WHAT PROBLEM WE SOLVE

Negative nutrition statistics have become widespread on a global scale:

  • The number of people facing hunger and food insecurity has increased since 2015, exacerbated by the pandemic, conflicts, climate change, and growing inequalities.

  • In 2022, 258 million people in 58 countries experienced acute food insecurity, marking a 34% increase compared to 2021.

  • 45 million children suffered from malnutrition.

Current food systems continue to generate pollution and degrade soil, water, and air:

  • They contribute to 28% of greenhouse gas emissions.
  • They are responsible for up to 80% of biodiversity loss.
  • They account for up to 70% of freshwater usage.

Projections for the year 2030 also show negative trends, making it challenging to achieve progress in Sustainable Development Goal 2 (Zero Hunger and an end to all forms of malnutrition).

 

*FAO, IFAD, WHO, WFP, and UNICEF. The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World. Summary Version. Rome, 2022.

40% of Colombians eat less than three times a day.

5 million Colombians did not reach their cognitive potential due to chronic malnutrition during childhood.

-PMA-

Global figures and their projections reflect the consequences of food systems that have failed to be sustainable in their four areas of action: production, storage and distribution, processing and marketing, and consumption. Therefore, it is relevant to allocate efforts to transform these systems in a way that minimizes negative impacts on the right to food and the nutritional food security of the population.

 

Given that the issue of malnutrition extends beyond hunger, and as one of the strategies to achieve sustainable food systems and make the necessary transitions to meet the 2030 Agenda, a significant portion of the solutions today focuses on contributing to various aspects of nutritional food security. This includes, as a central component, providing people with access to nutritional education, which is essential for adjusting the variables that turn dietary habits into a fundamental cause of disease and a detriment to quality of life.

To learn more about food systems, click here.

HOW WE DO IT?

To achieve this, agents of change actively participate in two types of activities that, directly, practically, and interactively, strengthen their knowledge and skills in terms of nutritional awareness and the consequent transformation of habits: listening circles and experiential meetings.

Listening circles

Are safe spaces for collective trust building. They work to improve the management of the socio-emotional resources of these women and youth by giving them a voice for their pains and dreams and recognizing each other as human beings. This recognition of their ability to contribute to community development results in strengthening the social fabric of their food systems.

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Nutrihuertas

Experiencial Encounters

Are spaces for collective learning where women and youth have didactic formative experiences for better management and utilization of their nutritional, agricultural, and economic resources. The expected result is more structured household economies that allow for sustainable consumption of more and better foods.

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Strategies of the NUTRIEMPOWERMENT Model

TRUST CIRCLES

From the outset, intentional work is done on the self: self-awareness, self-perception, and self-confidence. Their realities, pains, dreams, and resources (opportunities) are acknowledged. Based on this, they are invited to actively participate in three types of experiential nutritional education activities, aimed at promoting their knowledge and skills in nutrition, agroecology, and finances. This parallel and continuous work on the self is expected to strengthen the social fabric in their community.

EXPERIENTIAL GASTRONOMIC MEETINGS

Meetings for food preparation in which conversation is encouraged, sharing of traditional and new dietary knowledge is promoted, and spaces of trust are reinforced. These meetings enhance knowledge and practices that lead to healthy eating habits, as well as a psycho-social-emotional relationship with food.

NUTRIGARDENS

These are nutritionally planned gardens that aim not only to diversify the cultivation and nutrition of the land but also to teach sustainable agroecological practices. They encourage the adoption of diverse nutritional foods, promote the choice and preparation of healthier meals, and even facilitate physical and economic access to food.

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT STRENGTHENING

These experiential spaces identify habitual financial practices and provide knowledge, practices, and strategies to enhance family economics. They help optimize available financial resources and make more conscious, healthy, and cost-effective investments in food.