Biodiversity
Edward Mukiibi was first sent to the fields to be punished. He is now a firm believer in the slow food movement. He was recently appointed President of Slow Food International. Credit: Slow Food International
Edward Mukiibi was punished for his misbehaviour by being forced to study agriculture in school.
Instead of hateing the punishment, he enjoyed it, especially when farming was the future of good nutrition, health, and wealth.
Mukiibi, a Ugandan farmer and social entrepreneur, is on a mission prove that sustainable agriculture is the foundation for all fortune and a solution for hunger, unemployment, as well as biodiversity loss. He is an advocate for food production based on using local resources, knowledge and traditions to promote diverse farming systems.
Mukiibi is an affiliate of Slow Food International. This global movement promotes local food production and traditional cuisine.
Mukiibi (36) was proclaimed the new President of the Republic in July 2022. Slow Food InternationalAt its 8th International Congress, Pollenzo (Italie).
“I feel good and happy about this appointment and also happy on behalf of Slow Food, which is a strong international food movement that has become more established not only in the founding continent of Europe but across the world, which is why it was now possible for the network for finding more able and enthusiastic leaders like me,” Mukiibi told IPS during an online interview.
Slow Food International was founded in 1986 by Carlo Petrini. It works to create a global network of communities and activists who protect cultural and biological diversity. They promote food education and the sharing of traditional knowledge and skill.
Mukiibi was convinced of the potential of agriculture and the need for youth to be interested in it. He founded the Developing Innovations in School Cultivation. The project works in partnership with students and communities to foster a positive attitude towards agriculture and local food production.
Mukiibi pointed out that 70% of Africa’s population are under 40. This means that Africa has a large and talented young generation that can participate in agriculture. Mukiibi expressed dismay at the practice of farming being used in schools as punishment. Mukiibi also noted that large-scale farms are used to provide labour for corporal punishment.
“This prevents many young people from loving agriculture and food production,” said Mukiibi. “I am a victim of this kind of practice. When I was in school, I always wanted to change this by working with schools in a participatory way and introducing children to farming in a more interest-oriented manner.”
Mukiibi also supported the creation of Slow Food Gardens, an international project that has created thousands green spaces to conserve African food biodiversity and provide nutritious food for communities. Mukiibi has planted gardens in over 1000 schools in Uganda.
“Slow Food gives you a 360-degree view of food systems because it covers everything that transforms the way we grow, eat, market, process and save food,” said Mukiibi, explaining that slow food is a movement and philosophy about clean, good and fair food.
Interview excerpts
Slow food is about biodiversity and preserving the land. Credit: Busani Bafana/IPS
IPS: What is slow-food? Is it fast food in the reverse?
Edward Mukiibi:Slow food has a greater responsibility than its literal meaning. It is also the opposite of fast foods. This concept is more logical when it is combined with our philosophy for fair, healthy, and good food for all. This concept is about being responsible for everything we do regarding food, agriculture, or the environment. Responsible food choices include eating healthy food and producing food that is respectful of the environment as well as the culture and traditions of those who make it.
Fairness is another aspect to slow food. Fairness is a key aspect of slow food. Transparency and openness in negotiations and working arrangements between producers and customers are important. We also need to declare the identity and source of the food that we eat. Some people, especially big food chains are not fair when they sell food from small-scale producers and then claim it as their own. We also need justice for smallholder farmers and justice to indigenous peoples.
Slow Food is also an activist and actor movement. We are a movement that includes everyone who believes we must urgently slow down the climate change and the damage food production is causing to this planet. We must slow down policies that are against environmental equilibrium.
IPS: Can clean, good, and fair food be achieved? Are slow food restaurants meeting this goal?
There have been many cruel and careless production practices in the past. It is possible to have a fair, healthy, and clean food system. We are facing many challenges. The global food system is causing conflicts, climate change, and food insecurity. But, everyone can understand the concept of slow food. Slow food’s goal is to solve global problems through local actions and activities.
There are many examples. So many communities in 160 countries are taking positive actions to regenerate the planet … It is not too late to regenerate the planet and rethink how food is produced, how food is handled and how food is consumed.
IPS: Climate change is affecting our food production. What is the Slow Food movement doing to address this?
EM:Slow Food promotes regenerative approaches in food production. This includes promoting Agri-Ecology, traditional farming systems that are based on Agroforestry, and conserving and protecting fragile ecosystems and local food biodiversity.
We don’t just talk about climate change when we go to conferences. We are taking action through the thousands who have taken practical steps to promote agroecology. We have 3500 agro-ecological garden that have been managed in schools across Africa.
IPS: You mentioned Slow food in biodiversity conservation. How and why?
EM:We created the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity to address the issue of biodiversity loss in the field and on our plates. This makes our diets and nutrition dependent on very few products.
We are working with chefs to restore biodiversity to the plates. It is not enough to just talk. We must bring back what is being lost to the table and have a discussion at the dinner table about how we are losing our wealth.
Slow Food has been working to establish community value chains within different communities in order to save food products at risk of extinction. It involves sharing knowledge and bringing together the community to develop ways to promote and protect these foods.
IPS UN Bureau Report
Source: ipsnews
