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The Science of Climate Change

Climate change is no longer a distant threat or just a possibility, it is now a reality for all of us. In this pathway, Kevin Trenberth, a renowned climatologist, delves into the science behind climate change. He first introduces the climate system, its main components and forces.

Tackling the Plastic Crisis

Plastic pollution is by far the biggest threat to our oceans and this remains an incredibly tough problem to solve. Plastic credits could potentially serve as one of the much needed solutions for this crisis.

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The Scale of the Net Zero Challenge

The price of meeting net zero is estimated to be between $100-150 trillion over the next 30 years. Regardless of this cost, we need to reach net zero before climate change does irreversible damage to the environment and the economy.

ESG, Sustainability and Impact Jargon Buster

ESG, sustainability, impact… they all just mean green, right? Not quite. Despite being used often interchangeably, there are distinct differences between these terms.

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The Science of Climate Change

Climate change is no longer a distant threat or just a possibility, it is now a reality for all of us. In this pathway, Kevin Trenberth, a renowned climatologist, delves into the science behind climate change. He first introduces the climate system, its main components and forces.

Tackling the Plastic Crisis

Plastic pollution is by far the biggest threat to our oceans and this remains an incredibly tough problem to solve. Plastic credits could potentially serve as one of the much needed solutions for this crisis.

More pathways

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Expert led content

+1,000 expert presented, on-demand video modules

Learning analytics

Keep track of learning progress with our comprehensive data

Interactive learning

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Managed learning

Build, scale and manage your organisation’s learning

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Featured Content

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The Scale of the Net Zero Challenge

The price of meeting net zero is estimated to be between $100-150 trillion over the next 30 years. Regardless of this cost, we need to reach net zero before climate change does irreversible damage to the environment and the economy.

ESG, Sustainability and Impact Jargon Buster

ESG, sustainability, impact… they all just mean green, right? Not quite. Despite being used often interchangeably, there are distinct differences between these terms.

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Regenerative Agriculture for Healthier Food Systems

Regenerative Agriculture for Healthier Food Systems

Koen van Seijen

20 years: Food and agriculture

In this video, Koen van Seijen introduces the 4 paradigms of regenerative agriculture. He then takes an in-depth look at the concept of Food as Medicine within the regenerative agriculture landscape. Join Koen and explore how the nutritional quality of our food, shaped by farming practices, directly affects human health.

In this video, Koen van Seijen introduces the 4 paradigms of regenerative agriculture. He then takes an in-depth look at the concept of Food as Medicine within the regenerative agriculture landscape. Join Koen and explore how the nutritional quality of our food, shaped by farming practices, directly affects human health.

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Regenerative Agriculture for Healthier Food Systems

7 mins 54 secs

Key learning objectives:

  • Outline the 4 major themes of regenerative agriculture

  • Understand the concept of food as medicine in the regenerative landscape

  • Outline how regenerative farming practices improve food’s nutritional content and reduce healthcare costs

  • Identify key areas for investment which can potentially provide returns

Overview:

What if the food on our plates could do more than just satisfy hunger - what if it could truly heal us? Join Koen van Seijen and uncover the powerful connection between soil health, healthy food and human health. As nutrient levels in modern crops plummet due to bad agriculture practices, the need for regenerative agriculture becomes urgent. Regeneration is more than a farming revolution, it’s a chance to redefine our relationship with food, our bodies and the planet. 

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Summary
What are some of the factors in the decision-making framework for regenerative agriculture that led to the 4 major themes?

  • Scale
  • Solvability
  • Neglectedness
  • Personal fit
  • Leverage points

What are the 4 major themes of regenerative agriculture?

  1. Food as medicine
  2. Cooling the planet
  3. Payment for ecosystem services
  4. Corporate regeneration

Why is food as medicine a key theme in regenerative agriculture?

Regenerative agriculture doesn’t just stop at improving soil health—it also holds the key to revolutionising human health. Our understanding of nutrition has expanded beyond mere survival. 

Nutritional value of our fruits and vegetables has drastically declined over the years. For example, carrots have lost 75% of their magnesium, and strawberries have lost 87% of their Vitamin C over just a few decades. 

This comes down to how our food is grown. By emphasising speed and quantity over quality, we are leaving plants less time to absorb essential nutrients from the soil.

This decline in nutrition isn’t just bad for our food - it’s bad for us, too. Plants grown in biologically inactive soils, drenched in chemical pesticides, not only lack the nutrients they once had but also fail to develop the resilience that provides us with health-boosting antioxidants. The saying “you are what your food ate” rings truer than ever in today’s agricultural landscape.

How can better food reduce healthcare costs?

Investing in nutrient-dense food through regenerative practices could lead to significant reductions in healthcare costs, especially when it comes to preventing lifestyle diseases linked to poor diets like diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. 

Programs like Erin Martin’s FreshRX in Tulsa, Oklahoma, have demonstrated the massive potential for savings. By providing 50 families with healthy, nutrient-dense food grown in biologically active soils, they saved nearly three-quarters of a million dollars in healthcare costs for just $150,000 invested.

What is the potential for investment in regenerative agriculture?

As we move toward a future where food is viewed as preventive medicine, the opportunities for investment are clear. 

One area to watch is to invest in the seed industry. For example, Erwin Westers, a farmer, couldn’t sell his high-quality, nutrient-rich carrots to supermarkets because they opted for cheaper organic alternatives. Instead, he turned to selling his superior seeds to other regenerative farmers, demonstrating a model for how the focus on quality can be monetized.

Companies like Row 7 Seed Company, founded by Chef Dan Barber, are also leading the charge by focusing on flavour and nutrient density. Through initiatives like this, the financial returns come not just from immediate profits but from long-term benefits like healthier soils, lower healthcare costs, and more resilient ecosystems.

How does regenerative agriculture fit into the bigger picture of prevention over cure?

The overarching goal of regenerative agriculture is to shift from a reactive approach to health - treating illnesses after they occur to a proactive one, preventing them from happening in the first place. 

This has enormous social and financial returns. We’ve already seen the ripple effects of nutrient-dense diets in programs like Fit4Surgery in the Netherlands, which prepares surgery patients with high-protein diets for better recovery. Now, the focus needs to expand toward how this can be integrated into preventive care at a larger scale.

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Koen van Seijen

Koen van Seijen

Koen van Seijen is a regenerative agriculture and food expert, has been exploring the carbon sequestration potential of regenerative farming since 2011. He is the founder and host of the Investing in Regenerative Agriculture and Food podcast. In the last decade through 300 podcast interviews with investors, fund managers, scientists, entrepreneurs and farmers, Koen explored the role of money and entrepreneurship all over the world in regenerating soils, ecosystems and communities. Koen also works at Toniic, a global community of asset owners seeking deeper positive net impact across the capital spectrum. Toniic members consist of around 500 high net wealth individuals, family offices, and foundations, who are deepening their impact in over 25 countries.

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