FABLE Pathways work as a method for problem-solving for the design of long-term strategies. They work backward from the mid-century targets and shed light on the major transformations that are needed to achieve them. FABLE develops tools to develop mid-century national pathways for food and land-use systems that are globally consistent.
FABLE has developed four steps for coordinating bottom-up national pathways to address national priorities, collectively achieve global sustainability objectives, and balance international trade in agricultural commodities:
1. Global Targets – the country teams jointly decide on global targets to be achieved collectively, and each country team applies them to its country’s context.
2. National pathways and databases – each FABLE country team integrates national data from many different sources and develops mid-century pathways towards sustainable land use and food systems.
3. 'Scenathon' – key parameters and results from the FABLE country pathways are aggregated to determine if the sum of national pathways meets the FABLE targets and to check for consistency in assumptions regarding imports and exports of agricultural commodities. Discrepancies are addressed through iterative refinements of national FABLE pathways.
4. Stakeholder engagement – throughout, FABLE country teams consult stakeholders to test and refine assumptions, support a shared understanding of land use and food systems, and develop shared ownership of the results.