A long-term healthy, affordable, and secure food supply for Norfolk Island requires evidence-informed decision tools. At a global scale, there is extensive research progress on methods to assess sustainability of food systems, with more than 30 frameworks available. Core domains usually assessed include social, economic and environmental considerations, while healthiness and affordability of foods and issues such as governance and resilience are less often considered. Trade-offs often need to be considered in local decision making—there are a number of approaches available that provide evidence-based decision-making tools for trade-off analysis, often involving multiple-criteria decision analysis methods using local data.
RDAMNC has engaged QUT to help select and develop the most suitable frameworks that will help the Norfolk Island community in decision making around improved food security on the island. They will be providing expertise in food security and nutritional priority analysis, and expertise in food system sustainability assessment and data-informed decision making.
Through the provision of an evidence-based framework, this project provides a means to facilitate information collection and sharing, engagement and trusted decision making about future priorities for funding and infrastructure that will ultimately seek to improve the health, quality of life and economic sustainability of this remote Australian community.