Sustainability and Community Development

Focus
Urban Food Systems in the US - Community development perspective and Education Component

Questions/issues we need to understand
- Is our supply side solution enough of a response to the US food consumption trends?
- Subsidies in farming
- What is Italy doing well that the US is not doing?
- What is it about their culture that is different?
- What is essence of quality that works in other countries?

What else is happening in New York?
-The NY Food System trying to link up connectivity, educating the people who are trying to make change
- The NY City Council is also working in the area
- Petition for Mayor to plant a garden in City Hall
- Farmers markets in Bay area and in NYC take food stamps

Technology as a solution
Foot Pump - technology and its ability to advance productivity for rural farmers in developing countries
Aquafonica (name of start up) - creating a technological response to a sustainability issue.

Which community are we trying to reach? Community of Practice and Community of Place
Community of Practice - bridge solidarity among the ppl invested in the community.

Obstacles
- Food Desserts in poor areas of Chicago/Detroit, etc.
- Operations: transportation logistics
- How do you drive investment into underinvested communities?
- Can farmers markets compete with corporations?

Policy
- Statewide legislation in California changes the way how companies look at these issues
- Look at Farm Bill and subsidies
- FRESH initiative - giving NYC land and tax breaks to grocers who are willing to build a grocery store in underrepresented areas. must meet local

How do you reach people and attempt to change their consumption of food?
- schools/ aforementioned educational programs
- reach people through incentives

Solutions - How do we get the message out?
- Celebrities TV show highlighting their healthy eating habits
- Use celebrities to draw attention
- "Anthony Bourdain" style TV show with a sustainable food focus
- Using social media to leverage message of TV show/annoucement
- What are the goals? Policy effect?

Related Media
Edible Magazine
Grub Street Blog
Urban Farm Magazine

Next session: What is our goal? And what can we do?

media outlets/media marketing
which celebrities? Jay Z, Rachel Ray. Who and Why?

Investment, Capital
Policy

Background
What is the Slow Food movement?
- began 26 years ago in Italy
- antithesis to fast food, enjoying food and culture and local customs
- formed in the US in 2000
- bring local food to local communities; giving farmers and producers a market
- education component: school gardens (Brooklyn, Berkeley, etc.)
- Harvest time in Harlem (successful model school program - teaching kids about food, etc)

(1:45 PM session)

1. What is the problem of challenge?
2. What are the barriers to solving this challenge?
3. What are the opportunities or innovations?
4. What resources exist or are needed?
5. What are YOUR actionable next steps?

How can local and global sustainable food markets be networked and brought together?
How can we find solutions to our food problems?
Understanding how to connect the local food system to regional, national, and then global food systems? Best way to create communication between all.
Beyond branding, how can we grow sustainability efforts?
Multi-sector focus, where food sustainability is concerned (local and global policies)

• Goal: focus on national food systems in U.S.
• What's the problem?: Infrastructure, subsidies & policies and incentives (rewards for large growers at expense of smaller); petroleum intensity - transport/infrastructure; population and culture.
• How do we enable communication channels? Common ground between the fast and slow-food communities?
  
• Need a platform for communication where all participants can use; all talking about these issues, but not together on same level to create meaningful change in system (i.e. example of local entrepreneur looking to start small bakery searching for local wheat farmer to contract with, etc. - connects to platform for information)

Who do we want as part of this food systems connection platform (and what are their problems)?

• pre-production companies (problem of infrastructure)
  
• farmers (marketing problem)
  
• NGOs (funding problem)
  
• intermediaries: food processors and distributors (costs; energy; supply chain)
  
• financiers (non-aggregate capital; understanding of ROI for sustainable foods)
  
• multi-lateral organizations (funding)
  
• consumers (access and awareness)
  
• policy makers (lobbyists, corp interests)
  
• technology cos (petroleum based)
  
• academics and scientists (access to education and information)
  

• What are the challenges to getting all groups together on the same platform to connect? What needs to happen to get these diverse groups even want to talk and then to talking.
• Communication via one party who filter and neutralizes interests/communications?
• Bring each interest together to help each solve their problems (i.e. take smaller farmers to marketers)
• Create access to information

Education, branding, food market expertise in group. Focus will be on: consumers and education.

• Barriers to education: repackaging of information so it impacts those who aren't already looking for it (socioeconomic issues); opportunity to package sustainable foods in a less intimidating way so it goes beyond niche shoppers
  
• Regulation and policy forces us to change
• Create direct link between farmers and consumers in urban markets (i.e. UN Value Chain)
  
• Connecting networks (marry mature food orgs with smaller tech groups connected to social media outlets - i.e. Slow Food/Sustainable Table) - how do we support this? Leverage existing online tools. Leverage branding and education.
• Connect more people from different sectors to capitalize on current solutions
  
• We need to change the food system now so that health improves, health costs decrease, etc...
• Data transparency as end goal
• Positive social impact with branding

  Item	Problem	Barriers	Opportunities	Resources	Action Items
  Farmers	Costs/infrastructure			UN Value Chain
  Pre-production	Infrastructure
  NGO	Funding			UN Value Chain
  Intermediaries	Cost			UN Value Chain	Partnership policies
  Financiers	Non-aggregate scaling			UN Value Chain
  Distributors	Transport supply chain
  Multi-Laterals	Funding, uneducated
  Policy/Govt	Lobbyists, corp interests
  Technology	Petroleum based			UN Value Chain
  Education	Access to education/info	"Package" socioeconomic communication	Organic food & companies, direct link btwn farmers & consumers (urban area mkts)	UN Value Chain	Best practices partnerships, connecting networks & technology platforms, leverage online tools
  Consumers					Branding