People from research institutes, schools, local businesses and non-governmental organisations met up for a City Lab workshop on key trends and showcases in the food system at the Bulgarian Academy of Science on 3rd September 2018.
Following a discussion on the key trends that are influencing the food system (find more information on trends in the food system here), stakeholders explored showcases, by which the FIT4FOOD2030 project understands concrete initiatives, social movements, good practices, networks, projects, etc., that have positively affected the food system. Showcases have limited duration and limited impact, and some succeed, some fail. All of them are nonetheless inspiring examples from which others can learn.
While many cases gathered by project partners were up for discussion, some participants also proposed their own local or European examples of interesting cases. One of the teachers taking part in the workshop highlighted the importance of supporting seasonal foods by giving the example of an online blog while another chose the PROteINSECT project funded under the European Commission’s FP7 research and innovation programme to illustrate the importance of insect protein as animal feed for the future.
Sofia City Lab stakeholders are united in thinking that improving food literacy, especially among young students, is crucial for their city and country. Some participants hope for unified efforts towards this goal and transformative change in relation to food education.
Following the workshop, they remarked on the importance of presenting different initiatives that help our food systems become ready for the future, including those taking place currently in Bulgaria, in order to encourage creativity and entrepreneurship in young people. The project is very excited to see that inspiring examples will be chosen for inclusion in the educational modules that will be created by the City Lab in Sofia.
Interested in joining the discussion? Get in touch with the Center for Research and Analyses (CRA) via email (mailto: association.cra@gmail.com).