Food Security - feeding on good ideas

Next Friday sees the launch of a new combined research project that's been exciting us here for some time. The project's start was at the Hay on Earth food workshop in May last year, when we brought together aronud 65 leading food thinkers to consider the practical challenges of moving towards food sustainability and security at a national level.

Largely as a result of synchronicity and serendipity, one of the attendees was Dr John Fagan, who was in the process of setting up EOS - the Earth Open Source Institute. The Do Programme, borne out of the Do Lectures, was already running as a six month action learning project to investigate and develop new ways of teaching sustainability in workplaces and schools, so it was a natural extension that the idea of launching a more detailed food security project came about. We're lucky to have three enthusiastic researchers from Quebec, Chile and Wales embarking on the journey with us, supported by a great 'mastermind' group including all those you'd want - policy makers to practitioners.

Our goal is to map out the objectives needed for Wales to be self sufficient in food essentials within 20 years. If you've got an interest in sustainable food production, processing, marketing or management and would like to join in the fun, drop us a line, and help develop the project ready to for Hay in 5 months' time.