Empowering Diverse Food-Climate Experiments for Sustainability in European Cities

Objective

In a world increasingly shaped by climate change, ensuring urban food security while respecting ecological limits is an urgent challenge. Cities across Europe are responding through diverse urban experiments at the intersection of food security, climate mitigation, and adaptation. Also, initiatives such as the EU Green Deal, the Farm to Fork Strategy, and various city networks call for strengthening the relation between food systems and climate action. Despite the relevance of these initiatives and the transformative potential of place-based experiments, urban sustainability literature has remained nearly silent about the climate-food nexus as a critical arena where sustainability strategies are negotiated and progress towards the ‘climate-connected city’ is evaluated. Addressing this gap, the proposed project will produce new insights on: (a) types of food-climate experiments emerging around Europe; (b) advancements and barriers in linking food and climate actions through place-based initiatives; (c) monitoring and governance frameworks supporting an integrated sustainability agenda. The research design employs an interdisciplinary conceptual and methodological approach, integrating diverse urban and ecological theories to guide a large-N survey of urban experiments across Europe, alongside an explorative analysis of three European cities to refine both conceptual and practical insights. Impact within and beyond academia will be ensured by involving key scholars, practitioners and climate-food city networks in research and participative activities. To implement this project, the Fellow will employ her expertise in urban food governance while expanding into broader urban ecological debates. Grounded in a sound partnership between leading European institutions on urban food systems and environmental governance, this project will raise new awareness about the intersections of climate and food transitions, informing scientific, policy and civil society networks.