Two members of our research team, Samantha Gambling and Susanna Klassen, were invited participants in the ‘Eating City’ international food systems workshop this past August in Paris, France. [Photo: Susanna Klassen]
The 2015 Eating City Summer Campus brought together 42 young people from 34 different countries who are all working in or studying some aspect related to food: researchers, professionals working in public and private sectors, farmers, and community leaders. The objective of the workshop was to build participants’ capacity for leading sustainable food systems change in the 21st century through sharing experiences and knowledge from their respective areas of the world.
As the only participants from Canada, Sam and Susanna shared their experiences in various aspects of the food system, including their research and scholarship on food sovereignty and agricultural sustainability. Alongside urban agriculture activists, food policy council representatives, producers, and engineers, the two discussed the urgent food systems challenges we face today, possible solutions, and sustainable alternatives. They were part of a writing team that synthesized participants’ visions, reflecting the diversity of the group and the priorities of youth, into a collective declaration which was addressed to Ban Ki-Moon, UN Secretary General, and presented at the 2015 Expo in Milan, Italy. Please feel free to read and sign the declaration to support this shared vision.
[Photos courtesy of Eating City participants]