Philanthropic organizations are increasingly investing in systemic food and agriculture solutions, says Anna Lappé, Executive Director for the Global Alliance for the Future of Food. By leveraging their influence, the Global Alliance is working to close the gap in funding that is needed to drive the positive transformation of food systems.
“It is possible to produce food in a way that’s good for our bodies, that doesn’t destroy the planet, that doesn’t contribute to the climate crisis,” Lappé tells Food Tank. “Those are possible pathways that we’re able to scale if we invest in them and support their growth around the world.”
The Global Alliance has worked to unite foundations to leverage resources and networks in a way that promotes more regenerative and equitable food and agriculture systems.
According to the organization, just 3 percent of climate finance goes toward food systems even though the sector contributes to roughly one third of greenhouse gas emissions globally.
“There’s a huge funding gap,” Lappé says. She believes that a lack of understanding of the “systemic nature of food and hunger issues” is partly to blame.
“There’s a significant amount of philanthropic dollars going to what I would just call charity…going to put a bandaid on the problem,” Lappé continues. And while she acknowledges that there is a need to address acute hunger, it is critical to ensure that funders are also investing in the root causes of these issues.
“If we really want to get to the roots of hunger, we need to look at who has power, who’s making decisions about how we grow our food, where we grow our food, what kind of food we’re growing, what we’re all eating, what we’re being taught is healthy,” Lappé tells Food Tank.
When the Global Alliance first formed in 2012, “we started with just a handful of foundations that were working, totally separate from each other but funding some aspect of food systems change,” Lappé says. “Some weren’t even using the term food systems.” But these organizations came together, she explains, because they realized that they could be more effective if they worked collaboratively.
Since then, the alliance of foundations has not only continued to grow; members are also increasingly taking a systemic approach to food systems. Philanthropic organizations recognize the connection between food, farming, climate, and biodiversity, Lappé says, and they are bringing this approach to leaders at events such as the U.N. Climate Change Conference.
“We are talking about food and climate at the highest level, and I would say that is not only true in philanthropy but true in civil society as well. And that is a really exciting change.”
Listen to the full conversation with Anna Lappé on “Food Talk with Dani Nierenberg” to hear about the link between the food system and fossil fuel industry, the principles that guide the Global Alliance’s work, and the success stories that the organization is lifting up and amplifying.
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Photo courtesy of Hari Gaddigopula, Unsplash
