Exploring technology in climate-resilient food systems at the APRU Food Security & Agritech Conference

How can technology help build food systems that are more resilient to climate change? And what does it take to ensure those technologies work for the people and places that depend on them?

Those questions brought about 60 researchers, industry partners and policymakers from across the Pacific Rim to Simon Fraser University (SFU) for the second Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU) Food Security & Agritech Conference, held October 5 to 7 at SFU’s Vancouver and Surrey campuses.

Hosted by SFU as part of its leadership in the APRU Food Security & Agritech program, the three-day conference explored how artificial intelligence (AI), sensing, robotics and other technologies could support more sustainable and climate-resilient food systems. Complementing SFU’s research priority areas of AI and Climate Innovation, the conference combined keynote presentations and panel discussions, with smaller working groups focused on four areas: climate resilience, AI-enabled resource efficiency, food availability and access, and disease and pest control.

Comparing challenges and solutions across the Pacific Rim

The conference’s international format created opportunities for participants to compare agricultural challenges and solutions across very different contexts, including urban food production systems in Singapore and farming environments in Canada, Japan and elsewhere in the region. While the growing conditions and priorities varied, the discussions made clear that there is no single solution to food security. Approaches need to respond to the environmental, economic and social realities of the places where they are used.

Technology was no exception. AI and other digital technologies are already creating new possibilities for farmers, such as using data to manage water and nutrients more precisely and detecting changes in growing conditions, pests and disease. At the same time, participants explored how these technologies can support place-based agricultural practices without displacing local knowledge. The discussion extended to issues of data ownership, governance and control, including how farmers and communities can retain meaningful influence over technologies that increasingly shape food production.

SFU researchers and leaders were central to those conversations, including panelist Woo Soo Kim, whose agritech work focuses on AI, sensors, drones and robotics, and SFU President Joy Johnson, who opened the second day of the conference. During the panel, Can AI Make Food Systems More Resilient?, Kim emphasized that AI’s benefits depend on affordable, reliable tools, as well as farmers’ control over how their data is used and how its benefits are shared.

The event also brought together expertise from across SFU’s international network, including global agritech experts, Lenore Newman, Ryo Sugiura and Kelly Bronson, for the keynote presentations. On the final day, participants travelled to SFU’s Surrey campus before continuing to the University of British Columbia’s greenhouse and farm site, connecting discussions about research and technology with the environments where food is produced.

Impact beyond the conference

While the conference created space for researchers to exchange ideas and build new connections, its impact extends beyond the three days of discussion. The relationships, perspectives and opportunities for collaboration that emerged will continue to inform research and partnerships across the Pacific Rim. As food systems face growing pressures from climate change, resource constraints and shifting global conditions, initiatives like APRU's Food Security & Agritech program help bring together international expertise to tackle food security challenges that are global in scale, but local in impact.

Learn more about the APRU Food Security & Agritech program.