1.       What are the key overlaps between food systems and climate?
The connections between the food system and our changing climate are multi-layered.  The way that we produce food has a direct impact on greenhouse gas emissions, which in turn drives the changes to climate patterns.  This includes the way that we manage the health of biodiversity, soil and water sources to produce food on terrestrial systems, and the way that we manage coastal and marine ecosystems such as mangroves and seagrass beds.  At the same time, the impacts of climate change – unpredictability in seasonal rain patterns, droughts, floods, ocean acidification, sea level rise, and wildfires – are affecting the ways in which food can be produced reliably in different landscapes and seascapes.  The choices that we make about what food to consume at different times of the year is also driving demand for foods that have a greater or lesser carbon, water or methane footprint.  
 
2.       What are the severe impacts on the climate you see in Australia today? Is it different from the previous years? 
As a vast island continent, with almost every type of ecosystem, Australia continues to be severely impacted by climate change.  In recent years, Australia has suffered devastating bushfires and unrelenting floods with a tragic loss of life.  Many areas of regional Australia remain under drought conditions, with increased soil salinity and dry water catchments and therefore reduced food production capacity.   Coastal erosion is also a major issue, with around 85% of Australia’s population living along the coast, and increasing areas unable to be insured due to tidal influx and degeneration of dunes and beaches.  Most prominently, the Great Barrier Reef has suffered several mass bleaching events, with UNESCO recently placing it on a list of world heritage sites “in danger”.  
 
Many of these impacts are also acutely impacting our close neighbours in the Pacific region.  They are experiencing the bleaching of reefs, sea level rise, salt water inundation and increasing frequency and severity of tropical storms, including devastating cyclones.  These impacts are threatening the very existence of many places, and with a high reliance on coastal fisheries as a key source of protein and seasonal cropping now in jeopardy, communities throughout the Pacific know all too well the close relationship between food security and climate change.
 
3.       What changes must be made to our current food systems to help curb climate change? 
As food systems holistically account for about 25% of global GHG emissions, changing the ways that we produce and consume food is an integral part of addressing the global climate challenge.  Regenerative agricultural practices, such as agroecology and rotational grazing, are critical to manage the ways that we look after our terrestrial and catchment ecosystems.  Reducing the footprint of aquaculture throughout the entire supply chain, from feed to farming, is also a key aspect of responsible sourcing of all blue foods, including freshwater and marine.  Taking a circular economy approach and considering the choices that we make as consumers is also essential to have food production driven by renewable energy sources, reducing food loss and waste and packaging, and to eat foods that have a low ecological impact.  
 
4.       What programmes are you running in Australia to help with food security and sustainable production methods?  
WWF-Australia has a focus on food production and sustainable dietary choices domestically, as well as working closely with our neighbours in the Pacific region.  The vision of our Climate and Food Security Strategy is to “halve the footprint of the Australian food system, with positive climate and biodiversity outcomes, whilst ensuring regional food security”.  We aim to achieve this through a focus on flagship programs in sustainable agriculture, blue foods, planet-friendly diets and the future of protein.  We are working with key corporates and with state and federal governments to reduce the footprint of the most impactful foods for Australia, primarily beef (with a focus on deforestation-free), as well as to increase consumer awareness to choose foods that have the lowest impact, such as plant-based foods with low water and land footprints and blue foods that are responsibly sourced.  We are in the processes of completing our new strategies for blue foods and sustainable agriculture, and look forward to working with the Food Practice and other Network offices to realise a shared vision to create nature-positive and climate-resilient food systems.  
  
5.       How will global events like COP27 play a role in developing national solutions for these crises? 
The Australian Government, since the last federal election in May this year, has legislated an emissions reduction target and a process for ongoing review.  Although there is much work to be done and this is insufficient, the Government has signalled an important commitment to move from being a climate laggard to being a climate leader including through the vision of becoming a renewable energy superpower.  The upcoming COP27 presents an important opportunity to move forward with the consideration of agricultural issues, such as methane, deforestation, and soil carbon, and investments in the resilience of coastal systems, as part of Australia’s nationally-determined contribution (NDC).  Being on the global stage is also critical for Australia to demonstrate its commitment to nature-based solutions to climate change, including how to increase the resilience of production systems through natural infrastructure and effective natural resource management.  Having nature squarely within the frame as a climate solution offers us the best defence to the impacts of climate change, and COP27 will be pivotal to demonstrate different ways that we can indeed achieve nature-positive food systems.  We are all experts in the importance of having healthy and sustainable food, and COP27 will allow us, together with partners, to demonstrate why that is also essential for urgent climate action.