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The RUAF Update is the newsletter from the RUAF Foundation. You can contact us for more information at [email protected].
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RUAF Update | December 2015
News The year 2015 was an important year of pledges towards more sustainable urban food systems. In April this year almost 100 cities signed the ICLEI World Congress Seoul Declaration, calling for resilient city region food systems. On 15 October, 115 cities signed the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact. The Pact consists of a series of tangible commitments for sustainable urban food policies. Signatory Mayors from cities in the Global North and South pledge to develop actions and strategies to improve their urban food system. The text of the Pact and the framework for action are available in ENG, IT, FR, SP, Dutch, Russian and Arabic. The Pact was developed in a participatory process with a large number of the signatory cities, with support of the city of Milan and a Technical Team, including staff of the RUAF Foundation.
We hope that 2016 will see the actual follow up and implementation of urban food policies, projects and programmes in the signatory and other cities. We will update you in our RUAF Update newsletter on such efforts taken in cities that RUAF is connected with, starting with Windhoek (Namibia) below. May such action contribute to improving the food sovereignty and livelihoods of urban dwellers around the world.
The RUAF staff wishes all its partners and readers a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
RUAF Update no.26
December 2015
In this update:Ongoing activities• City of Windhoek promotes urban agriculture• City region food system assessment started in 7 cities• Workshop on safe and productive use of wastes for urban and peri-urban agriculture in Kenya• Value chain development and policy review for local agriculture in Gaza• Developing a city strategic agenda for the Tamale Metropolis• Third project meeting URBAN GREEN TRAIN in Rotterdam
Publications• Cities and Agriculture• Improving urban diets in an increasingly urban world• Innovations in (urban) agriculture in Africa• Milan UFPP. Good practices from cities• Urban Agriculture Magazine 31
Events• 2nd International conference on
agriculture in an urbanising society• Climate change urban food webinars• First international forum on public
policies for food and nutrition security in Medellín
• UCLG-MEWA Executive Bureau and Council Joint Meeting, Committee on Environment Meeting, and Sustainable Cities Forum, Malatya, Turkey
• ICLEI Resilient Cities Bonn 2016
Image: Arthur Getz
Image: foodpolicymilano.org
RUAF Update | December 2015
Namibia: City of Windhoek promotes urban agricultureThe city of Windhoek (Namibia) is one of the signatories of the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact. In 2014, the Windhoek Declaration on Food and Nutrition Security was signed by 51 Local Authority Representatives, recommending the establishment of food banks; the promotion of urban and peri-urban agriculture and the reduction of food loss and food waste (read more).
In November 2015, RUAF was supported by the World Future Council (WFC) to implement a review of national and local policies and strategies impacting on urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) and present the results in a 6-7 December workshop in Windhoek. There is high interest among local authorities to include UPA in their development. And although activities have started in Windhoek, and other towns in Namibia, the policy review showed key issues and further opportunities (for instance related to decentralisation and on the key issue: water). The policy review document will be posted on the RUAF website in January. After the workshop, the city of Windhoek, WFC and RUAF, supported by UNDP agreed to further facilitate a multi-stakeholder process for urban agriculture action planning and implementation in 2016. We will keep you posted on the developments.
For further information: Marielle Dubbeling at [email protected] (for the policy review) and René van Veenhuizen [email protected] or Lorena Fischer / World Future Council [email protected] for more information on the workshop.
City region food system assessment started in 7 citiesRUAF, FAO and local partners have started the city region food system assessment in Quito (Ecuador); Toronto (Canada); Utrecht (The Netherlands); Medellin (Colombia); Lusaka and Kitwe (Zambia) and Colombo (Sri Lanka). A participatory and multi-stakeholder approach was developed, starting from a more global assessment to the identification and in-depth assessment of relevant key issues and followed by strategy planning. In November, RUAF and FAO, participated as key speakers in the first International Forum on Public Policies for Food and Nutrition Security organised by the Municipality of Medellín, the regional government of Antioquia and the University of Antioquia. Henk Renting from RUAF also contributed to a panel discussion on urban agriculture experiences, in which also municipal projects in Quito, Ecuador (AGRUPAR) and in Rosario, Argentina (PAU) were presented as examples for further strengthening urban agriculture within food security policies in Medellín. Specific inputs were provided to the new 12-year Municipal Food and Nutrition Security Plan (2016-2028) and the identification of relevant monitoring indicators.
A full city region food system monitoring framework is currently under development by RUAF and FAO to guide processes in all project partner cities. More information can be found on the RUAF and FAO website. For further information, please contact: Henk Renting at [email protected].
Ongoing activitiesWorkshop on safe and productive use of wastes for urban and peri-urban agriculture in Kenya17th and 18th September 2015, Nakuru
Under the WASH Alliance International programme in Kenya, RUAF, together with WASTE and Practical Action (PAK) has organised on request by the Municipality, a workshop to assist Nakuru in review of their current practices and policy linkages between WASH and UPA. The main aim was to develop a policy framework -the Nakuru County Strategic Agenda on UPA- and to develop a road map for implementation, monitoring, adaption and innovation of this Strategic Agenda. The workshop counted with participation of various Ministries, Nakuru City authorities and farmers, and the Nakuru County Sanitation Programme. The draft Nakuru County Strategic Agenda on UPA will be shared early 2016 on the RUAF website. More information: René van Veenhuizen: [email protected].
Image: FAO
RUAF Update | December 2015
the three-day meeting in Rotterdam, the group also visited Rotterzwam who produce oyster mushrooms on coffee grounds in a former tropical swimming pool and had dinner at Hotspot Hutspot, a social restaurant run by neighbourhood children under guidance of a professional chef.
A database of urban agriculture enterprises is under development where key activities, relevant dimensions and business model strategies of urban agriculture enterprises, including Uit Je Eigen Stad and Rotterzwam, will be described. The first few cases can be found on the URBAN GREEN TRAIN website. For more information contact: Femke Hoekstra [email protected].
Value chain development and policy review for local agriculture for a local market in GazaThe Gaza wide Urban and Peri-urban Agriculture Project Platform (GUPAP Platform) aims to enhance coordination, networking and linkages between key policy and institutional actors in the Gaza Strip. Policy review and formulation were identified in 2013 as one of the areas of intervention (mandate) of the GUPAP. In May-June 2015 a policy review and analysis of main Gaza and Palestinian plans and strategies bearing on market oriented urban and peri-urban agriculture was implemented, with support from RUAF. In September, 2015 a Plan of action for lobbying and advocacy for agricultural policies was developed covering the period August/Sept 2015 to June 2016. Specifically, support will be provided to the development of the upcoming three-year mid-term plan 2016-2018 of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of National Economy Consumer Protection Department 3 years plan in the coming year. For more information: [email protected] or Ahmed Sourani at [email protected].
Parallel to such processes of policy review and formulation, local value chain actors are supported to improve the date and fodder/dairy value chain. In October, Memoranda of Understanding have been signed with processing units for improvement of (solar based) cold storage, product quality and diversification. At the same time, a group of local trainers and extensionists is being trained by RUAF in Participatory Technology Development and will set up farmer experiments in the coming months with support from the local Oxfam Italy staff team. For more information: [email protected] and Irene Kruizinga at [email protected].
Third project meeting URBAN GREEN TRAIN in RotterdamProject partners met for their third project meeting at Uit Je Eigen Stad, one of the biggest urban farms of the Netherlands located in Rotterdam. The group discussed the results of an assessment of the state of the art of urban agriculture entrepreneurship and urban agriculture entrepreneurial education and training needs analysis of various stakeholders in the Netherlands, Germany, France and Italy. The results will soon be shared online. Furthermore we have defined the module structure for a blended international training course to equip SMEs, students, academics, NGOs and public authorities with the competences needed for the creation of new business-oriented initiatives in urban agriculture.
The URBAN GREEN TRAIN pilot course is intended to start in summer 2016 and will last 150h combining e-learning, face–to-face and practical activities. During
Image: Hotspot Hutspot
Image: Cases from the URBAN GREEN TRAIN UA enterprises inventory
RUAF Update | December 2015
PublicationsCities and Agriculture: Developing Resilient Urban Food SystemsEdited by Henk de Zeeuw (RUAF Foundation) and Pay Drechsel (International Water Management Institute) and published in September 2015 by Earthscan-Routledge London and New York.The book provides urban planners, local policy makers and urban development practitioners with an overview of crucial aspects of urban food systems based on an up to date review of research results and practical experiences in both developed and developing countries. By doing so, the international team of authors provides a balanced textbook for students of the growing number of courses on sustainable agriculture, food and urban studies, as well as a solid basis for well-informed policy making, planning and implementation regarding the development of sustainable, resilient and just urban food systems.
"I can only congratulate the many scientists and practitioners for their valuable contributions to this important publication and very much hope it will find its way to national and local policy-makers, urban planners, academia, non-governmental groups, producers and consumers organisations, private sector companies and others that can make a contribution to building more resilient food systems through concerted and far-sighted action at the level of the city region." - HRH the Prince of Wales
Order here with a 20% discount with discount code FLR40
Innovations in (urban) Agriculture in AfricaThe SEED Foundation awarded its prices for best innovation practices in Africa in November in a ceremony in Paris. RUAF supported the SEED Foundation in highlighting innovations in urban agriculture.
Milan urban food policy pact. Good practices from citiesThis e-publication collects 49 good practices from Milan Urban Food Policy Pact signatory cities that already demonstrate actions, policies and results in various fields such as food waste reduction and reuse, urban and peri-urban agriculture, improved governance and sustainable diets. The booklet can be downloaded here.
Improving urban diets in an increasingly urban worldBlog by Marielle Dubbeling for the World Cancer Research Fund International
Developing a City Strategic Agenda for the Tamale Metropolis29 October, 2015
As part of the Ghana WASH Alliance and UrbanFood+ programmes, URBANET, UDS and RUAF, organised a series of multiple stakeholder consultative meetings on Urban and Peri-urban Agriculture (UPA) in Tamale, Ghana, aimed at promoting UPA in the Metropolis and making linkages between WASH and Food Security Sectors. In March 2015 a Policy Narrative on UPA had been developed (see link). In the October workshop a corresponding City Strategic Agenda on UPA for the Tamale Metropolis was developed by the 39 participants, including the Metropolitan Assembly, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (Tamale Metropolis and Regional MoFA-Northern Region), Department of Town and Country Planning, Environmental Protection Agency, Representatives of Farmer Associations, Traditional authorities, NGOs, UDS, URBANET, and Consumer Associations.This agenda includes suggestions for the allocation of land, but also activities related to water, business support, and institutional development. URBANET and RUAF will further support the development and official agreement in March 2016. More information: René van Veenhuizen: [email protected].
Image: blog.wcrf.org
RUAF Update | December 2015
Urban Agriculture Magazine 31Community involvement in urban planning and policy influencingThis upcoming issue of the UA Magazine (expected June 2016) will focus on various planning and policy practices of urban food planning. Thus far policy and planning discourses on urban food systems/agriculture have been mainly dominated by governmental, technical or academic approaches, and civil society perspectives are insufficiently taken on board. A better understanding of how civil society movements and initiatives are already defining and shaping best urban practices is needed: how are communities getting access to land and preserving public green spaces, creating social economies, engaging in spatial planning and limiting climate change impacts? The magazine will feature articles on the productive use of different types of areas and spaces; planning instruments and multi-stakeholder planning processes. This issue is made possible by funding from the EFL Stichting, a foundation that manages the spiritual and intellectual legacy of the architect – urban planner prof. C. Eesteren and of his colleague and sympathiser urban planner prof.ir. Th.K. van Lohuizen.
Past eventsSecond International Conference on Agriculture in an Urbanising Society At this conference (14-17 Sept, Rome), FAO-FCIT, jointly with the RUAF Foundation, organised a working group session - Conceptualising and Assessing City Region Food Systems. Please find a short report here.
Climate change urban food webinarsThe Fondation Nicolas Hulot (FNH), the International Urban Food Network (IUFN) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) have launched the CLIMATE CHANGE URBAN FOOD Initiative. This initiative showcases successful mechanisms and approaches to help respond to the challenges of achieving sustainable urban food systems in a changing climate. 4 webinars have been organised (2 in English, 2 in French) featuring international experts and practitioners discussing keys of implementing synergies between climate and food action at local level. Marielle Dubbeling, RUAF Director, spoke at the 10 November webinar. Find here a link to the recordings. Learn more on RUAF’s work in the field of urban agriculture and climate change.
Image: LA DOT/Flickr via sustainablecitiescollective.com
RUAF Foundation is a global centre of expertise in the field of urban and peri-urban agriculture and food systems. Since 1999, RUAF has supported local and sub-national governments, urban producer organisations, NGOs, CBOs, research centres and other stakeholders with training, technical assistance, action-research and policy advice in various related areas. RUAF is a not-for-profit organisation registered in the Netherlands. For more information: www.ruaf.org
The RUAF Update is the newsletter from RUAF Foundation. To subscribe: [email protected], to unsubscribe: [email protected]. You can contact us for more information at [email protected].
First international forum on public policies for food and nutrition security in MedellínRUAF participated in the first International Forum on Public Policies for Food and Nutrition Security (3 Nov) organised by the Municipality of Medellín, the regional government of Antioquia and the University of Antioquia. At the forum several important achievements and proposals for food security policies were presented, including the main lines of a new 12-year Municipal Food and Nutrition Security Plan (2016-2028). Henk Renting presented the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact, of which Medellín is one of the initiating and signatory cities. Guido Santini (FAO Food-for-the-Cities) presented the research project on City Region Food Cities assessment which is jointly implemented with RUAF and for which Medellín is one of the case studies. In the afternoon Henk Renting contributed to a panel discussion on Urban agriculture experiences, in which also municipal projects in Quito, Ecuador (AGRUPAR) and in Rosario, Argentina (PAU) were highlighted as examples for further strengthening urban agriculture within food security policies in Medellín.
UCLG-MEWA Executive Bureau and Council Joint Meeting, Committee on Environment Meeting, and Sustainable Cities Forum, Malatya, TurkeyRUAF was invited by UCLG (United Cities and Local Governments) MEWA (Middle East and West Africa) Office to give a key note on Growing Greener Cities and urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) at the Sustainable Cities Forum (13-14 Nov), and participate in its Executive Bureau and Council Joint Meeting on Environment. Many city members of UCLG participated in these sessions and the Forum, in which the role of cities in building resilience in relation to waste management, climate change adaptation and urban and peri-urban agriculture were discussed. The Environment Committee and the Forum resulted in the Malatya declaration, which includes a section on UPA, and is available at the RUAF and UCLG websites.
Upcoming eventsICLEI Resilient Cities 6-8 July Bonn 2016The ICLEI Resilient Cities 2015 report on global developments in urban adaptation and resilience is now available and includes a special section on the Urban Food Forum that was co-organised in partnership with the EU SUPURBFOOD programme and RUAF Foundation. See the congress proceedings here.
The ICLEI Resilient Cities 2016 will be held July 6-8, 2016 in Bonn Germany. RUAF is an endorsing partner to the conference. Interested organisations can submit a proposal for contribution (see submit a proposal) until January 8, 2016. Resilient Cities 2016 will include a focus on:
• Inclusive and Resilient Urban Development (also discussing the informal sector economy in urban food systems);
• Financing Urban Resilience - with a special forum for the second consecutive year; and
• Implementing Global Frameworks - providing an international platform for the first annual review of local progress on the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and the urban resilience targets of the Sustainable Development Goals, as well as an opportunity to reflect on outcomes of the Paris Climate Conference (COP21) and preparations for Habitat III, the UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development 2016.
For more information: [email protected].
Image: UCLG-MEWA/Flickr
Image: Rotterdamse Munt
