This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Global Alliance for the Future of Food. In our new podcast mini-series, 10 Minutes for 10 Years: Conversations About the Future of Food, we invited our members to speak with their partners around the world. The result? A unique tapestry of perspectives about food systems today and in the future.

Food systems transformation requires new and better solutions at all scales through a systems-level approach and deep collaboration among philanthropy, researchers, grassroots movements, the private sector, farmers and food systems workers, Indigenous Peoples, government, and policymakers. In this final episode, Ruth Richardson, outgoing Executive Director of the Global Alliance for the Future of Food, speaks with Michael Quinn Patton, Strategic Evaluation Advisor to the Global Alliance. Together they reflect on the need for transformation, the value of hope and inspiration, and all that has happened during 10 years of transforming food systems.

Global food production relies on unsustainably produced fertilizers that deplete organic nutrients in the soil. In addition, human waste and fertilizer runoff cause harmful algal blooms and pose other health risks.

This episode features Dr. Charles Midega and Dr. Rebecca Nelson, principal investigators on a recently-funded project from the McKnight Foundation: "Building the Circular Bionutrient Economy to Enhance Systems Health in Africa’s Lake Victoria Basin." Dr. Midega discusses his focus on the black soldier fly as a way to process organic residue transformation into animal feed. Dr. Nelson, meanwhile, explores the benefits of transforming human excrement into useful and safe soil supplements for agriculture. Together, they explore food security, soil health, sanitation practices, and concerns around reusing human waste.

Deploying “reparative capital” can help to preserve and increase the diversity of America’s farmers, ranchers and agricultural managers. Discussing this integrated capital approach is the theme of this conversation between Rex Raimond, Director of the Transformational Investing in Food Systems Initiative, and Lolita Nunn, Director of Program and Investor Relations at Potlikker Capital.

In this episode, Porticus Programme Manager, Camila Jericó Daminello speaks with Gaston Kremer, the Programme Manager for World-Transforming Technologies (WTT) discuss the legacies of the Green Revolution in Brazil, and how diverse forms of evidence, knowledge, and expertise, including lived experience and traditional knowledge, need to be treated equally and centred in efforts to transform food systems. The roots of agroecology, regenerative approaches, and Indigenous foodways represent a continuous source of knowledge that can inform a repaired relationship between people and nature.

Marie-Christine Cormier-Salem, Director of Agropolis Foundation and a researcher in social sciences, Frédérique Jankowski, a researcher in social anthropology at The French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD), and Adeline Barnaud, a researcher in plant genetics at the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD) discuss the benefits of interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaboration. Together, they advocate for inclusiveness and equity, convening a plurality of knowledge and voices, and involving local communities as essential principles to promote sustainable and fair food systems.

Traditional soil management systems based on shifting agriculture are no longer viable due to land pressure. In this episode, we hear from Dr. Wezi Mhango, Principal Investigator with the "Legume Best Bets" project funded by the McKnight Foundation. Joining her is Dr. Frank Tchuwa, a collaborator on that project who focuses on the Farmer Research Network approach to extension. They discuss the importance of integrating legumes in maize-based farming systems and how to promote sustainable farming and soil management through the planting of diversified crop species.

Responding to today’s food and climate crises means taking an integrated approach to action that supports human health, environmental sustainability, food security, livelihood security, and more. Sara Farley, Vice President, Food Initiative at The Rockefeller Foundation, speaks with Dr. Fabrice DeClerck, Science Director at EAT Forum for this episode.