To feed the growing human population we require increased food production and security, while using less land and causing less environmental damage. Significant changes in agriculture are needed to meet these demands. One widely touted solution is smart, Al-enhanced Agricultural Technology. In this article we argue that improved technology is insufficient to address the needs of many farmers, but that by taking a whole-of-system approach native to Artificial Life we can shift towards creating sustainable, ethical and effective AgTech. This can innovate industrial agriculture in developed nations and benefit small landholders from vulnerable communities, whilst reducing the environmental impacts of food production globally.

The latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimated that humanity has a time window of about 12 years in order to prevent anthropogenic climate change of catastrophic magnitude. Green house gas emission from air travel, which is currently rising, is possibly one of the factors that can be most readily reduced. Within this context, we advocate for the re-design of academic conferences in order to decrease their environmental footprint. Today, virtual technologies hold the promise to substitute many forms of physical interactions and increasingly make their way into conferences to reduce the number of travelling delegates. Here, we present the results of a survey in which we gathered the opinion on this topic of academics worldwide. Results suggest there is ample room for challenging the (dangerous) business-as-usual inertia of scientific lifestyle.