Identifying research gaps and priorities is paramount to advance sustainability science and contribute to a sustainable future. This editorial contributes to this effort by contemplating the sustainability science research agenda and aligning it with recent changes in global dynamics. Drawing on consultations with the editorial board members of the Sustainability Science journal and a review of relevant literature, we identified 12 key research topics. These topics are interpreted within a strategic framework encompassing three key themes: (1) goals that drive sustainability science, (2) approaches to attain these goals, and (3) tools to advance sustainability science research. In so doing, this editorial emphasizes a sustainable development agenda extending beyond 2030, fostering equity and justice, and tackling issues related to power dynamics and geopolitical conflicts. It underscores the significance of research approaches to attaining sustainability goals, in particular, theorizing, co-production of knowledge and action, attaining clarity in conceptual descriptions, and developing systems-oriented analytical frameworks. Additionally, it highlights the value of place-based approaches, learning from significant systemic shocks, and nurturing inner transformations. It also underlines the need to explore emerging technologies and data-intensive methodologies as a tool to address sustainability concerns. The systematic contemplation of the sustainability science research agenda presented in this editorial piece aims to invoke further discussion among researchers and practitioners about a fresh and relevant agenda that promotes the sustainable integration of nature and society.

Food security is a worldwide key issue in the context of climate change, requiring to plan local agriculture and make decisions. In order to proceed, it is essential to understand the value of ecosystem services provided by agricultural landscapes. Here, we quantified and mapped the supply and demand of an indigenous food, kocho (i.e., a bread made from starch derived from the Enset plant), in the Wabe River catchment of Gurage Mountains in Southern Ethiopia. To proceed, we measured the pseudostem and plant heights within 100 m2 sample plots of Enset farms. Enset home garden spatial features were extracted from satellite imagery, and a household questionnaire survey was administered along with population census data. We used suitable models to quantify the yield and demand of kocho, and the data were interpolated, analyzed, and mapped with the ArcGIS software. The results show that the average catchment-wide squeezed (moisture-removed) kocho yield is 16.2 kg/plant, which is equivalent to 417 tons/ha. The annual yield is 6500 kg/ha, and 4.5 million tons of kocho are available as standing stock. However, the spatial distribution of Enset production and its yield are not uniform in the catchment, and the largest stock is found in tepid moist and tepid humid agroecologies. The average demand of kocho per person is fulfilled by 16 Enset plants (i.e., 289 kg) with only 38% of households able to satisfy their demand from their own home garden. There is a high per capita kocho demand in warm sub-humid agroecological zones and a low demand in cool moist zones. While the supply-demand budget shows that there is a high supply of kocho in most areas, the demand is greater than the supply in 25% of the catchment. Here, we demonstrate for the first time that through quantification and mapping of the supply to demand of kocho, the Enset crop contributes to food security in the catchment and needs to improve its production as it is spatially not uniform. This study provides a data set for planners and decision-makers to enhance the production of kocho and to satisfy the current supply-demand gap.