Photo Credit: Zeshan Virk

The 2024 SustainFood Collaborative Learning School (CLS), organized by the SustainFood Network, Penn State College (PSU), Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI), and Michigan State College in the United States of America, brought together early career researchers (ECRs) from five continents, 18 countries, and diverse research interests to learn, share knowledge, and develop best practices around Nexus. The CLS focused on the complex dynamics of water-energy-food (WEF) nexus in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, a region in the eastern United States with critical interstate water, and environmental quality, issues and many WEF nexus-related issues. Recognizing the intensification of the multi-layered WEF nexus, the CLS aimed to use water quality and resources as a starting point to assess food security challenges, such as crop, livestock, and fisheries, as well as energy security from renewable sources of for small farmers in the region.

Photo Credit: Denice Wadrop

The issue that arises due to the interdependencies studied by the Agriculture and Waste Management Subgroup is the problem of Food Processing Residuals (FPR) and livestock manure application in Pennsylvania agriculture, which are used to improve soil and water quality and provide insight into sustainable waste management strategies that support environmental health in Pennsylvania. Other factors include sedimentation, algal blooms, eutrophication, and nutrient loading in the Chesapeake Bay. Julie Vastine of the Alliance for Aquatic Resources Monitoring (ALLARM) Stream Team at Dickinson College reported that these negative impacts have led to an increase in Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL), which has increased pollution in the Bay. The research shows that regulatory solutions (nutrient and fertilizer management plan, collaborative efforts in the use of central facilities, and farm-level strategies) are among the recommended solutions identified during the CLS to manage agricultural waste and improve soil health and sustainability effectively.

Photo credit: Taiwo

The training school also provided a platform for participants to present their research within 5 minutes. This was used to get feedback from the organizers and other participants. Exciting activities included group work, a visit to the Worton Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP), and a participatory role-play on activities at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center led by Annette Huber-Lee of SEI, which aimed to brainstorm on the way forward after the CLS to promote all-inclusive activities with sustainable food and networking of other sisters. Aside from providing a solid theoretical framework to identify issues, address some of the most pressing challenges in the Chesapeake Bay, and find a way to ensure implementation of the framework (i.e. bridge the transition  from theory to practice), the CLS also provides an opportunity to network and foster future collaborative practices.