Climate-Smart Technologies and Food Security in the Context of a Circular Bioeconomy: From Adaptation and Resilience to Mitigation

The world faces the grand challenges of meeting the increasing demands for protein-rich food and energy, preserving biodiversity, and minimizing environmental pollution while addressing the threat of increased climate variability and change. Various strategies are being promoted to address this multifaceted challenge. These include circular practices that reduce, recycle, and reuse agricultural wastes (Velasco-Muñoz, J. F., Mendoza, J. M. F., Aznar-Sánchez, J. A., & Gallego-Schmid, A. (2021). Circular economy implementation in the agricultural sector: Definition, strategies and indicators. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 170, 105618. Fullerton et al., Annu Rev Resour Econ 14(1), pp. 493–514, 2022), climate-smart agriculture, which promotes practices that adapt to climate change, reduce the GHG intensity of agriculture, and increase soil carbon sequestration (Lipper, L., McCarthy, N., Zilberman, D., Asfaw, S., & Branca, G. (2017). Climate smart agriculture: building resilience to climate change (p. 630). Springer Nature.). There has also been a call to transition from a fossil fuel-based economy to a bioeconomy, which applies modern biotechnology and biological resources to produce bioproducts and bioenergy to displace fossil fuels (Philp New Biotechnol 40(2018):11–19, 2018). Digital agriculture—i.e., digitally collecting, storing, analyzing, and sharing electronic data and information on agriculture, a key component of the climate-smart agriculture approach, is used to reduce costs and increase resource use efficiency, thereby contributing to the sustainability of the bioeconomy (Basso, B., & Antle, J. (2020). Digital agriculture to design sustainable agricultural systems. Nature Sustainability, 3(4), 254−256.). This chapter aims to introduce the Climate-Smart Circular Bioeconomy (CSCB) concept as a framework for sustainable economic growth. The CSCB approach extends the circular bioeconomy (Mehta et al. Environments 8(3):20, 2021) to renewable biological resources, minimizing waste and environmental impact by introducing climate-smart practices. Although circular bioeconomy research and policies infrequently extend the concepts to consider practices occurring on farms, ranches, and forests, promoting climate-smart agricultural and forestry practices that sequester carbon or avoid greenhouse gas emissions has been a high policy priority in recent years. We argue below that one should embed these practices within the circular bioeconomy structure and extend the concepts of conservations—valuing and managing natural resources sustainably to ensure their long-term benefits for both present and future generations—and also to support food security and protect biodiversity. By harnessing cutting-edge technologies, economies can significantly reduce their carbon footprints and promote soil health, leading to higher yields when they adopt CSCB practices. The CSCB utilizes biological-based feedstock, from biomass to the black-soldier fly, to produce food, feed, fiber, chemicals, and other manufactured goods. This comprehensive and holistic approach, which integrates a systems approach with environmental and life sciences knowledge, can revolutionize the development of circular strategies for enhancing agricultural production and food safety while addressing the challenges of climate change. The CSCB approach underscores the importance of transdisciplinary research, offering a strategic vision of what can be achieved with environmental and life sciences. CSCB instills hope for a sustainable future and meeting the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals—goals structured around five pillars (people, planet, prosperity, peace, and partnership) where progress on any individual pillar is balanced with progress on others. Interdisciplinary work is a potent tool that combines insights and methodologies from different disciplines, leading to new discoveries, approaches, and solutions. It encourages creative thinking and problem-solving by integrating diverse perspectives. Complex issues often transcend the boundaries of a single discipline, and interdisciplinary approaches enable researchers and practitioners to gain a more comprehensive understanding of these issues. By integrating expertise from diverse fields, interdisciplinary work not only helps develop more effective and sustainable solutions to the complex issues brought upon us via climate change, food insecurity, and the need to preserve biodiversity, but also fosters innovation, inspiring us to push the boundaries of what is possible. Overall, interdisciplinary work is essential for tackling complex challenges and promoting a holistic understanding of the real world.