Protein Issues: Notes on Session 2 of the TED Countdown 2024 Dilemma Series

Proteins are the building blocks of life – but their production comes at a cost to our planet and all the species that inhabit it. Session 2 of the TED Countdown 2024 Dilemma series have taken a holistic look at our food system, from the soil that nourishes crops to the animals that graze the land.

Six groundbreaking speakers explored clean and healthy protein sources, ranging from regenerative agriculture and fish farming to growing animal-free meat and brewing ethical collagen. Here’s a glimpse into the future of food that’s as innovative as it is essential.

The event: TED Countdown 2024 Dilemma Series: The Future of Food, presented by TEDs David Biello And Lindsay Levin

When and where: June 6, 2024, at the TED World Theater in New York City

Speakers: Lamin Jassey, Gabe Brown, Dorcas Naishorua, Andy Jarvis, Fei Luo, Uma Valeti

The conversations in short:

Conservationist and community leader Lamin Jassey explains how a fish processing plant in Gambia brought water pollution and food shortages to his city, not the jobs and profits it promised. He shares how the community has stood up to economic and environmental degradation – for example by dismantling a pipe dumping waste into their waters – and calls for more collective action against such harmful factories.

After losing most of their harvest to hail and drought, farmer Gabe Brown and his wife turned to regenerative farming practices, such as integrating livestock and more diverse planting. The result? Their farm was revived. He shares his story – a testament to the transformative potential of restorative agriculture – and six healthy soil principles to bring life back to the land.

The Maasai people have been living sustainably off the savannah for centuries, but the climate crisis is causing a resource shortage so severe that families are trading their girls for grass, desperate to feed their livestock during the worst droughts. Miss Climate Kenya Dorcas Naishorua advocates for a better way forward, showcasing the resilience of her people and sharing how they have been forced to adapt to a changing environment.

How do we produce food without destroying nature? It won’t be by telling people what to eat, says Andy Jarvisthe director for the future of food at the Bezos Earth Fund. He presents a menu of sustainable options (such as alternative proteins and cultured meat) that can dramatically reduce the carbon footprint of food while providing people with the nutrition they need.

From cosmetics to food, collagen is used in many ways, but the way it is sourced from animals is ethically questionable and unsustainable, says Fei Luochemical engineer and CEO of Liven Proteins, a precision fermentation protein company. She delves into the groundbreaking technology of brewing animal-free collagen, which could pave the way for a functional, tasty and harmless collagen future.

The way we make meat is destructive to people, animals and the environment, says A valetithe CEO and founder of UPSIDE Foods. He presents a delicious, sustainable solution – cultured meat, grown directly from animal cells – that could save billions of animal lives and dramatically reduce the damage conventional livestock farming does to the environment and human health.