Food 4 Thought Recap
A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to attend Food 4 Thought 2024, the first-of-its-kind international future food conference. Plant Futures partnered with our Harvard chapter leaders to support this event for students, with a focus on strengthening connectivity across multiple universities and providing hand-ons, student-led workshops to visualize and design sustainable food system transformation. The festival took place at Harvard University, and I’m excited to share my experience with you:
Day One ↓ | Day Two → | Day Three →
Food 4 Thought: Day One
“A problem well defined is half solved”
- Todd Boyman
There was excitement in the air as Adam, Navin, Olivia, and Shawn rose to the podium to welcome researchers, faculty, food systems professionals, and students across the nation and globe. From the start, it was clear how amazing this event was going to be. Awaiting us would be robust career-focused panels, an exciting research/pitch competition, and strong community-building.
The keynotes were just as impressive, as Dr. David Kaplan of Tufts University stressed the importance of striving to focus on deep work and innovation even in the face of misunderstanding and misdirection from the status quo. Following Dr. Kaplan, Dr. Sparsha Saha helped spotlight the rise of youth leaders in transforming our food systems. “The coalition might be more important than the message” stood out as an important piece of advice as there is that we must utilize food systems transformation to break down growing divisiveness and include a diverse range of actors that will drive faster charge. The opening remarks helped show there is a dire need for collective creativity and connection in this work, and that students are primed for this change.
Building off the emphasis on expanding the conversation and lens of food systems work, the Agricultural Justice panel helped steer the critical need to better engage with farm workers on the frontlines and to better examine policies, procurement strategies, and design to center equity and to truly honor these realities. From heat-related work issues for Florida workers, children working in slaughterhouses, and providing a living wage for farm workers, this arena must be emphasized just as much if not arguably more than nutrition and environmental impacts.
From this contextual framing, the day continued and concluded with panels and a networking session focused on all the different career pathways students can pursue in food systems work. Top entrepreneurs, policy leaders, and researchers helped advance the keynotes message that we need all hands on deck and that transforming the food system is one of the most pressing issues for this generation to engage with. Beyond the panels it was amazing to have leaders from over nine Plant Futures chapters connect in person and strengthen community over food.
