Network science: applications for sustainable agroecosystems and food security

Abstract

The global challenge of feeding two billion more people by 2050, using more sustainable agriculturalpractices whilst dealing with uncertainties associated with environmental change, requires a transfor-mation of food systems. We present a new perspective for how advances in network science can providenovel ways to better understand, harness, and restore multiple ecological processes in agricultural envi-ronments. We describe: (i) a network-focused framework for managing agro-ecosystems that accountsfor the multiple interactions between biodiversity and associated ecosystem services; (ii) guidance forincorporating socio-economic factors into ecological networks; and (iii) the potential to upscale networkmethods to inform efforts to build resilience, including global food-supply chains. In doing so we aim tofacilitate the application of network science as a systems-based way to tackle the challenges of securingan equitable distribution of food.