The first of a series of ‘impact stories’ where we meet some of our fantastic members and learn about the different ways our Network has positively impacted them. First up we have Kate Jones, a  PhD student researching foresight and early warning for food systems resilience at Cranfield University. Kate talks about how the AFN offers unrivalled networking opportunities and a chance to test ideas. 

As backgrounds go, mine is pretty varied. I started off as a teacher, before working for a council. I then worked in NGOs for many years, running educational programmes around international development, sustainability and social justice. Eventually, I had one of those post-lockdown moments where I decided I wanted to work in food, so here I am as a PhD student researching foresight and early warning for food systems resilience at Cranfield University.

I came across the Network after a couple of months of doing my PhD. It’s amazing that the events they run are  completely funded for early career researchers so there’s no issue about being able to attend; I came along to the Big Tent in 2023 and have been to every one since then. I’m particularly interested in what happens in the middle of the supply chain, between farm and supermarket. A lot of people focus on agriculture, and in particular, consumption and waste but  I’m interested in the magic bit in the middle, which is quite opaque because it’s small to medium-sized businesses that you often don’t see. How will they operate in an uncertain world, where we’re not sure if our climate will be able to deliver the food that we need? I’m interested in what the government and regulation can do now to help us prepare for an uncertain future and how we can still eat the variety of food that we’re used to.For example, we might have a plan for if there is a Salmonella outbreak. But we may not have a plan for something that hasn’t happened before. So that’s what needs to change. 

What I love about the AFN Network+ is that it’s opened up a whole network of people to me who I can test ideas on, ask for feedback from, or perhaps even ask to read a paper I’m working on. Especially as a career changer who hasn’t been in this world forever, some industry conferences can feel quite exclusive. Whereas, this Network puts you in comfortable situations where you make those connections and that’s enormously valuable. I’ve had some amazing opportunities, for example later this month I’ve got my first visiting lectureship, which I got after meeting someone at an AFN event.

Through the Network, I’ve also met people on the editorial board of journals I want to submit to, so I’ve been able to ask advice about submissions and it has helped me get through those processes. Currently, I’m working on a theoretical framework where I’m linking some literature together to make it more practical, and test it within the supply chain. I’ve just had a chat with a person who I met at a Network event, who wrote the original paper, for feedback and to check that it’s progressing what they did. It’s enormously reassuring to see how your work fits in with other peoples.

This work has to be ongoing.There might be individual clusters in universities, counties or local authorities, where this work is happening, but there isn’t anywhere else that brings them together to share ideas. I don’t quite know how we reach net zero without a Network like this.