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Funding Change at the Nexus of Agroecology and Climate Justice

In the past decades, we have witnessed profound changes in the way food is grown, processed, distributed, consumed, and wasted. This threatens to stymie a future of food that is sustainable, equitable, and secure, particularly when coupled with climate change and shifting global economics, politics, and demographics. We need to do things differently. 

Anna Lappé, Director of the Panta Rhea Foundation’s Food Sovereignty Fund, and Daniel Moss, Co-Director of the Agroecology Fund, explore the power of investing in agroecology and grassroots organizing to build climate resilience and equitably nourish our communities.

The Case for Rewriting the Social Contract around Food Supply

All too often we see environmental concerns put on the back burner by stakeholders involved in industrial agricultural production, including feed for fuel. Mathilde Douillet, Program Manager of Sustainable Food Systems at the Fondation Daniel and Nina Carasso and Nicolas Bricas, Director of the UNESCO Chair on World Food Systems, remind us that our planet produces far more food than its energy needs. They make the case for agroecological and sustainable food policies. 

A Vision to Transform India’s Agro-Food System

What does India eat? How does India produce what it eats? How does food reach consumers from producers? Annelies Withofs, Program Manager at IKEA Foundation, speaks to Abhishek Jain, Fellow and Director at Council of Energy, Environment and Water. The Council on Energy, Environment and Water is one of Asia’s leading not-for-profit policy research institutions. Their work aims to catalyze India’s food systems transition on three fronts by 2030.

How Indigenous Peoples are Transforming the Future of Food

A resilient food system is one where a plurality of voices and evidence are heard and respected. No groups are better placed to champion local food systems solutions than farmers and Indigenous Peoples. 

In this episode, Verónica Fernández, Program Officer at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, speaks with Dali Nolasco Cruz, an Indigenous Nahua from La Ola Puebla and the Indigenous Peoples coordinator at Slow Food Network for Latin America and the Caribbean. Her other guests are Claudia Santis, one of the Tzotzil people of San Juan Chamula in Chiapas, and part of the Advisory Council of the Indigenous network of Latin America and the Caribbean, and Minelia Axiu, a Mayan woman, meliponine beekeeper, and an advisor to the Indigenous Peoples’ Slow Food Network for Latin America and the Caribbean. Together, they explore a future of food that reawakens our senses and rekindles our relationships with our communities and with nature.

A New Model for Conservation in Zambia

Rex Raimond, Director of the Transformational Investing in Food Systems Initiative, speaks with Dale Lewis, CEO of COMACO – Community Markets for Conservation. Together, they discuss how COMACO supports local communities to adopt agroforestry, aiming to end wildlife poaching and food insecurity in Zambia. Their conversation highlights how sustainable practices improve ecosystems, resulting in higher yields, better diets, and wildlife conservation. 

How Trade Policy Undermined the Economy and Ecology of Rural America

How did trade and transportation issues lead to agroecology? Stacey Faella, Executive Director at the Woodcock Foundation, and Sophia Murphy, Executive Director at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, explore how agroecology is not only a means of food production, but how it also brings in elements of social justice, ecological benefits, and economic returns.

Structural Racism as a Root of Food Systems Inequality in Brazil

Inequalities and power imbalances will continue to create dysfunctional social and ecological systems. Current practice enables ineffective policies and policymaking, where voices of the vulnerable and those who lack access to democratic participation are not heard. Moreover, the interconnections between people, animals, nature, and the planet are obscured or, worse, undermined. Manu Justo, Food Systems Programme Portfolio Manager at Instituto Ibirapitanga, and Rute Costa, a nutritionist with a master’s in food, nutrition and health from Rio de Janeiro State University, explore how structural racism is a root cause of food systems inequality in Brazil.

Connecting Food, Environmental, and Livelihoods Security in the Anthropocene

Responding to today’s food and climate crises means taking an integrated approach to action that supports human health, environmental sustainability, food security, livelihood security, and more. In this episode, Sara Farley, Vice President, Food Initiative at The Rockefeller Foundation, speaks with Dr. Fabrice DeClerck, Science Director at EAT Forum.

Integrating Legumes in Maize-Based Farming Systems

Traditional soil management systems based on shifting agriculture are no longer viable due to land pressure. In this episode, we hear from Dr. Wezi Mhango, Principal Investigator with the “Legume Best Bets” project funded by the McKnight Foundation. Joining her is Dr. Frank Tchuwa, a collaborator on that project who focuses on the Farmer Research Network approach to extension. They discuss the importance of integrating legumes in maize-based farming systems and how to promote sustainable farming and soil management through the planting of diversified crop species.

Inclusivity, Equity, and Ensuring a Plurality of Voices in Food Systems Transformation

Marie-Christine Cormier-Salem, Director of Agropolis Foundation and a researcher in social sciences, Frédérique Jankowski, a researcher in social anthropology at The French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD), and Adeline Barnaud, a researcher in plant genetics at the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD) discuss the benefits of interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaboration. Together, they advocate for inclusiveness and equity, convening a plurality of knowledge and voices, and involving local communities as essential principles to promote sustainable and fair food systems. 

Accelerating Transformation through Democratizing Knowledge Systems Within Education, Research, and Innovation

In this episode, Porticus Programme Manager, Camila Jericó Daminello speaks with Gaston Kremer, the Programme Manager for World-Transforming Technologies (WTT) discuss the legacies of the Green Revolution in Brazil, and how diverse forms of evidence, knowledge, and expertise, including lived experience and traditional knowledge, need to be treated equally and centred in efforts to transform food systems. The roots of agroecology, regenerative approaches, and Indigenous foodways represent a continuous source of knowledge that can inform a repaired relationship between people and nature.

Reimagining Capital Flows to Support BIPOC Farmers in the US

Deploying “reparative capital” can help to preserve and increase the diversity of America’s farmers, ranchers, and agricultural managers. This integrated capital approach is the topic of conversation between Rex Raimond, Director of the Transformational Investing in Food Systems Initiative, and Lolita Nunn, Director of Program and Investor Relations at Potlikker Capital.

Reimagining Fertilizer and Feed to Enhance Food Systems

Global food production relies on unsustainably produced fertilizers that deplete organic nutrients in the soil. In addition, human waste and fertilizer runoff cause harmful algal blooms and pose other health risks.

This episode features Dr. Charles Midega and Dr. Rebecca Nelson, principal investigators on a recently-funded project from the McKnight Foundation: “Building the Circular Bionutrient Economy to Enhance Systems Health in Africa’s Lake Victoria Basin.” Dr. Midega discusses his focus on the black soldier fly as a way to process organic residue transformation into animal feed. Dr. Nelson, meanwhile, explores the benefits of transforming human excrement into useful and safe soil supplements for agriculture. Together, they explore food security, soil health, sanitation practices, and concerns around reusing human waste.

Reflecting on 10 Years of Transforming Food Systems

Food systems transformation requires new and better solutions at all scales through a systems-level approach and deep collaboration among philanthropy, researchers, grassroots movements, the private sector, farmers and food systems workers, Indigenous Peoples, government, and policymakers. 

In this final episode, Ruth Richardson, outgoing Executive Director of the Global Alliance for the Future of Food, speaks with Michael Quinn Patton, Strategic Evaluation Advisor to the Global Alliance. Together they reflect on the need for transformation, the value of hope and inspiration, and all that has happened during 10 years of transforming food systems.