The Rockefeller Foundation Announces 10 Finalists for the Food System Vision Prize

The Rockefeller Foundation, in partnership with SecondMuse and OpenIDEO, today announced the Top 10 Finalists for the Food System Vision Prize. These Finalists were selected from a pool of more than 1,300 applicants from 110 countries, all seeking to develop a Vision of the regenerative and nourishing food system that they aspire to create by the year 2050.

The Top 10 Finalists, whose visions focus on Canada, China, India, Kenya, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Peru, and the U.S., were chosen among 76 Semi-Finalists. They were selected based on their potential to inspire real, positive and bold transformation of a specific food system that is actionable, concrete and believed to be attainable by 2050. These Visions aim to tackle challenges tied to six themes: environment, diets, economics, culture, technology, and policy.

The Food System Vision Prize was launched nearly a year ago as an invitation for organizations, institutions, companies, universities and governments across the globe to develop actionable solutions for the food systems of tomorrow. An esteemed panel of Judges, including food system leaders from across academia, civil society and the private sector, reviewed the Semi-Finalist submissions and selected the 10 Finalists.

“Visions teams took a systems approach to include diverse voices while incorporating social and environmental priorities. These Finalists give us reason for optimism, offering exciting and tangible possibilities to transform food systems, from production to consumption, to ensure a healthy and sustainable future for people and our planet,” said Maria Balcazar Tellez, Program Manager and Food System Vision Prize Lead at SecondMuse.

SecondMuse has been proud to support the work of Visionaries around the world addressing some of the world’s most urgent issues in a way that we believe will lead to lasting change. Each of the Top 10 Finalists is taking a holistic approach to designing a food system for the future. This means that the Top 10 Finalists do not exclusively focus on a single element, like sustainable farming, technology or government engagement. These elements do play an important role in many of the Finalists’ Visions. But they are pieces of a wider constellation of plans that considers all of the various players and forces that make up a “food system” and influence everything from how food is produced to how it is culturally valued.

Since our founding in 2009, SecondMuse has focused on supporting innovations and projects that take a systems approach to the world’s most complex problems, from gender inequality to the scourge of plastics leaking into the ocean. We staunchly believe that for an innovation to stick, it requires the support and participation of an entire ecosystem of people and institutions.

In the case of the Food System Vision Prize, that means we are working to help Visionaries design and develop ecosystems that will allow their Visions to truly thrive.

In September, the Finalists will advance to a three-month virtual Accelerator phase during which they will receive support to further refine their Visions and find pathways for implementation and impact. The Accelerator will focus on stakeholder engagement, storytelling, communications and action planning through virtual programming, one-on-one mentorship and customized support. Each Finalist is eligible to become a Top Visionary and to receive a prize of $200,000 USD. Top Visionaries will be announced in December 2020.

The Top 10 Finalists for the Food System Vision Prize are:

• 7Gen Food System:  Led by the Sicangu Lakota people, this Vision for the Rosebud Indian Reservation of South Dakota, USA outlines a regenerative agricultural system that creates economic opportunities for tribal members; increases the accessibility of locally produced, nutrient-dense foods; and re-establishes the Lakota as primary stewards of the lands [Lead Organization: Sicangu Community Development Corporation].

• Arakunomics: Focusing on the regions of Araku, Wardha, and New Delhi, India, this Vision empowers tribal communities and seeks to ensure environmental sustainability, fair profits for farmers, and food and nutrition security for all [Lead Organization: Naandi Foundation].

• Eat Right: This Vision from New Delhi, India looks to create a national movement towards healthier diets through a systems-based approach of reducing food waste; improving hygiene and sanitation across the value chain; and increasing access to and affordability of healthy foods [Lead Organization: Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India].

• Food Innovation Nervecenter: This Vision from Lagos, Nigeria identifies six key food challenges for the region, from food waste to aging farmers, and outlines a multi-faceted plan to build a more regenerative and nourishing food system [Lead Organization: Darkpore Media Africa LTD].

• From Mama’s Kitchen to Metropolitan Beijing: This Vision from Beijing, China imagines a plant-based dietary transformation for the world’s most populous nation, contributing to reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and pollution [Lead Organizations: Good Food Fund of the China Biodiversity Conservation & Green Development Foundation].

• Kwayeskastasowin Wahkohtowin: This Vision from Canada’s Prairie Provinces aims to create a just and sustainable agrifood system while addressing the process of decolonization and reconciliation between Indigenous and settler populations [Lead Organization: The Prairie Food Vision Network].

• Lima 2035: Lima 2035 envisions the world’s driest megacity transformed into a regenerative oasis, with clean water and nourishing food for all. [Lead Organization: International Potato Center].

• Re-rooting the Dutch Food System – From More to Better: This Vision from the Netherlands outlines a transformed, circular Dutch food system that safeguards natural resources, promotes a healthier and more sustainable plant-based diet, and recycles unavoidable losses and wastes [Lead Organization: Wageningen University & Research].

• Restoring Nairobi to “A Place of Cool Waters”: This Vision for Nairobi, Kenya aims to develop a more equitable, just and sustainable urban space, where access to nutritious food is a reality for everyone [Lead Organization: African Population and Health Research Center].

• Stone Barns Center: This Vision from the Hudson Valley in New York, U.S. seeks to bring about a new food culture—rooted in the ecological, nutritional and communal potential of organic agriculture—through groundbreaking culinary experimentation [Lead Organization: Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture].

In addition, the following four Visions received Special Mentions:

• Digital Transformation of Trinidad and Tobago’s Food Knowledge System
  Trinidad and Tobago
  Submitted by Growsmartt Collective Intelligence LLC

• Farms Not Arms 
  Zalhe, Lebanon
  Submitted by ioi Strategic Design

• Feeding Metro Manila in 2050
  Metro Manila, Philippines
  Submitted by Philippines National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST)

• How the West was One
  Colorado, USA
  Submitted by National Western Center Authority

More information about the Finalists and their Visions can be found at the Food System Vision Prize website: https://www.foodsystemvisionprize.org/