1.74  Land, Water, Food, and Climate

This reading seminar will examine food security in a changing world, with an emphasis on key scientific questions about the connections between natural resources, climate, and agriculture. Participants will read and discuss relevant refereed papers on a range of topics, including water, land, and nutrient resources, environmental impacts of agriculture, demography, agrotechnology, trade, and climate. The goal is to provide a broad and balanced perspective on one of the defining global issues of this century. Discussions will consider scientific controversies as well as areas of general agreement and will examine practical solutions for addressing critical problems. Participants will be expected to present reviews of selected papers and lead followup discussions. The seminar is open to undergraduates as well as graduate students. The discussion will be organized around the following topics:
Framing the discussion -- The Malthusian debate
Food and natural resources -- Recent trends, demand for food, demands on resources, now and in the future
Environmental implications of expanded food production
Sustainable approaches for achieving food security
A draft syllabus and an annotated reading list are provided on the 1.74 Stellar site at https://stellar.mit.edu/S/course/1/sp16/1.74/index.html.