Like air, like water, food is life. Food is connection, food is celebration, sustenance. But above all, in the 21st century, food is a challenge worldwide. A challenge that will concern nine billion people by the year 2050. How to feed everyone in a way that is sustainable for the planet? As the human population grows, so do our needs, and our expectations. Today, thousands of millions of people suffer from malnutrition and "food insecurity", while almost a billion and a half people are obese or overweight. National Geographic explores and analyzes all of the aspects of this great, and terrible, challenge with a series of articles and a large exhibition, The Future of Food, opening at the Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome on November 18 2014. The exhibition will display over 90 photographs taken throughout the world by the magazine's leading professionals as well as a series of graphics and texts that shed light on the various problems associated with the future of food: the impact of agriculture and livestock breeding on water, climate, habitats and forests, the exponential increase of aquaculture, but also the wasting of food and the new face of hunger, as well as the next green revolution. We will explore possible solutions and the centrality of food across different communities, all with the goal of promoting collective awareness at all levels, from homes to schools, administrative committees and beyond. Because each of us, in our own small way, can contribute and make a difference.
by Marina Conti, Managing Editor National geographic Italia

© Jim Richardson/National Geographic 
Lirio Pampa, Peru

© Jim Richardson/National Geographic 
Tulu Rei, Ethiopia