Building a transformative initiative for a territorialized agri-food system: constructing a living-lab and confronting norms? A case study from Mirecourt (Vosges, France)

Author(s):  
R. Fèche ◽  
C. Noûs ◽  
F. Barataud
Keyword(s):  
Author(s):  
Lori Stahlbrand

This paper traces the partnership between the University of Toronto and the non-profit Local Food Plus (LFP) to bring local sustainable food to its St. George campus. At its launch, the partnership represented the largest purchase of local sustainable food at a Canadian university, as well as LFP’s first foray into supporting institutional procurement of local sustainable food. LFP was founded in 2005 with a vision to foster sustainable local food economies. To this end, LFP developed a certification system and a marketing program that matched certified farmers and processors to buyers. LFP emphasized large-scale purchases by public institutions. Using information from in-depth semi-structured key informant interviews, this paper argues that the LFP project was a disruptive innovation that posed a challenge to many dimensions of the established food system. The LFP case study reveals structural obstacles to operationalizing a local and sustainable food system. These include a lack of mid-sized infrastructure serving local farmers, the domination of a rebate system of purchasing controlled by an oligopolistic foodservice sector, and embedded government support of export agriculture. This case study is an example of praxis, as the author was the founder of LFP, as well as an academic researcher and analyst.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6879
Author(s):  
Hassan P. Ebrahimi ◽  
R. Sandra Schillo ◽  
Kelly Bronson

This study provides a model that supports systematic stakeholder inclusion in agricultural technology. Building on the Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) literature and attempting to add precision to the conversation around inclusion in technology design and governance, this study develops a framework for determining which stakeholder groups to engage in RRI processes. We developed the model using a specific industry case study: identifying the relevant stakeholders in the Canadian digital agriculture ecosystem. The study uses literature and news article analysis to map stakeholders in the Canadian digital agricultural sector as a test case for the model. The study proposes a systematic framework which categorises stakeholders into individuals, industrial and societal groups with both direct engagement and supportive roles in digital agriculture. These groups are then plotted against three levels of impact or power in the agri-food system: micro, meso and macro.


2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (1_suppl) ◽  
pp. 63S-69S
Author(s):  
Catherine Sands ◽  
Neftali Duran ◽  
Laura Christoph ◽  
Carol Stewart

In the Holyoke Food & Fitness Policy Council (HFFPC) case study, the challenges of providing equitable multistakeholder organizing are examined. The importance of housing the work in the community, power sharing, and having community representation in the leadership is made clear. The HFFPC partnership began with vigor, encountered challenges of trust, transparency, aligned goals and values; it dissolved, and reformed. Because it began with shared values of strong communities and healthy people, the partnership continues to evolve, build local leadership, change narratives, and articulate the need for racial equity in their food system, while shifting local systems and policies that frame who has access to healthy food and safe spaces to exercise in a low-income Latino community.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 7667
Author(s):  
Lusine H. Aramyan ◽  
Gonne Beekman ◽  
Joris Galama ◽  
Sandra van der Haar ◽  
Maarten Visscher ◽  
...  

For a transition to a circular economy to take place, behavioural change from people who are part of the transition is a key requirement. However, this change often does not occur by itself. For systemic behavioural change, policy instruments that incentivise behaviour supporting circular food systems play a key role. These instruments need to be aligned with the environment in which the behaviour takes place. In this study, we scrutinise a case study with five initiatives on the reduction of food loss and waste (FLW) contributing to a circular food system, to understand how specific, well-targeted combinations of instruments as well as other contextual and personal factors can fuel the transition to a circular economy and the reduction of FLW. All the initiatives are taking place under the umbrella of the Dutch initiative “United against food waste” (STV). We use a behavioural change perspective to assess how initiatives that support circular food systems arise and how they can be further supported. Based on the case-study analysis, we arrive at five common success traits and barriers, and five key needs for upscaling. We conclude that motivated, inspiring frontrunners are of key importance in the initial phase of a transition process. However, once a niche initiative is ready to be scaled up, the enabling environment becomes increasingly important.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 4434
Author(s):  
Frazen Tolentino-Zondervan ◽  
Enide Bogers ◽  
Luc van de Sande

Stakeholders play vital roles in the implementation of sustainable last mile logistics solutions. Therefore, the first step in setting up successful sustainable last mile logistics is to conduct stakeholder analysis. This paper analyzes the goals of the stakeholders in the Heijendaal living lab, a city logistics project that uses two hubs for bundling goods to be delivered to the Heijendaal campus in The Netherlands. We use the Theory of Planned Behavior and Policy Deployment to present a qualitative case study, which examines the goals of stakeholders in relation to their roles in the supply chain and in the organization, and if these goals lead to their expected participation behavior. Results show that stakeholders have economic, social, and environmental goals and that some of these goals are prominent within certain groups of stakeholders along the supply chain and within the organization. In addition, the set goals do not always lead to participation behavior of stakeholders due to identified disruptions and habits. This study identifies the importance of information sharing and collaboration within the supply chain, the leading role of middle-level managers in translating strategic to operational goals, and the stimulation of behavioral factors to increase participation of stakeholders in the living lab.


Author(s):  
J. Robin Moon ◽  
Craig Willingham ◽  
Shqipe Gjevukaj ◽  
Nicholas Freudenberg

New York City was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the immediate health burden was devastating, we posit that its long-term impact will be even greater, because the rapid spread of COVID-19 both depended on and exacerbated other deep-seated inequities related to food and broader living conditions. Using the Bronx as a case study, we explore the intersection of the pandemic with two other persistent problems: food insecurity and diet-related diseases, a constellation we label the COVID-Food Syndemic. Syndemic theory focuses on the common causes and biological and social interactions between two or more health problems. We hypothesize that with its focus on the common social causes of ill health, this approach can inform and strengthen the synergies between community-based, activist-driven solutions and municipal government responses, thus reducing the burden of ill health in the Bronx. We suggest that combining these two approaches can more fully mobilize the social changes that are needed in the food system and beyond to interrupt the fundamental drivers of this syndemic and capitalize on the respective strengths of government, civil society, and activists.


Author(s):  
Krishana Persaud

The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights identifies freedom from hunger and malnutrition as a fundamental human right of every individual. The current global food crisis undermines this right and has multi‐faceted repercussions for poverty reduction and sustainable development in the Global South. A plethora of explanations have been proposed regarding the causes of the current food crisis, while a biotechnological solution involving the expansion of Genetically Modified (GM) seeds in the Global South has gained renewed momentum and simultaneously increased resistance. This presentation will provide a nuanced understanding of the promotion of IPRs and biotechnological ‘inventions’ as contemporary facets of a hegemonic modernization discourse of development. By first critically examining the development of IPRs and their relation to biotechnology I provide a basis for understanding the internal contradictions of this technologically reductionist discourse. Using a detailed case study from India, I then illustrate the way in which the internal contradictions of this discourse result in particular forms of resistance which significantly challenge the structure of the global food system.


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