How exciting is this? The Ideas Festival is back (19-22 May, 2011) and just to prove my point that there is a shift in the social attitude to food, try this on for size. This year's Queensland OpenIDEO Challenge asks the question "How might we better connect food production and food consumption?" The OpenIDEO Challenge is a collaborative online platform - created by design firm IDEO - aimed at tackling global issues and challenges through open conversation and contribution from the community. The Premier had this to say about this year's challenge on the Ideas Festival website: "Ideas that consider how rural and urban communities can work better together to ensure a future where healthy food is available to all. Food is an industry and a source of livelihood for many, but it is also a fundamental need, something that forms the basis of our health, wellbeing and sense of self. Our relationship with food is a thread that runs through our lives and communities. But with world population expected to hit 9 billion by 2050 it is vital that we prepare ourselves well so there is enough food for all and that food production is efficient and sustainable."
With three stages - inspiration, concepting and evaluation - the challenge is to find practical solutions that address issues like energy use, transportation, biodiversity, environment, food security, nutrition, obesity... the list goes on. The most inspiring and relevant ideas will then be brought to the Festival for workshopping by teams of policy makers, community and industry. The inspiration stage has just closed and already there are some amazing ideas being 'concepted' right now, right here. My favourite is probably the PlantCam, which connects farmers with eaters through timelapse photography showing your food growing; or the ice-cream truck turned mobile farm - giving kids access to farming fun on their doorstep. Urban agriculture never looked so mobile! I'm super excited for all of the mental stimulation the festival will bring but I'm especially looking forward to the outcome of this little challenge. It's great to see so many passionate and inspired people getting involved too! How would you answer the question?
Monday, 18 April 2011
Friday, 15 April 2011
Hungry for more?
"Today, when we produce more food than ever before, more than one in ten people on Earth are hungry. The hunger of 800 million happens at the same time as another historical first: that they are outnumbered by the one billion people on this planet who are overweight." - Raj Patel in the introduction to Stuffed & Starved: Markets, Power & the Hidden Battle for the World Food System.
I have always loved food - my next meal is always on my mind and I am forever dreaming of travel locations based on the gastronomical delights they can offer. In my family, food was seen as a celebration of life - I was taught it should be colourful and nutritious but most importantly, made with care. Working as a journalist in the eco/sustainable/ethical field has only increased my desire to continue consuming in a conscious way. And it has made me realise that I still have a long way to go. But it's an adventure because it's not always easy to make the right choice, especially when the choices aren't clear. And while I have been known to partake in the odd fast food feast, there is always a voice in my head asking "What did that potato go through to get to your mouth?" As the industry battles for my dollar by slashing prices (often making it cheaper than it cost to produce), and lemons from California cost less than lemons grown here in Australia, the questions are increasing.
It's no surprise that as a society we are becoming more aware of the food we consume; surrounded with over-processed, low-nutrient 'food' that barely resembles food anymore, it was only a matter of time until we realised there is more to eating than something we put in our mouths when we are hungry. We've forgotten that what we eat defines us and creates a sense of community and ownership. When time is money, fast food and convenience win - and the cost is often not only what we pay at the supermarket. But as the pace of daily life slowly eats away at our traditions and we become increasingly disconnected from our food sources, the unsustainable and inequitable nature of our current food systems becomes more apparent. Power and money have taken over, industrialising something that is essential to human life. Movements like slow food, permaculture, urban agriculture and other grassroots movements focused on consumption, waste and connection with food production systems are reminding us how to understand food again, and take back our power of choice.
The idea of this blog - apart from being a record of my exploration into sustainable food in Queensland - is to discuss and question some of the supposed axiomatic truths of the food industry; politics, agriculture, environment and social systems all intertwine and I'm keen to understand where my food comes from, how it's produced and exactly what it is that I am consuming. So, how do you eat?
I have always loved food - my next meal is always on my mind and I am forever dreaming of travel locations based on the gastronomical delights they can offer. In my family, food was seen as a celebration of life - I was taught it should be colourful and nutritious but most importantly, made with care. Working as a journalist in the eco/sustainable/ethical field has only increased my desire to continue consuming in a conscious way. And it has made me realise that I still have a long way to go. But it's an adventure because it's not always easy to make the right choice, especially when the choices aren't clear. And while I have been known to partake in the odd fast food feast, there is always a voice in my head asking "What did that potato go through to get to your mouth?" As the industry battles for my dollar by slashing prices (often making it cheaper than it cost to produce), and lemons from California cost less than lemons grown here in Australia, the questions are increasing.
It's no surprise that as a society we are becoming more aware of the food we consume; surrounded with over-processed, low-nutrient 'food' that barely resembles food anymore, it was only a matter of time until we realised there is more to eating than something we put in our mouths when we are hungry. We've forgotten that what we eat defines us and creates a sense of community and ownership. When time is money, fast food and convenience win - and the cost is often not only what we pay at the supermarket. But as the pace of daily life slowly eats away at our traditions and we become increasingly disconnected from our food sources, the unsustainable and inequitable nature of our current food systems becomes more apparent. Power and money have taken over, industrialising something that is essential to human life. Movements like slow food, permaculture, urban agriculture and other grassroots movements focused on consumption, waste and connection with food production systems are reminding us how to understand food again, and take back our power of choice.
The idea of this blog - apart from being a record of my exploration into sustainable food in Queensland - is to discuss and question some of the supposed axiomatic truths of the food industry; politics, agriculture, environment and social systems all intertwine and I'm keen to understand where my food comes from, how it's produced and exactly what it is that I am consuming. So, how do you eat?
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