Planet

Food has always been high on the agenda of territorial cohesion and intermediary cities, and it is now reaching the broader membership. A food systems approach is becoming increasingly relevant for local and regional governments around the world because it connects many different pressing social issues: poverty and inequality including access to food and to healthy diets, public health, new modalities of urban planning, cultural expressions, climate and ecology. The effects of the pandemic also call for refocusing on the right to sufficient, adequate, nutritious and sustainable food.
 
The impact of the crisis has put even more pressure on economic recovery and mitigation and adaptation to climate change. As we address the fragile and dependent consumption models of many cities, and of delocalized and unsustainable production systems, it will also be essential to rethink and rebalance the relationship between economic growth, the environment and public priorities.
 
We look at food systems through two lenses: developing an integrated approach to food systems through linking the right to food and local public service provision; and a governance aspect, ensuring that local and regional governments are considered in decisions around food systems in order to guarantee social inclusion and prosperity, and boosting solidarity, setting people’s wellbeing and aspirations at the heart of improved food systems.