COP27 saw youth activists from around the world demand action on climate change, proclaiming “our futures are being stolen from us!”
On January 4th 2023, ORFC will open with the voices of global youth activists addressing the challenges of climate change, toxic contamination, and access to land. Hear directly from young people working to transform food and farming systems through agroecology in the following sessions:
Young Farmers and Food Systems’ Transformations: Struggles and opportunities towards a globalised youth response
Facilitated by La Via Campesina
Young farmers will be the food providers and ecosystems carers in the years to come. But their voices are under-represented in policy-making spaces, labour unions and social movements.
The current corporate-led digitalisation of our food systems is often justified as a way to make farming attractive to young people as we face a gradual loss of family farmers and abandonment of rural areas around the globe. But is this what young farmers need and want?
Hear from young family farmers from France, Canada, Haiti, Pakistan, and the US talking about their struggles, wishes and ideas for a just transformation of our food system for all those who will bear the effects of unfair decisions being made by adults today.
Sharing Youth Experiences in Practising Agroecology for Climate Adaptation in Africa
Facilitated by the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa
Africa has the youngest population in the world, with 70% of sub-Saharan Africa under the age of 30. This is a force to be reckoned with in facing the food and climate crisis the continent currently faces.
As agribusinesses push for climate-smart agriculture in order to sell more of their chemicals and seeds, young Africans are becoming conscious of the need to reverse what is happening to their continent, and are coming together to learn about agroecology as an alternative to chemically-charged food production systems.
Hear from three young farming, climate, and community activists from Kenya & Uganda as they share their experiences of practising agroecology.
Future in the Hands of Young People: Moving from pesticides to agroecology in Asia
Facilitated by Pesticide Action Network Asia Pacific
Around 108 million children around the world are engaged in agricultural work which exposes them to toxic chemicals. Early-life exposure can damage the developing brain and body and lead to a range of diseases and disorders. Public health experts now consider pesticides to be causing a silent pandemic through their neurodevelopmental impacts and adverse effects on the health and intelligence of children.
In this session, we will hear from a young farmer from an indigenous community in Kerala, India and from a teenager from Pakistan who is studying and teaching agroecology, health and nutrition alongside helping on her family farm. It will share the work of organisations in India, Pakistan and Malaysia on how they promote agroecology as an alternative to agricultural chemicals.
Intergenerational Story Sharing for Building a Youth-Led Agroecology Movement
Facilitated by FLAME, the youth branch of The Landworkers’ Alliance
Flame invites you to an intergenerational session to listen and share stories on building a youth-led movement for agroecology. How can we increase awareness of agroecology and food justice in generations facing a widening disconnect from the land? What techniques can young people learn from older generations, & what can young people teach them?