Implementing the right to food! – with agro-ecology, climate-proof agriculture and One Health

Forum Umwelt und Entwicklung, INKOTA Netzwerk, Agrarkoordination e.V, Welttierschutzstiftung, Brot für die Welt

Time: Wednesday, 20. January 2021, 5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. (CET), subsequent deep dive 6:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Languages: German, English

Summary:
The speakers approached the topic of the right to food with a focus on the people currently hardest hit by COVID 19 from different perspectives: of a South African small fisherwoman, a UN representative, a One Health expert, and of two NGO representatives, one from the climate protection and another from the human rights field.

It was emphasized that smallscale farmers, including fishing, contribute to the basic and food security of around 70% of the world’s population. The unanimous opinion of the panel was that agroecological models, especially because of their diversity, represent an important basis for a functioning local food system. At the same time, smallscale food producers are particularly disadvantaged in terms of their marketing opportunities in the pandemic compared to large agricultural companies. All speakers also agreed that the smallscale farmers and agro-ecological supply systems must be permanently strengthened and made crisis-proof. This would also offer an important resilience to the effects of the climate crisis and protect health, nature and the environment in the sense of One Health. Thanks to the clear and focused short contributions of this diverse panel, the understanding of the complex interrelationships of the right to food was strengthened and the view of holistic ecosystem functions in agriculture was sharpened.

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Please note that the CVs of Stig Tanzmann and Andrea Winkler are only available in German.

Moderators

Stig TanzmannAdvisor for agricultural issues at Brot für die Welt

Stig Tanzmann ist Landwirt und Agrarwissenschaftler und arbeitet seit 2010 als Referent für Landwirtschaftsfragen bei Brot für die Welt. Seit 2008 befasst er sich mit den internationalen Auswirkungen der europäischen Fleischproduktion. Weitere thematische Schwerpunkte seiner Arbeit sind, die entwicklungspolitischen Wirkungen der Agrarpolitik der EU, Agrarökologie, Biodiversität, Bioökonomie, Digitalisierung in der Landwirtschaft, Gentechnik und Saatgut.

Josephine KochForum Umwelt und Entwicklung

Josephine Koch works at the German NGO Forum on Environment and Development. Her working fields are Ressource politics, Bioeconomy and Agriculture.

Panel Guests

Michael FakhriUnited Nations Special Representative on the Right to Food and Professor at the University of Oregon School of Law

Michael Fakhri is the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food. He is also an Associate Professor at the University of Oregon School of Law.

Hilda AdamsFisher woman, South Africa

Hilda Adams is a 3rd generation fisher woman from Mamre / Cape Town, South Africa. She is fulltime in fishing for 18 years and the founder of the women’s cooperative WESKUSMANDJIE (a small business, meaning in English is West Coast Basket).

Sofía Monsalve SuárezSecretary General of FIAN International

Sofía Monsalve Suárez is the Secretary General of FIAN International. FIAN is an international human rights organization working for the right to food and nutrition. Before turning Secretary General in 2016, she coordinated FIAN’s program on land and natural resources for more than 15 years. This work included field research visits and fact-finding missions to twenty countries, close collaboration with peasants, small farmers, landless people, fisher folks, indigenous peoples and rural workers. Mrs. Monsalve Suárez is also contributing to the development of the UN declaration on the rights of peasants negotiated in the Human Rights Council.

Andrea WinklerCo-Chair of the Lancet Commission on One Health

Prof. Dr. Andrea Winkler, MD, Dr. med., PhD, Dr. med. habil., is a specialist neurologist, a senior researcher and the Co-Director of the Center for Global Health at the Technical University of Munich. She is also the Founding Director of the Centre for Global Health at the University of Oslo, where she holds a full professorship in Global Health. Prof. Winkler has almost 20 years of experience with both clinical work and research in countries of sub-Saharan Africa. Her special interest lies with poverty-related neglected diseases, global neurology/mental health, One Health, global digital health and social sciences in Global Health.

Teresa AndersonClimate policy coordinator at ActionAid International

Teresa Anderson is climate policy coordinator at ActionAid International. She leads ActionAid’s climate policy work on land, food and agriculture, and coordinates the Climate Action Network (CAN) working group on agriculture.