Overcoming lock-ins through policy and governance

Our expertise

In short

Research into the mechanisms that perpetuate lock-ins
Identifying leverage points for systemic change
Forging coalitions for meaningful change
Supporting professionals through transdisciplinary educational programmes

In agriculture, water systems and food systems, there are deep-rooted lock-ins: mechanisms that perpetuate the status quo and lead to undesirable outcomes such as pollution, waste, loss of biodiversity and growing inequality. We investigate which factors perpetuate lock-ins and where ‘leverage points’ for change lie, in order to break through these undesirable barriers.

Opportunities for change only become apparent once we fully understand the factors that perpetuate lock-ins. Consider, for example, policies that reinforce vested interests but undermine the resilience of systems. Major changes to our systems are often held back by old habits. Think of unhealthy eating, growing the same crops on a piece of land over and over again, or building dykes when the river actually needs more space. Or clinging to existing technological solutions, such as certain crop protection products, whilst failing to invest in developing alternatives.

Examples include:

Research into lock-ins and levers for change.
- For example: how do subsidies for nature-inclusive agriculture can compete with existing practices and regulations to which the sector is bound? Or how do mechanisms create interdependencies between water management, soil health and market prices?
Policy experiments to develop scalable solutions that link ecology, food security and income security, such as in Foodvalley and in collaboration with the FAO.
Building coalitions in which farmers, policymakers, entrepreneurs and scientists work together on climate-resilient, biodiverse systems.

Collaboration is crucial to identifying and overcoming lock-ins. For example, we are contributing to the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact, which demonstrates how a city can promote healthy, local food through its procurement policy. And in the field of water management and coastal protection, we are bringing stakeholders together to explore new solutions that are acceptable to all, such as natural coastal protection and raising groundwater levels.

Breaking free from lock-ins requires bold policy and collective action. We provide both the scientific foundation and the practical experience needed to explore future-proof pathways, in collaboration with businesses, governments and civil society organisations. Transdisciplinary educational programmes, such as the Summer School Food Systems & Ecology and the Master’s in Resilient Farming & Food Systems, tie in with this. In these programmes, we work together with professionals, from farmers to policymakers, on climate-resilient, biodiverse systems.