Grand Challenges lecture series ILAS 2016-2017 | Page 6

GRAND CHALLENGES PESTS, PATHOGENS AND UNPREDICTABLE RAINFALL: GLOBAL CHALLENGES FOR SUSTAINABLE FOOD PRODUCTION PROFESSOR SUE HARTLEY 25 JANUARY 2017 | 6.30-7.30PM KEELE HALL | THE SALVIN ROOM Even with the use of modern pesticides, around one third of our crops, globally, are lost to pests and diseases. The production of sufficient, safe and nutritious food is increasingly threatened by unpredictable and extreme weather and we face a likely 70% increase in demand for food by 2050. In this talk, Professor Hartley explores the interdisciplinary approaches which may provide new sustainable methods of crop protection and improved resilience to climate change. Professor Sue Hartley is Director of the York Environmental Sustainability Institute at the University of York, Chair of the RCUK Sustainable Agriculture Research Innovation Club, a Trustee of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the President of the British Ecological Society. 6 food is increasingly threatened by unpredictable and extreme weather