Global meets local at the World Food Day celebration in New York

16 October, New York – The 2023 World Food Day celebration in New York brought together a diverse range of actors to discuss the importance of water for food security and nutrition, the challenges to end hunger, and the importance of working together. 

“Access to food is a basic human right. To achieve Sustainable Development Goal 2 - ending hunger and malnutrition by 2030 - by transforming agrifood systems, both urban and rural, to be more efficient, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable, remains at the core of FAO’s mandate. Despite daunting challenges ahead, we must not lose sight,” said Guangzhou Qu, the Director of the FAO Liaison Office with the United Nations in New York, in his welcoming remarks. 

“Today’s gathering is far beyond a celebration itself, rather it demonstrates a global solidarity and renewed collective commitment to taking concrete actions to achieve our goal,” he added. 

This year’s celebration in New York, meeting under the global theme of “Water is Life, Water is Food, Leave no one behind,” was co-hosted by FAO and held at the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG)—a first for this observance. The event engaged the international and local community for a discussion on how to ensure food access and leave no one behind in relation to urban food systems and food security, and their linkages with water, from Permanent Representatives, local leaders and the New York City government, to Food Hero Karen Washington and youth. 

The Chief Executive Officer and The William C. Steere Sr. President of the NYBG, Jennifer Bernstein, recalled the ongoing climate crisis as a central factor “in rising global food insecurity, which affects poor and vulnerable communities,” and explained how the NYBG is seeking to contribute to mitigate the effects of climate change and preserve biodiversity through “innovative plants, and agricultural research and strong collaborations between institutions and local communities”—a common message reflected by other participants. 

Water, food, and innovative technologies 

Within the context of a rapidly growing population and the effects of climate change, Member States highlighted the contribution that science and innovative technologies can make to feed more people in a sustainable way. 

“We need to massively upscale the use of scientific and technological innovations to ensure efficient use of water”, said the Permanent Representative of Nepal and Chair of the Group of Least Developed Countries, Ambassador Lok Bahadur Thapa. This commitment was echoed by the Permanent Representatives of Guyana, Ambassador Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, who stressed the importance of the sustainable use of water resources, and of Argentina, Ambassador María del Carmen Squeff, who said: “Innovation and new technologies play a central role in achieving this objective, as they improve both sustainability and productivity.” 

Participants also stressed the importance of adapting science, technology, and innovation to local contexts whilst building on local, traditional, and indigenous knowledge. 

Ambassador Gladys Mokhawa, Permanent Representative of Botswana and Chair of the Group of Landlocked Developing Countries encouraged solutions for the most vulnerable populations and emphasized the importance of cooperation to “address rooted inequalities and poverty, which are more likely and more prevalent among rural people, women and girls, amongst others.”  

“Governments need to design science and evidence-based policies and all actors, including academy, private sector and Indigenous Peoples are key to reach long lasting solutions”, added the Permanent Representative of Guatemala, Ambassador Carla María Rodríguez Mancia.  

Ambassador Agnes Mary Chimbiri-Molande, Permanent Representative of Malawi, expressed a similar sentiment and spoke of “a growing demand for a more holistic food systems approach to policy and programming decision making.”  

Delegates from China, the European Union, Italy, and the United States also participated in the event. 

Fighting hunger at the community level and in developed countries  

The celebration also paid tribute to World Food Day Food Hero, Karen Washington, an award-winning food justice advocate, working to end hunger in New York. "When it comes to agriculture, we have systems that are in place that don't use the indigenous knowledge. We understand how important scientific knowledge is; indigenous knowledge needs to go hand in hand with scientific knowledge”, urged Ms. Washington, in a passionate intervention of the importance of working together to build a fair and just agrifood system with a focus on community and giving power to the people.  

Food access and security are inherently interlinked with social issues. Kate MacKenzie, the Executive Director of the New York Mayor’s Office of Food Policy, recalled that water and food challenges are not just faced by developing countries and that the effects of inequalities and poverty also exist in a city like New York. She highlighted the importance of education on food systems, or “why and how food is grown”, and presented New York City’s work on supporting economic opportunity, environmental sustainability, and equity in the food system. 

Engaging youth and making strong urban-rural linkages 

Moderating the event was youth advocate Lana Weidgenant, who works at the intersection of climate action, youth empowerment, and sustainable food systems, and was the Vice Chair of Action Track 2 at the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit. “We know that to transform our food systems we must empower youth, work with youth, and ensure they have the education, tools, and skills they need to contribute to this transformation”, she said.  

Melissa Laudenbach, a young professional working as the Controlled Environment Agriculture Operations and Curriculum Coordinator of NY Sun Works—a non-profit dedicated to integrating sustainability, climate, and food production education into urban schools, spoke about learning about hydroponic farming technology has been transformational for urban students who have limited knowledge of how food is grown and produced.  

Closing the programme was Maria Francesca Spatolisano, the Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, who called for continued engagement to ensure food security and nutrition. “Let our commitment of today be amplified and scaled up throughout the year, to create inclusive and sustainable food systems while protecting our precious water resources,” said Spatolisano. 

ABOUT WORLD FOOD DAY 

The annual flagship observance, World Food Day, is celebrated all over the world to commemorate the founding of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in 1945 and reflect on the progress towards a world without hunger while underscoring the path forward for food access and a healthy diet for all.