10 Years of the Global Alliance

Galvanized by a speech from HRH The Prince of Wales entitled “On The Future of Food: A Call To Action,” a group of philanthropic foundations with shared values come together to explore the potential of a collaborative network focused on food systems transformation. The first convening of these 30 foundations is hosted by The Prince of Wales in June 2012. The Global Alliance for the Future of Food is the outcome of these discussions. 

Foundation representatives interested in externalities and true cost accounting meet in the US community of Louisville, Kentucky. Together, they re-frame externalities as “true cost” and establish the diversity of dimensions involved. Both become a key strategic direction of the Global Alliance.

Twenty-nine foundation representatives gather and form the ​​Monitoring & Evaluation Committee. The committee recognizes the importance of developmental evaluation.The committee recognizes the importance of development evaluation, which enables socially-minded organizations be more agile when working in complex and changing landscapes. Adding a developmental evaluation approach is critical and emphasizes the importance of learning and iteratively setting the future priorities for the Global Alliance.

Members come together around a shared problem statement. They agree that the industrial food system is not fit for purpose and causes significant human, social, environmental, and economic harm. A set of guiding principles are adopted to inform strategic interventions. (A 7th principle – inclusion – is added in 2020).

To ensure the active participation and engagement of all member foundations, the Global Alliance adopts six shared operational values. These values define how we work together as an alliance and with our partners and allies.

Members gather for the first international dialogue in Milan, Italy, to explore positive action toward sustainable, secure, and equitable food and agriculture systems with funders.

Global Sustainable Food and Agriculture: A Landscape Assessment aimed at cultivating a greater understanding of the philanthropy donor landscape and critical issues relating to sustainable food and agriculture systems.

With a foreword His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales, this assessment was motivated by a sense that there is a growing body of philanthropic investment in sustainable food and agriculture systems and that a greater understanding of these activities could help current and prospective donors to better understand each other’s approaches, areas of emphasis, investment strategies, and partnership associations. 

Executive Director Ruth Richardson, delivers keynote remarks connecting sustainable food and agriculture system efforts with the objectives of the nature conservation community.

At a convening in Washington D.C., the Global Alliance meets with experts, advocates, and other philanthropic funders working on sustainable animal agriculture systems to determine a shared narrative and position. Together, we identify opportunities to take collective action to support sustainable, equitable and secure meat systems globally.

The Global Alliance commissions a compendium of perspectives to better understand the ecosystem of actors working to advance seed diversity globally. The release highlights the need for a nuanced discussion on agricultural biodiversity.

A Global Alliance report authored by the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food)provides a comprehensive overview of the many connections between food-health issues. It also identifies the channels through which food systems affect human health, and how prevailing power structures and imperatives in food systems influence our understanding of the impacts of the food we produce, eat, and waste.

The Global Alliance adds Principles-Focused Evaluation and Global Systems (Blue Marble) Evaluation to our existing developmental evaluation system, in order to more clearly understand developments in the food system and their impacts.

The Global Alliance brings together over 250 experts and leaders from all levels of government in Paris to gain deeper insights into the connections between climate change and food systems, craft visions of the food systems we need, and chart potential pathways forward.

More than 90 stakeholders from diverse geographies, sectors, and interests come together in,  Mexico to discuss the urgent need for seed systems that protect seed diversity and enhance nutrition and security.

The report addresses the main theoretical issues and controversies undermining the acknowledgement of the connections between the agri-food sector, biodiversity, and ecosystem services and externalities, including the human health impacts from agriculture at a global scale.

The Beacons of Hope initiative showcases the groundswell of people transforming our food systems in dynamic and creative ways. Their stories offer inspiring examples and evidence that food systems transformation is possible.

The Global Alliance announces the launch of two new initiatives that are strategically aligned and committed to food systems transformation. These initiatives are funder-led, principles-based, and time-bound in their goals for immediate, maximum impact.

Adopted in January, this Theory of Transformation represents a conceptual breakthrough for the organization. It comes at a critical time when, in the face of the global climate emergency, the need for systems transformation has become the clarion call of our times.

COVID-19 requires the Global Alliance and the Salzburg Global Seminar to virtually co-host the Salzburg Process on the Climate Emergency and the Future of Food dialogue. It brings together more than 300 diverse changemakers, experts, and leaders from local to global levels. Mixing thought-provoking presentations and curated conversations with knowledge exchange and informal interactions, the dialogue connected individuals and networks and built strategic alignment on key areas for transformation at the climate-food nexus.

The guide urges governments to take action for better food systems that promote human, ecological, and animal health and well-being. It provides 14 recommendations to tackle the interconnectedness of food systems through policy and practice.

These frameworks create new ways of thinking about how to achieve a more healthy, sustainable, and equitable food system. This report is about shifting actions and behaviours by changing the frameworks in which we operate.

Stories of community groups, innovative policymakers, progressive private sector players, and others whose food systems interventions responded to the pandemic with creativity, adaptability, and resilience.

We believe these seven bold Calls to Action are critical pathways for creating food systems transformation. The Calls to Action address the critical underlying structures that hold back much-needed systems change.

Global Alliance Executive Director Ruth Richardson addresses The People’s Plenary to UN delegates and Summit participants on behalf of the Multi Actor Food Systems Champions Network.

This compendium tackles the dominant questions about evidence that hold back food systems transformation. The report unpacks the narratives and legacies behind these questions and explores the many ways funders, researchers, and policymakers can take transformative action.

A comprehensive assessment of how 14 countries have incorporated food systems into their climate action plans—also known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)—to date. Designed as a toolkit for policymakers and other interested stakeholders, this suite of materials highlights the many opportunities for governments to use food systems transformation to drive significant greenhouse gas emissions reductions, as well as other health, environmental, and social benefits.

The latest installment in the Beacons of Hope series highlights the stories of six food-focused initiatives that have used innovative combinations of financial and in-kind investments to fund their transformative work.

The Global Alliance continues to collaborate with health sector professionals to elevate the link between food systems and human, animal, and ecological health. This report shares 10 stories of initiatives that are led by food and health actors alike.

The Global Alliance turns 10!