How do community initiatives contribute to sustainable food systems?

Ciska Ulug researched community initiatives that contribute to more sustainable food systems. These initiatives seek an alternative to the global and industrial food system that has destructive effects on the environment, public health and local communities. They consist of self-governing communities that address food sustainability issues in their immediate environment. Ulug studied three bottom-up initiatives in the Netherlands and the United States with the central question: how do citizens' initiatives contribute to more sustainable food systems?

She concludes that experimental governance mechanisms open a perspective for a more democratic and participatory way of working. To properly understand how these communities can exist and grow, the concept of 'place' is indispensable, Ulug argues. This concept includes both material and non-material resources, networks and knowledge. Finally, Ulug notes that food citizenship initiatives signal a major shift in the sustainability debate, recognising the power of collective action for a more sustainable world.

Read the full thesis ‘Planting possibilities’
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