🔮A collective vision
How can we co-create a collective vision? What ideas have we already collected together? How can you get involved?
Last updated
How can we co-create a collective vision? What ideas have we already collected together? How can you get involved?
Last updated
A collaborative and participatory approach is essential for constructing a collective vision with collective impact principles in food systems transitions. We'd like to share the useful steps that the folx at the Collective Impact Forum put together (find the original article, "What is Collective Impact," here):
Understand the context: Begin by understanding the existing state of the food system and the challenges it faces. Conduct research, engage with stakeholders, and gather data to gain a comprehensive understanding of the current situation.
Identify key stakeholders: Identify and engage a diverse range of stakeholders who have a stake in the food system. This can include farmers, producers, consumers, policymakers, researchers, NGOs, and community organizations. Ensure representation from different sectors and perspectives to foster inclusivity.
Facilitate dialogue and collaboration: Create opportunities for stakeholders to come together and engage in meaningful discussions. Organize workshops, focus groups, or conferences where participants can share their experiences, insights, and ideas. Encourage open and respectful communication to foster collaboration.
Define a common purpose: Facilitate discussions to identify and define a shared vision for the food system transition. Encourage stakeholders to articulate their aspirations, goals, and desired outcomes. Look for common ground and shared values that can form the basis of the collective vision.
Set shared goals and metrics: Work collaboratively to establish clear, measurable goals that align with the collective vision. These goals should address key challenges and opportunities within the food system. Define specific metrics and indicators to track progress and evaluate the impact of the collective efforts.
Develop a strategy and action plan: Collaboratively develop a strategy and action plan that outlines the steps needed to achieve the shared goals. Break down the plan into actionable tasks, assigning responsibilities and timelines to different stakeholders. Emphasize the importance of collaboration and collective action in implementing the plan.
Foster partnerships and resource mobilization: Build partnerships with relevant organizations, institutions, and initiatives that can contribute to the food system transition. Seek opportunities for resource mobilization, including funding, expertise, and technical support, to facilitate the implementation of the action plan.
Monitor, evaluate, and adapt: Regularly monitor the progress of the collective impact initiative and evaluate its effectiveness. Use the defined metrics to track outcomes and identify areas for improvement. Foster a culture of learning and adaptation, where stakeholders can reflect on experiences and adjust strategies accordingly.
Communicate and engage: Establish effective communication channels to disseminate information, share progress updates, and engage a broader audience. Utilize various mediums such as websites, social media, newsletters, and public events to raise awareness and encourage wider participation.
Maintain momentum and resilience: Sustain the collective effort over the long term by maintaining engagement, fostering collaboration, and celebrating successes. Be resilient in the face of challenges and adapt strategies as needed to ensure continued progress towards the shared vision.
Remember, building a collective vision with collective impact principles is an ongoing process that requires dedication, inclusivity, and continuous collaboration.
From our experiences with the local food ecosystem, the Food Tech 3.0 innovators, and our Food Tech 3.0 Enabler Labs in Hamburg, Milan, and Paris, so far it looks like:
Producing more food locally and regeneratively
Engaging organisations that vary in size, scale, and where in the food chain they intervene
Working with and supporting students to imagine and develop solutions for the future (which, as we often here, is now)
Testing ancestral tools and mixing them with new innovations and approaches
Creating new stakeholder relationships, particularly engaging and empowering those that have often been marginalised and their food knowledge colonised
Continuing to support citizen-driven technologies and initiatives and encouraging existing tech makers to connect with communities
Sharing knowledge and documenting initiatives so knowledge can be translated to new contexts; making business plans open source to support initiatives that want to transition to open models
And it doesn't stop there.
We invite you and your initiative or organisation to imagine the future of food in Fab Labs, makerspaces, and Fab Cities with us.
Take some time with your organisation and local stakeholders to brainstorm and complete the Future Newspaper Activity in the Community frame in the GitBook MIRO board. The full activity-- the Newspaper from 2040-- can be found here, which includes key questions to ask yourself while you complete the exercise.
Then, share your newspaper on 1) the Distributed Design Platform #food Discord channel for internationals or 2) the local Barcelona Food Tech 3.0 Discord channel so we can collectively envision our future.
