OUR FOOD OUR FUTURE – UNCONFERENCE 2023 AT CENTRICITY ON 17TH FEB

Image: Future Green Team with our strategic partner MAKE Studios – a well deserved drink after months of planning our very first food sustainability UnConference  

Friends, let’s talk about food. Our future is at stake, and it’s time for us to have a real conversation about the food systems that sustain us all.

Last week, we held Hong Kong’s first food systems transformation UnConference, bringing together over 100 changemakers from across the food supply chain. We discussed how businesses can support a just transition to healthy and sustainable diets, because let’s face it, this is a topic that requires a whole-system approach if we are to transform the food system today.

Deepanker Khosla, Chef & Co-owner, Haoma Bangkok, poresenting Circular systems in a restaurant setting 

Now, some of you might be wondering why we need to talk about food systems. Well, for starters, food contributes to over 30% of global man-made greenhouse gas emissions. The future of food is at risk due to animal extinction, biodiversity loss, and climate change, among other things. And with one million species at risk of extinction according to the IUCN, biodiversity loss is threatening the benefits nature provides to people around the world.

We need collaboration with experts if we’re going to tackle this issue. We won’t find silver bullet answers, but we can gain insights and take small steps toward making sustainable food systems transformation a reality. Our attendees questioned everything, our brains hurt thinking about all the trade offs and thinking about food as a part of a system, rather than looking for quick-fix siloed solutions, as we examined how each of our organisations can contribute to a regenerative food system.

Source: Jackie Vierow

We looked at policies, power dynamics, and mindsets as levers in the food system. And in the afternoon, we got up and took action drawing from systems thinking tools such as the iceberg, delivered through a design thinking workshop cleverly co-designed with our innovation friends at MAKE Studios.

With such a diverse group of stakeholders in the room, (including reps from government institutions like UNDP, farmers, manufacturers like Unilever, and retailers like IKEA) we collectively brought over 100 ideas that could make a difference – whilst remembering we need to avoid silos but think systemically when looking for solutions.

Companies are made up of people, and people can turn ideas into action, if they so desire.

 

Sustainable diets are a huge opportunity to address climate action. Let’s work together to make sustainable food systems transformation a reality for businesses across the food supply chain.

So, my friends, let’s be brave and ambitious. This UnConference was just the beginning. We’re continuing the conversation and building on the ideas that were shared. And to keep our community engaged, we’re launching a Skool Community page soon, where you can find resources and continue the conversation on what you’re doing in food sustainability.

Every business needs a Food Vision! A food sustainability plan for shifting to sustainable operations with a clear roadmap.

 

Carbon-labelled menus at our UnConference (Klimato)

No matter if you are a corporate serving hundreds of meals a day to teams in offices, or a foodservice or retailer, your next step is to create a Food Vision. Get in touch to learn how we can design one with you through our Sprints.

Let’s come together to build meaningful ideas for change. The future of food is in our hands, and we must act now.