From Policy to Action -

Routes to Justice

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Throughout the previous months Europe was not only dealing with the effects of Corona but also taking action to ensure that the issues which have influenced this current crisis are addressed. However, many of these actions have not been able to garner the media attention they deserve. In the name of food autonomy, climate, and social justice we have all realized that there is much work to be done! We hope to update you a bit on what's been going on with some of these issues.

We also wanted to encourage everyone to read our in-depth article about Food Security vs Food Sovereignty using the Lutkemeeerpolder as an example and let everyone know that October is the time to get involved in the Good Food Good Farming actions to influence the negotiations of the Common Agricultural Policies. Now is the moment to prevent the politicians from wasting another decade! Europe's food policies need to be stirred up.

We hope you enjoy our Autumn Newsletter!
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Food Autonomy is Possible

"Food [Autonomy] is not a simple set of technical solutions or a formula which can be applied – it is instead a ‘process in action’ – an invitation to citizens to exercise our capacity to organize ourselves and improve our conditions and societies together."

La Via Campesina

With a globally rising urban population, how to provide food for cities has become of increasing concern. The question of how to feed a larger amount of people, however, often leads to technocratic solutions that speak the language of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Food Security Discourse and is most often answered by large-scale, fossil-fueled food production systems. The industrial food system has enabled and been enabled by, the progression of capitalism, and a rural/urban dichotomy of food production has emerged. This means that cities like Amsterdam cannot provide food for themselves, but rely heavily on rural areas for their food supplies. The COVID-19 pandemic can also be connected to industrial agriculture, which you can read more about here.
The absurdity of this becomes especially clear when looking at the case of the Lutkemeerpolder and the Boterbloemfarm. Being one of the last fertile, organically certified soils in Amsterdam their existence is being threatened by the construction of a distribution center on their land (http://behoudlutkemeer.nl/en/) It is more than ‘just’ a remaining fertile piece of land in the outskirts of Amsterdam, it is a place that provides the inhabitants of Amsterdam with healthy and locally grown food, and therefore goes beyond simply being a contributor to their food security.
As a response to the technocratic approach of food security, the Food Sovereignty movement was called into life by peasants in the Global South who were protesting the commodification of their land, labour and food under World Trade Organization agreements.

Food Sovereignty/Autonomy :
  • Focuses on food for people,
  • Values food providers,
  • Localizes food systems,
  • Places control in local hands,
  • Builds knowledge and skills,
  • Works with nature.
While the term ‘Food Sovereignty’ is most commonly used, at ASEED we often use the term food autonomy instead of food sovereignty, and information on why we chose to do so can be found if you follow the link to the website to read this article in it's entirety. With the Common Agricultural Policies being negotiated now we decided to write a more in-depth article to explain how our food systems ended up here.

The Climate Justice Uprising

During Spring 2020 many events, protests and climate camps were cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, which was and is all over the news. The pandemic is anything but over and we still have to figure out how we face the climate disaster in times of Covid-19. Nevertheless, in the past two months much has happened in the climate justice movement all over Europe. The following post should give you an overview and demonstrate how varied the movement in Europe is:

Autumn Climate Action in Europe

Portugal
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TAP

4.9.

Last fossil gas project in Portugal

8.-12.9.

Climate Camp in Venice

12.09.

Court against Climate activist in Italy

Paris KC
Siwtzerland
1_Österreich

25.-26.9.

Climate Camp in Paris and fight against gentrification

20.-25.9.

Occupation of federal square in Switzerland

23.10.

Action day for a ecological mobility turnover in Austria

This is of course only a small selection of the countless activities that have been taking place since August. More information about the struggles and actions can be found under this post.
The climate uprising in Europe

Call for action

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The Good food good farming campaign is in full swing across Europe. We are demanding that the Common Agricultural Policy reform puts food autonomy and agro-ecology first.
Sign the petition now!


You can also take action by emailing or tweeting your MEP to demand that they say no to agroindustry. Check out the guidelines on the website.

Last but not least, you can send us your photo with a brief statement about why you believe food autonomy is important, using the hashtag #GoodFoodGoodFarming or #CAPreform, and we will share it as part of a series of online actions. Or simply share it yourself and tag ASEED as well!

Reading group & podcast

Food autonomy
Reading group #7 Food Sovereignty

The next reading group will happen online (on zoom) on the 28th of October from 18:30-20:30 where we will dive deeper into the topic of Food Sovereignty, Food Autonomy and Food Security.

If you want to learn more, find out about the texts or join this month's reading group, contact alina@aseed.net
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ASEED Podcast #4 - CAP with Verena & Stanka from Good Food Good Farming and Friends of Earth Europe

Do you want to learn why it is essential to participate in the Action Days and demand a better, fairer, organic, seasonal and local food system? Then listen to this podcast on the CAP!
Enjoy this episode about the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and feel inspired now to support your local farmers, change your consumer behavior and/or become politically active.
ASEED is a small grassroots collective run mostly by volunteers. We are proud to have the ability to put time and energy into researching topics around agriculture, climate and social justice! However, in order to keep up structures that support this work, along with organizing events and direct actions we need structural funding. During this COVID crisis it is especially hard to find the kind of funding that pays for our financial administration, small budget for coordination and fundraising, and rent on our office. A great way to help us stay structurally funded is to become a monthly contributor! You can do that by visiting the SUPPORT US page on our website.
Want to get involved in other ways? Contact us at info@aseed.net.
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