What Good Is It? Exploring Biodiversity-Positive Food Futures Through Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches

Global food systems sit at the intersection of two interconnected crises: accelerating biodiversity loss and worsening diet-related health outcomes. Agricultural intensification, land-use change, dietary simplification, and rising animal product consumption contribute to both ecological degradation and chronic disease. Organizations increasingly call for greater efforts to conserve biodiversity, highlighting its importance for human health, economies, cultures, livelihoods, and food security. However, addressing biodiversity loss and its links to human health is challenging due to diverse values, preferences, and uncertainties surrounding biodiversity in food systems. These complexities can lead to differing priorities and targets for conservation. This thesis examines how biodiversity-positive food futures can be envisioned through complementary quantitative and qualitative approaches. It explores how biodiversity is represented and valued in food-system models, how protein transitions and alternative production practices may support biodiversity, and how assumptions shape proposed pathways. It also investigates serious games as tools for developing creative, diverse, and stakeholder-driven visions, demonstrating how qualitative methods can broaden the range of desirable futures considered.