' understanding of, and capacity for, using systems thinking to reason through complex scenarios increased during the mixed-method educational intervention. Participants stated the experience helped them learn more about their own patterns of thinking, created transformational learning moments through dissonance, helped them learn about the unintended consequences of decision-making, and increased their understanding of system complexity. CONCLUSIONS: The implications of using hypothetical case scenarios in the food system education classroom are explored.

Critical issues facing the animal and food industry: a Delphi analysis.

By the year 2050, the world's population is estimated to increase by approximately 2.1 billion people. For the sake of food security and safety, it is vital for the animal and food industry to act now in preparation for future consumption needs. The study at hand explored the most critical issues facing the field, according to industry experts. Using Delphi and constant comparative methods, seven thematic categories emerged that serve as overarching areas for attention: Industry Image and Relationship with the Public, Workforce Development and Pipeline, Economic and Environmental Sustainability, Animal and Human Health/Well-Being, Production and Distribution Efficiency, Government Regulations and Relationship with Legislative Leaders, and Relationship with Higher Education/Researchers. Findings and recommendations on how the industry can move forward in light of future challenges and opportunities are explored.

Critical Food Safety Issues Facing the Food Industry: A Delphi Analysis.

ABSTRACT: The topic of food safety continues to receive increased attention and has ramifications on various human, environmental, policy, and economic levels worldwide. By garnering feedback from 30 food industry experts, this study was undertaken to identify the most critical issues facing the food industry in relation to food safety. According to expert opinion and after three rounds of Delphi inquiry, food contamination detection, outbreaks, and prevention along with governmental oversight, education for and communication with consumers and employees, and globalization were identified as the main areas at the forefront of food safety. Delphi and constant comparative research methods are explained, and suggestions on how to make meaning from the results to progress in this area are discussed.