Green Child Magazine Winter 2013 | Page 51

Acknowledging the Importance of Farmers: Farmers aren’t just farmers, they’re businesswomen and men, stewards of the land, and educators, sharing knowledge in their communities. Slow Food International works with farmers all over the world, helping recognize their importance to preserve biodiversity and culture. Engaging Youth: Making farming both intellectually and economically stimulating will help make the food system an attractive career option for youth. Across sub-Saharan Africa, cell phones and the internet are connecting farmers to information about weather and markets; in the U.S., Food Corps is teaching students how to grow and cook food, preparing them for a lifetime of healthy eating. Image by Kim Smith Preventing Waste: Roughly one-third of all food is wasted—in fields, during transport, in storage, and in homes. But there are easy, inexpensive ways to prevent waste. Initiatives like Love Food, Hate Waste offer consumers tips about portion control and recipes for leftovers, while farmers in Bolivia are using solar-powered driers to preserve foods. Recognizing the Role of Governments: Nations must implement policies that give everyone access to safe, affordable, healthy food. In Ghana and Brazil government action, including national school feeding programs and increased support for sustainable agricultural production, greatly reduced the number of hungry people. Changing the Metrics: Governments, NGOs, Protecting Workers: Farm and food workers and funders have focused on increasing proacross the world are fighting for better pay and duction and improving yields, rather than working conditions. In Zimbabwe, the General improving nutrition and protecting the enviAgricultural and Plantation Workers Union of ronment. Changing the metrics, and focusing Zimbabwe (GAPWUZ), protects laborers from more on quality, will improve public, environabuse. In the U.S., the Coalition of Immokamental health, and livelihoods. lee successfully persuaded Trader Joe’s and Chipotle to pay the premium of a penny-perDanielle Nierenberg & Ellen Gustafson are the pound to Florida tomato pickers. co-founders of Food Tank: The Food Think Tank 51