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Civil Society in the Global Food Arena
Brother Dave Andrews, CSC
Coordinator of Peace and Justice
Congregation of Holy Cross
Section A
History of Food Structures
Earth Summit
n
From 4 through 6 June 2012, the United Nations Conference on
Sustainable Development (UNCSD) will take place in Rio de Janeiro
n
Also referred to as the Rio+20 or the Earth Summit 2012 due to the
initial conference held in Rio in 1992, the objectives of the Summit
are:
-  To secure renewed political commitment to sustainable
development
-
-
n
To assess progress towards internationally agreed goals on
sustainable development
To address new and emerging challenges
The Summit will also focus on two specific themes: a green economy
in the context of poverty eradication and sustainable development,
and an institutional framework for sustainable development
4
Committee on Food Security
n
The 37th Session of the Committee on World Food Security will be
held from 17 to 22 October 2011 in Rome
5
Founding of FAO
n
There were three major steps in the founding of FAO
1.  1943: the holding of the United Nations Conference on Food
and Agriculture, at Hot Springs, Virginia
2.  The setting up of a United Nations Interim Commission on Food
and Agriculture to make the necessary preparations for FAO’s
formal establishment
3.  1945: the holding in Quebec of the First Session of the FAO
Conference, at which the process of formation of the
Organization was completed
6
Civil Society in the Global Food Arena
n
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations
is based in Rome, Italy
n
In July, 1960, the FAO launched the Freedom from Hunger Campaign
n
It was one of the first UN efforts to collaborate with the nongovernmental sector in a structured program
7
Food Security
n
Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical,
social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food
that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active
and healthy life
8
Food Sovereignty
n
Food sovereignty: La Via Campesina
9
Food Sovereignty
n
Food sovereignty seeks to reclaim sovereignty over decision making
on agricultural and food security policy, challenges the imbalances
and inequities in current global rules on agricultural trade, and
draws a common position for peasant farmers in the developed and
developing world
10
Freedom from Hunger Campaign
n
The first 15 years of the FHC included three world food congresses
-  One in Washington, D.C., in 1963, and one in the Hague in 1970
(these were people’s gatherings, not intergovernmental
meetings)
-  The 1974 World Food Conference was an intergovernmental
meeting in response to the food crisis of 1972–1973. Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) held a parallel meeting.
11
Causes of the Food Crisis (NGOs)
n
The NGO forum diagnosed the causes of the food crisis as political
and structural
12
World Food Crisis as Catalyst
n
The World Food Crisis gave the NGO community motivation for
further deepening of their own analysis and advocacy, but they
themselves in the 70s didn’t awaken to their own need to build links
with people’s movements on whose behalf they advocated
13
World Food Summit: 1996
n
The World Food Summit of 1996 and the NGO Forum for Food
Security were completely separate events held at the same time,
one metro stop apart from each other, in Rome
14
Nothing About Us, Without Us
n
“Nothing about Us, Without Us”
n
International Day of Disabled Persons, 2004
n
The theme has been generalized to include farmers, women,
indigenous peoples, youth, and others who have decided to speak
for themselves and to participate in governance
15
The Results of the Summit and NGO Forum: 1996
n
The Forum Declaration identifies as causes of food insecurity those
tendencies which the official declaration presents as solutions:
liberalization of agricultural trade, concentration of farms and
capitalist intensification of production, strengthened role of
transnational corporations in the food chain
16