Yolda is a nature conservation organization established in 2015. From the beginning, Yolda’s focus has been on traditional cultural practices and production systems that benefit both biodiversity conservation and climate crisis mitigation and adaptation. Engin Yılmaz, Yolda’s executive director, tells us more about the importance of the traditional ecological knowledge and the value of relationships between consumers and producers.

Mobile pastoralism

Working at an international level, Yolda is collaborating with  mobile pastoralist communities in different regions to understand and disseminate the benefits of the practice to biodiversity and climate action. The lands of one of these communities called Sarikeçili has recently joined the Foodnected project as a pilot site. They are traveling around a geographical area of 300 km across Turkey, wintering in the pastures of southern shores and summering in the highlands of Taurus Mountains.

‘Pastoralism, explains Engin, is a form of animal husbandry, of raising livestock (mostly herbivores species) and, most importantly, it is entirely different in essence to intensive livestock production systems. We use the word mobile to encompass the many ways the people move with the livestock, as opposed to sedentary pastoralism. Thus, mobile pastoralism refers to the many ways when people move through landscapes with livestock.’

The definition of mobile pastoralism can vary as it greatly depends on the topography of the area along which these communities travel, the climate, the socio-economic context, etc. Yet in all scenarios, this traditional production system holds benefits for biodiversity conservation and climate crisis mitigation and adaptation efforts.

‘Through their mobility, these nomadic communities ensure the connectivity between different habitats and, therefore, support other species regarding functional and structural connectivity. Let’s take the role they play in seed dispersal: The animals eat plants, they carry the seeds of these plants via their coats, fleeces, hooves and droppings. In a scientific study conducted in Spain, it was proven that a herd of 1000 transhumant sheep carries almost 200 millions ingested seeds over 1,500 km. On top of that, the carbon footprint of these communities is very low, especially because of their mobility. They use very low levels of fuel. Their life is adapted to the climate. When they leave a site, they allow the vegetation to regenerate. And very importantly, they play a role in preserving the cultural heritage.’

Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK)

The preservation of traditional knowledge is one of the valori fondamentali of the Foodnected and it encompasses here various interactions between the communities and nature, as well as the interactions within the community itself. This, for instance, includes herd management, animal and human well-being, knowledge of fauna and flora, knowledge transmission, etc.

To illustrate the importance of this knowledge, Engin takes the example of the interactions between the communities and wolves. ‘In the French Pyrenees, there were no wolves left. So, the government took measures to reintroduce wolves in the mountains. This created a conflict between transhumance communities there and the French government. One of the important aspects of this conflict was that the communities were no longer holding as much traditional ecological knowledge as in the past in terms of confronting and mitigating the conflicts against these predators, resulting in the experience being very traumatic for them. In Turkey, there are 7000 wolves and none of these are seen as traumatic by the nomadic communities, because they have been living like this for centuries. They use particular tools against it, like dogs. They also have dogs in the French Pyrenees, but the knowledge in Turkey on how to pick the right breed, do the right training, manage the dog pack and how many dogs should be in a pack is still very rich. All of this of course will vary depending on the region and the environment. So, we believe that this kind of knowledge needs to be kept. These communities have been living in uncertainty for centuries and their daily lives are adapted to respond to changes. There is also  wisdom in that knowledge that can help develop responses to crises such as a pandemic.’

The relationship between producers and consumers

Since its foundation, Yolda, just like Foodnected, has been trying to reduce the distance between producers and consumers. ‘In our case, shortening the value chains doesn’t mean selling and buying locally, since the communities are moving long distances. It means trying to avoid any other actors along the chain and make consumers and communities share the same vision of producing and consuming food.’ 

Yolda sees humans as an essential part of the ecosystem and the relationship between consumers and producers as crucial in order to achieve more sustainable and fairer food systems. ‘We can’t rely on a dichotomy between nature and culture. Nature provides benefits for culture, but culture also can provide benefits for nature. And, that’s what we’re expecting of consumers: to reach this same way of thinking. This will help us in advocating a proper legal framework to support sustainable producers instead of industrial production systems, and, then, we can have an impact at regional, national, and global levels. This has to start with the relationship between consumers and producers.’

Similar to the Foodnected project, Local Catch is a North American network of fishing families/businesses/communities, researchers, non-profit organizations, technical assistance providers, and decision-makers. We had the great opportunity to speak with Jordan Richardson – the network coordinator and Brett Tolley – the national programme coordinator for the Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance (Nama), which provides backbone support to Local Catch.

Local Catch was founded at a time where different seafood networks were forming as an alternative to industrial fishing models. 

It all started around 2009, Brett Tolley tells us, when small-scale fishers in Maine realized that the current sea food supply chain was forcing them into scenarios where they either had to catch a really high volume in order to make a decent living, which they knew was not sustainable, or not be able to make a business. They decided to unite in order to get a better price and thus reduce the pressure on the species they were catching, and it was a success! At the same time, the exact same thing was happening in North Carolina, in British Columbia and in Massachusetts. The global nature of the supply chain was getting so extreme that selling prices were getting lower and lower and reached a tipping point. In that moment, these groups realized that solidarity and sharing best practices with one another was key to be more in control of their catch. I also think the success of the whole initiative was due to the fact that it wasn’t driven by the wish to make money, but by the fishers’ livelihoods.

The Local Catch network, just like Foodnected, is guided by a number of core values thanks to which the network maintains trust among its members but also with consumers. 

The values are the lifeblood of the network, Jordan Richardson insists, it couldn’t work without very clear and meaningful core values because they allow accountability and trust. For a network to thrive, there must be trust. Feeling like you are connecting with other members who also adhere to these core values is what fosters collaboration, teamwork and engagement within the network.

Collaboration and connection with like minded people is the strength of the network. Jordan explains : One of the biggest perks of being part of a structure like this is to have this network of seafood producers, businesses, technical assistance providers, researchers and being able to connect directly with them. We organize workshops and we have an internal communication tool that our members can use when they have a business question, when they’re looking for somebody that’s purchasing a certain type of product or even just to discuss the core values (for instance: what does ‘local’ mean?). It’s a great way for our members to connect with people who understand what they are going through and an opportunity to learn from one another. The network is also them giving visibility, for instance we have a seafood finder that helps consumers find fishers who directly sell their catch. 

Initiatives like Foodnected and Local Catch promote fairer and more sustainable food systems that work for people, but also for nature. Industrial food systems and supply chains are messing with the environment everywhere, says Brett. Our ecological footprint is just outrageous. What we’re building here is an alternative that honors scale and the rhythm of the ecosystem with shorter supply chains. 

He also stresses the importance of support coming from consumers : It’s about moral support. It is so important for people who fish. Part of what industrial fishing does is make the fisher invisible, it takes a catch and exports it outside of the country, so that the people living here don’t know what kind of fish swims in their own waters. It doesn’t mean they don’t care, it’s just that they don’t know what fishers are catching. When there’s a development coming to town threatening the livelihoods of fishers, they don’t get local support because people don’t know. So there is responsibility for consumers to get to know these things : who are the fishers, what do they catch, how do they do it? 

For consumers it’s really important to understand the practices and the values that businesses are embodying, Jordan adds, and for them to know what values they are looking for when they are buying food and if these values align. The ability for our members to be transparent about where the fish is coming from is crucial for consumers to get a better understanding. It really comes down to trying to have the most direct connection possible – for instance being able to ask questions at the market or getting an explanation about where the fish was caught if it is bought online.

More info about Local Catch : https://localcatch.org/

More info about Nama : https://www.namanet.org/

July 29, 2021 was Earth Overshoot Day. This marks the date when humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate that same year. For ensuring a thriving future for our societies, we have to move that date and to this there isn’t one-single magical solution but rather a mosaic of solutions widely implemented, altogether.

Except for the inverted trend seen last year, when Earth Overshoot Day fell on August 22nd and mainly by disasters (due to COVID-19), the Earth Overshoot Day has come earlier and earlier every year, approximately about a month earlier every decade since its first manifestation in 1970s. This is indicative of a growing human demand (for plant-based food and fiber products, livestock and fish products, timber and other forest products, space for urban infrastructure, and forest to absorb its carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels) on the planet’s resources, which is now equivalent to about 1.7 planets worth of resources and ecological services.

Countless solutions exist and this need for many different answers is well represented by the ‘100 days of possibility’ campaign, promoted by Global Footprint Network, offering a solution a day from July 29 to the beginning of the COP26. The idea was to highlight alternatives to the current ways of operating our societies in the days leading up to what was going to be the most important event this year. Many of the solutions collected for the campaign are proof that alternatives are available and could be scaled-up if the political willingness to do so was present. Since the political powers seem to underestimate the climate crisis, it is more important than ever to bring such projects up and give them visibility to as many people as possible.

The way we produce and consume food has a great impact on the environment and a key role in this fight.

As our recent past has shown, about 50% of such human demand on the planet’s resources is due to our food systems, meaning the way in which we produce, transport, distribute, consume and, unfortunately, waste food. Shifting our approach to more sustainable food systems would thus help move the date on which us humans surpass what global resources can sustain in a single year. Here again, there are different ways this can be achieved, such as eating locally, cultivating in a sustainable way (e.g., via agroforestry practices) or reducing food waste.

This is exactly what the Foodnected project aims to achieve.

The short-chain, fair and sustainable food systems we are realizing via the Foodnected Community of Practice is one of the solutions. Practicing an ethical code of environmental and social values, utilizing low-impact production systems, and reconnecting producers and consumers (by reducing the distance between them) helps disrupt the prevailing food market mechanisms. And indeed, a Community of Practices (CoP) connects small-scale food producers and consumers under shared values to facilitate the development of short-chain and sustainable food systems that work for nature and people, starting in the Mediterranean region.

The livestock sector is certainly one of the most important given its contribution to GHGs emissions as well as land and water use, worldwide. It is thus an obvious place to start.

On October 29, the solution was the promotion of beef production methods that focus on integrating cattle with a local mixed landscape, like the smallholder farms of Menorca’s Custòdia Agrària programme, part of the Foodnected programme. These farms take advantage of the heterogeneous landscape (combining arable land with areas of wild vegetation) for agricultural production. The cattle feed partly on wild pasture and walk among wooded areas. This allows for significant amounts of carbon dioxide to be captured. In addition, the type of management practiced does not exhaust biodiversity, but promotes it.

The Ecological Footprint is a tool used to measure how much nature we have, and how much nature we use. Food consumption across the globe contributes to about 26% of humanity’s Ecological Footprint. As they work with the local environment and apply beneficial management practices, eating fair and local meat produced in the farms of Custòdia Agrària would help reduce the Footprint of consuming beef by up to 64% compared to beef conventionally produced. Applied worldwide, the production methods of Custòdia Agrària would move the date of Earth Overshoot Day by 5 days.

Such practices foster local development in their territories with new models of governance that involve and hold all local stakeholders accountable with a community-based and participative approach. This encourages small-scale producers to become actors of change for the necessary transition to sustainable and fair food systems. Creativity and networking promote knowledge sharing, collective understanding, and mentorship needed to build a better future, leading to innovation, creativity and social entrepreneurship.

We can all do something to combat climate change and resource overuse, and ultimately postpone Earth Overshoot Day. We can start with becoming aware of our own environmental impact. Want to measure yours here?

Il progetto Foodnected inizia a condividere il suo approccio ai sistemi alimentari locali, equi e sostenibili.

Un progetto congiunto di Slow Food, Global Footprint Network, Low Impact Fishers of Europe (LIFE) e GOB Menorca, sostenuto dalla Fondazione MAVA, Foodnected ha presentato la sua struttura fondante: la Foodnected Community of Practice (CoP), un gruppo organizzato di piccoli produttori, consumatori e altri attori chiave del sistema alimentare, con opinioni condivise sulla sostenibilità.

Italia, 30 giugno 2021.

Durante il webinar Foodnected: l'importanza della comunità di pratica, organizzato il 30 giugno durante l'evento internazionale Slow Food 2021 Slow Fish, il Comunità di pratica Foodnected (CoP) è stato introdotto attraverso la presentazione dei suoi valori fondamentali e del suo scopo, della sua governance e della sua struttura di funzionamento. La discussione si è concentrata sulle relazioni sociali e sulle strutture che permettono alle persone di migliorare le competenze e di imparare dalle esperienze degli altri.

La CoP è composta da un insieme diversificato e completo di stakeholder (e le loro reti), compresi i consumatori, nelle catene del valore brevi. Il suo scopo è quello di generare e condividere esperienze e buone pratiche, di cercare soluzioni praticabili a sfide comuni, e di costruire sinergie che facilitino la transizione verso sistemi alimentari equi e sostenibili con una bassa impronta ecologica, a partire dalla regione del Mediterraneo.

In questo contesto, i membri della CoP concordano sul fatto che la sostenibilità comporta il riconoscimento della stretta interdipendenza dei diversi aspetti della produzione e del consumo di cibo: economico, ambientale e socio-culturale. Di conseguenza, ogni obiettivo deve essere fissato e perseguito come parte di una strategia che tenga conto di tutte le altre dimensioni.

Tutti i co-produttori

"Che i nostri stili di vita non siano più sostenibili è ormai un fatto assodato. Poiché tutti noi mangiamo, condividiamo la responsabilità di muoverci verso la sostenibilità: agricoltori, pescatori, trasformatori, politici e membri del pubblico possono tutti influenzare il sistema alimentare attraverso le decisioni che prendono. Ma questo senso di corresponsabilità manca negli attuali sistemi alimentari. Ciò è in parte dovuto al fatto che le politiche sono progettate attraverso un approccio dall'alto verso il basso. Inoltre, il sistema è davvero frammentato. Gli attuali sistemi alimentari tendono a separare gli agricoltori dai pescatori, dai casari, ecc. quando la realtà è che tutti sono interconnessi. Manca una visione olistica", ha detto Paula Barbeito, coordinatrice di Foodnected presso Slow Food.

Al fine di identificare i valori fondamentali della CoP, il team di Foodnected ha condotto una ricerca di esempi pertinenti di iniziative che supportano l'obiettivo di migliorare i sistemi alimentari a catena corta che lavorano sia per le persone che per il pianeta.

Dopo aver esaminato oltre 100 progetti provenienti da 15 paesi diversi e aver condotto workshop con le parti interessate, la definizione di Foodnected di sistemi alimentari equi e sostenibili è stata costruita intorno a cinque pilastri e dieci valori fondamentali.

Questi sistemi devono garantire:

- accesso a cibo di alta qualità nutrizionale

- un equo ritorno economico per i piccoli produttori

- sviluppo locale e riconoscimento delle donne e delle giovani generazioni

- rispetto della stagionalità e dell'interconnettività degli ecosistemi

- conservazione delle conoscenze tradizionali locali.

Oltre a plasmare la nostra cultura, il cibo è un aspetto fondamentale della sicurezza nutrizionale e rappresenta un'importante fonte di reddito e occupazione, sostenendo i mezzi di sussistenza in molte regioni. Tuttavia, fattori come l'intensificazione della produzione, la concentrazione del settore alimentare in poche mani, o la commercializzazione e distribuzione di un numero ridotto di varietà, hanno portato a una cattiva gestione delle risorse e a metodi di produzione dannosi per l'ambiente. Tutti questi aspetti influiscono sulla nostra salute e su quella degli ecosistemi e, allo stesso tempo, portano alla perdita delle conoscenze tradizionali e della resilienza delle comunità. I futuri sistemi alimentari devono incorporare relazioni sociali di produzione, commercio e modelli di consumo che forniscano diete sane e, in definitiva, determinino pratiche eque e sostenibili. Le comunità e le persone Foodnected si impegnano quindi a contribuire al cambiamento del sistema alimentare seguendo queste indicazioni valori fondamentali:

- Sovranità alimentare, qualità e salute

- Prezzo equo attraverso le filiere corte

- Assicurare la giustizia e l'equità

- Governance equa e inclusiva

- Maggiore trasparenza e responsabilità

- Creazione di posti di lavoro e sviluppo locale

- Agroecologia e pesca a basso impatto

- Onorare la natura

- Responsabilizzazione, creatività e collaborazione

- Supporto scientifico alle conoscenze ecologiche tradizionali (TEK)

Nei prossimi mesi, basandosi sui valori fondamentali e sulle discussioni costruttive con le parti interessate, il progetto fornirà delle linee guida per aiutare i produttori ad attuarle nei siti pilota (Minorca, Ibiza e Sicilia) e a monitorare i progressi. Il progetto offrirà anche una maggiore visibilità alle iniziative dei suoi membri, sosterrà la collaborazione tra i professionisti, e scalerà le esperienze tra gli attori della filiera corta per facilitare il trasferimento di conoscenze tra i professionisti.