Valorization for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services in the Agri-Food Value Chain.

This article defines the term valorization of biodiversity and ecosystem services (BES) measures, as distinguished from their valuation, and underpins it with an assessment of private valorization examples along the agri-food value chain. Valorization incentivizes measures for promoting BES, while valuation refers to its quantification. Valuation can be a step of valorization but is not indispensable. In scientific literature, the terms valorization and valuation are often used interchangeably. In addition, there is a lack of research on private options versus conventional, public policy options. Therefore, we searched for private valorization options primarily in public sources (gray literature and websites). This led to the identification of four clusters (markets for voluntary services, labeling, and certification, environmental management/CSR, and tradable permits and quotas). Based on these clusters the options were assessed from a legal and systems dynamics perspective. In addition, the viability of selected valorization options in different future scenarios was examined. The analysis revealed a wide range of private valorization options, which in contrast to public policy options that focus almost entirely on the production stage, are spread across the agri-food value chain. Their suitability differs under different future scenarios, legal and systems conditions.

Future agricultural systems and the role of digitalization for achieving sustainability goals. A review.

By leveraging a wide range of novel, data-driven technologies for agricultural production and agri-food value chains, digital agriculture presents potential enhancements to sustainability across food systems. Accordingly, digital agriculture has received considerable attention in policy in recent years, with emphasis mostly placed on the potential of digital agriculture to improve efficiency, productivity and food security, and less attention given to how digitalization may impact other principles of sustainable development, such as biodiversity conservation, soil protection, and human health, for example. Here, we review high-level policy and law in the German and European context to highlight a number of important institutional, societal, and legal preconditions for leveraging digital agriculture to achieve diverse sustainability targets. Additionally, we combine foresight analysis with our review to reflect on how future frame conditions influencing agricultural digitalization and sustainability could conceivably arise. The major points are the following: (1) some polices consider the benefits of digital agriculture, although only to a limited extent and mostly in terms of resource use efficiency; (2) law as it applies to digital agriculture is emerging but is highly fragmented; and (3) the adoption of digital agriculture and if it is used to enhance sustainability will be dependent on future data ownership regimes. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13593-022-00792-6.

Health care for people with dementia in 2030 - results of a multidisciplinary scenario process.

BACKGROUND: Despite extensive research funding in the field of dementia, deficits in the quality of dementia care still exist. In order to project different alternative futures of health care for people with dementia (PwD) in Germany, we have initiated a multidisciplinary scenario process (Sce-Dem). METHODS: For the scenario process we used a 6-step approach: (1) identification of relevant areas of influences via literature review and internet search, (2) systematic collection of relevant influence factors and their future projections via literature review, brainstorming and consensus workshops, (3) discussion and validation of the identified key factors in a workshop with 52 multidisciplinary, experts, to clarify their characteristics and future projections, (4) combining the relevant key factors with alternative projections in a so-called consistency matrix to estimate the consistency between the selected projections, (5) generating consistent combinations of projections using software, and (6) writing scenario stories and descriptions based on the most consistent and different combinations. RESULTS: As a result of the scenario process, five consistent scenarios were developed. Two of these could be described as dark scenarios with very poor prospects. A third one has been referred to as "well-meant, but badly done". Two scenarios entail mostly positive aspects but one of them has a tendency towards, a "health control" state. CONCLUSION: The more positive scenarios provide a framework for determining relevant actions in research, society, and politics.