SDG 2 - Food Citizenship

Food choices (By Artem Beliaikin on pexels.com)

Food is an essential element in the lives of all people. In addition to being essential for people's survival and health, food also has an economic dimension related to the investment on financial resources, as well as on time, that it is necessary to spend in the food production, distribution, purchase, preparation, consumption and disposal of waste food. All these activities imply decisions by individuals, families and private and public organizations.

Food citizenship is a concept that arises from the recognition that individuals in their food choices can be responsible to integrate principles related to human rights and environmental protection to ensure that all people have access to healthy and sustainable food. The decisions of each individual have an impact on the entire food chain, from food production to the way they are discarded. If our decisions integrate concerns about environmental protection and social justice, this can influence society and all agents that operate in the food system to be more conscious and responsible with their choices. An individual, as a consumer, has the power to exercise his citizenship action understanding the local and global impacts of his food consumption.

This session is divided in two sections. The first section aims to lead students to reflect on global issues related to hunger and nutrition through the analysis of some myths about this issue. The second part consists of a brainstorming session in which students are invited to reflect on their role in combating hunger and improving nutrition through their decisions as consumers and citizens.

Action Areas

Learning Objectives

Cognitive learning objectives:

The learner knows about hunger and malnutrition and their main physical and psychological effects on human life, and about specific vulnerable groups

Socio-emotional learning objectives:

The learner is able to communicate the issues and connections between combating hunger and promoting sustainable agriculture and improved nutrition
The learner is able to collaborate with others to encourage and to empower them to combat hunger and to promote sustainable agriculture and improved nutrition

Behavioural learning objectives:

The learner is able to take on critically their role as an active global citizen in the challenge of combating hunger
The learner is able to change their consumption practices in order to contribute to the combat against hunger and the promotion of sustainable agriculture

Competences

Normative competency
Strategic competency
Critical thinking competency

Instructions

Step 1) Introduction (10 minutes)

Start the session explaining the scope of the project or the educational process in question. The SDG 2 refers to hunger eradication – show the short video to introduce the SDG from resources section.

Sustainable development is not possible in a world where hunger still exists. What are the main challenges we face in relation to this SDG?

Step 2) World hunger museum (45 minutes)

Prepare the museum environment in the classroom and put the images of the 10 myths about world hunger on the walls of the room (Useful resources).
Introduce the 10 myths to students.
Explain that they can move around the room to read the myths and vote whether they think they are true or not.
At the end, make a round on the myths and tell how many students agree or disagree with that myth. Then asks students what they think and why they agree or disagree.
Explain the myth and if it corresponds to reality.

Step 3) Empowering solutions workgroup (45 minutes)

Ask students:
- Given this reality, do you think that we, as individuals, can play a role in fighting hunger and improving nutrition? How?
Make groups of 4/5 students. Brainstorm about:
- How can we make food choices which can contribute to reduce hunger and improve nutrition?

Present your findings in a fun and imaginative way to the rest of your group (e.g. through a song, poster, artwork or an engaging presentation).

Step 4) Debriefing and conclusion (10 minutes)

The session ends by explaining how individuals and families can exercise their citizenship through the food choices they make through some practical examples.

- CALL TO ACTION 1

Imagine that you were an important company working with advertisements - Where would you strategically put your banners and messages so that people could see them? According to the brainstorm you did during the class, pick one idea and make it happen! The message you want to share with the world is that we urgently need to end hunger and improve nutrition and we can have a role about that through our food choices. What eye-catching slogans or logos could you write or design? People see advertisements every day and read all kinds of messages without even realizing it; so think about ‘‘alternative’’ ways to communicate, too. For example, you could organize a flash-mob event in your city with the theme food citizenship. Watch an example here.

- CALL TO ACTION 2

As an alternative, learn about Fair Trade and how it is related to ending hunger. Next time you’re at the grocery store, look for Fair Trade labeled products. What kind of products are they? Where do they come from? Next, explain to your family and friends why Fair Trade helps against hunger. Ask your parents to show you their shopping list and rewrite it with them, replacing as many items as possible with Fair Trade alternatives.

In addition, you can conduct a survey about Fair Trade products with your workgroup. To decide what questions you should ask, think about what you want to find out. For example: how many of your friends/family know what Fair Trade is? Do they buy Fair Trade products? If yes, which ones? If not, why not? When you’ve collected all their answers, discuss your findings with your teacher and with your group. Based on this information, how best can you help promote Fair Trade products amongst those who you’ve surveyed? For example, how about organizing a ‘Fair Trade Food Fair’, where you sell food made with Fair Trade ingredients? Then, you can donate the profits to a charity fighting hunger.

Requirements

Resources

Click each section below to see all resources available.

Documents

Hunger Map 2020

Myths about Global Hunger

Videos

ODS 2 | Hambre cero

One Human Family, Food for All

Notes for Educators

Estimated Total Duration: 1 hour and 50 minutes + Call to Action

Preparation

Prepare the images with the myths based on the annex “Myths about Global Hunger”(resources section). In addiction, prepare a sheet where students / participants can vote on whether they think the myth is true or not.
Prepare a museum environment in the classroom or other space where the session will take place, with the images and objects about the myths.
In the museum you can add some images and objects related to the myths. You can also add the “Hunger Map 2020” (resources section) with the information about the prevalence of chronic hunger around the world.

Variations

As a shorter alternative to the museum you can show and discuss the video “One Human Family, Food for All” (resources section).

Further Information

Myths about Global Hunger

To support you in the explanation about the myths you can check the booklet “Myths about Global Hunger” (resources section).

Food Citizenship

Food citizenship comprises several aspects:

Being essential to people's survival and health, food is considered a fundamental human right.
The food system involves a complex supply chain ranging from small rural farmers, to large agrifood multinationals and retail chains with great power to influence prices and food distribution models. These inequalities of power can lead to situations of injustice, particularly in the setting of prices for small farmers if they are not properly protected.
The food sector is normally heavily regulated by the government, so there is a role that citizens can play in monitoring, defining and implementing public policies related to this sector.
The food supply chain typically has an international nature that goes beyond the borders of the national government. Thus, decisions by citizens / consumers have repercussions at a global level. These decisions may have implications for other populations, so issues such as social equity must be taken into account.
Given the environmental impact of agrifood systems and the food consumption model that generates high significant amounts of food waste, citizens must consider these challenges in order to promote greater sustainability of the system.
In view of the risks to human health involved in food production and distribution systems, greater transparency in this sector should be promoted, namely in terms of the information provided to consumers that would enable them to make more conscious food choices.

A food citizen is one who has an active interest in choosing their food, which in turn requires an effort to stay informed about what is sufficient and healthy food but also about the conditions in which food was produced and distributed throughout the food chain, namely on aspects such as social and environmental equity and animal welfare. For example, when chocolate is purchased from a multinational company, for example, Nestlé, some of the chocolate grains can be purchased in Africa under conditions of slavery and child labor. If the consumer is not informed about this fact, he will not be in a position to make a conscious decision while continuing to support companies that allow violations of human rights.

Sources

Stinson, E. (2010). Eating the world: Food literacy and its place in secondary school classrooms
Gómez-Benito, C., & Lozano, C. (2014). Constructing Food Citizenship: Theoretical Premises and Social Practices. Italian sociological review, 4(2)
https://foodcitizenship.info/
FAO (2013). Ending Hunger Challenge Badge
World Food Programme (2018). 10 Myths about…Global Hunger