SCCN Blogs

'Good Food for All'

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Thursday, 06 May 2021

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UN Initiative for Transformation of Food-System of the World

In 2019, there were about 1.2 billion youth aged 15 to 24 years in the world, or 16 percent of the global population. But these global figures do not reveal the regional inequity. For example, young people make up 77 percent of the total population in Africa. The message is clear. Youths not only matter, but they are also the masters of the future. Be it pandemic, climate change, or food security, the 'youth is the future.

From the Global Youth Dialogue (4^th May to 6^th May 2021) organized by the UN on the theme of 'Good Food for All', it was clear that there is an urgent need not only to increase the quantity of production of food but to transform the food system itself. It is important to note that the food system is not just about what comes on our plate, but what happens to the planet while food goes from 'farm to fork'. Youth have the potential to transform the present food system which has been caused by multiple crises.

The main event called Food Systems Summit will take place in September 2021.UN Secretary-General António Guterres has convened the same as part of the Decade of Action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. The Summit will launch bold new actions to deliver progress on all 17 SDGs, each of which relies to some degree on healthier, more sustainable, and equitable food systems.

The LancetCommission describes the current state of food and agricultural systems as a "triple crisis" in which obesity, undernutrition, and climate change are decimating human and planet's health. SDG 2 aims to end hunger by 2030, however, the number of people who are food-insecure has risen since 2014.

The COVID-19 pandemic is one more crisis that will further add to the triple crisis. Malnutrition, includes both 'micronutrient deficiencies', like Iodine deficiencies, create "hidden hunger".

Youth are future decision-makers. They are now called in the dialogue to suggest the innovative transformation of the food systems and take action to bring the campaign, ' Good Food for all, at the center of the dialogues.

Smart Campus Cloud Network-SCCN- is an initiative of TERRE Policy Centre where youth ( students and the faculty ) are encouraged to act on SDGs through practical projects on the campus. SCCN is fortunate to have a special global advisor, Dr Chandrakant Pandav, a nutrition expert. He is called the 'Iodine Man of India'. The campus of the educational institutes is the laboratory for SDGs. Food in the canteen of the campus may become part of the innovative transformation of the food system. Dr Pandav would launch the practical research projects and the guidelines for the campus for nutritious food, thereby sowing the seeds of the 'Good Food for All in the minds of youth.