How can the world adequately feed more than 9 billion people by 2050 in a manner that advances economic development and reduces pressure on the environment? This is one of the paramount questions the world faces over the next four decades. “The Great Balancing Act” seeks to start answering this question by exploring the scope of the challenge and proposing a menu of potential solutions. This working paper is the first in a series that forms the foundation of the "World Resources Report 2013-14: Creating a Sustainable Food Future." 37% of earth’s landmass (ex-antarctica) is Used for Food Production (100% = 13.3 billion hectares)