The Sustainability Learning Forum

Global Food Price Volatility and Spikes: An Overview of Costs, Causes, and Solutions

Prof. Joachim von Braun, Center for Development Research

Since the 2007-08 food crisis, many thoughtful analyses have addressed the causes and impacts of high and volatile international food prices and proposed solutions to the crisis. These studies have covered global as well as local food price dynamics and policy reactions. The food price problem is, however, far-reaching, and its impacts are wide and interrelated. more[...] login_required

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von Braun, Joachim

Editorial Team

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United Nations Office for Coordination of Hamanitarian Affairs (OCHA)

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Preparing Airports for Disasters

Susanne Meier, Deutsche Post DHL
Joachim Keppler, Deutsche Post DHL
Deutsche Post DHL

Deutsche Post DHL has committed itself to continuously support the Ten Principles of the United Nations Global Compact. Equally, Deutsche Post DHL undertakes actions in support of broader UN goals and issues, especially as they relate to disaster management and humanitarian assistance. In this approach Deutsche Post DHL closely cooperates with the United Nations to amplify the efforts of other contributors. more[...] login_required

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EcoBusiness School Program

Francesca Carnesella, Camposol and Copeinca
Copeinca

To promote the integration of key thematic areas of environmental education in the country, a project idea was born: the EcoBusiness School Program. Created by the Institute for Promotion of Sustainable Development and supported by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Environment in Peru, the initiative began in 2010. The design of this enterprising program for environmental education was aimed at young people attending the last cycle of secondary education (15- and 16-year-olds). The main objective is to strengthen the capacities of young people in identifying the realities concerning the environment; understanding market development; understanding the procedures and challenges of building, managing, and administering an economic enterprise that has a positive impact on the environment; and developing leadership and management skills. more[...] login_required

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Bakery “La Casa del Pan”

Francesca Carnesella, Camposol and Copeinca
Camposol

“La Casa del Pan” is an entrepreneurship project funded entirely by CAMPOSOL. It aims to provide economic and social development opportunities for young people through a strategic partnership with the Youth, Arts and Development Association, which is comprised of young people from Nuevo Chao, a nearby community. more[...] login_required

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Changing the Way Corporations Source Energy

Rasmus M. Schophuus , Vestas Wind Systems A/S
Vestas Wind Systems A/S
WindMade asbl

WindMade™, the first consumer label for wind energy, is moving the discussion from how much energy a product uses during its lifetime to the embodied energy of the product. Created to drive the global adoption of wind energy, WindMade™ is designed to inform consumers about the source of the energy used to make the products they buy and thus encourage corporations to source renewable energy to run their operations and production. Launched at the World Economic Forum in Davos in 2011, WindMade™ is backed by the UN Global Compact, Vestas Wind Systems, WWF, Global Wind Energy Council, Bloomberg, the LEGO Group, and PwC. more[...] login_required

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Food Security Remains a Top Priority for African Development

African Development Bank (AfDB)

Food security remains an important development issue for Africa, with many countries facing high food costs and periodic food shortages due to climate change, humanitarian crises, conflict, displaced populations, poor agricultural practices and a high dependency on imported food stuffs. For this reason, food security remains a top priority on the continent’s development agenda, as outlined in the quarterly Africa Food Security Brief published recently by the Chief Economist Complex of the African Development Bank. more[...] login_required

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Spotlight Food Crisis

Editorial Team

The recent drought in the United States and its impact on maize prices has focused the world's attention back onto global food prices. The latest data from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization shows that prices are in fact up a little after a period of decline. High food prices not only put a strain on the already tight food budgets of the world’s poor, but raise the price of helping them with food aid. more[...]

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Making Responsible Use of a Scarce Resource: Water

Dr. Wolfgang Große-Entrup, Bayer Group
Bayer Group

The globe today faces a series of major challenges: How can we safeguard high-quality food and good healthcare? How can we tackle climate change and save resources? How can we provide as many people as possible with access to clean water? All these central questions, reinforced by the steady growth of the world population, have a direct impact on the Bayer Group. This is because healthcare, nutrition, and materials used for many daily life products are our core business, including contributions to climate protection and resource efficiency. I am convinced that holistic approaches and innovative solutions are the key to coping with such global challenges and to finding the right balance between economic growth, social welfare, and environmental stewardship. At least this is what we are striving for at Bayer. more[...] login_required

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The Argan Program in Morocco

Raquel Ark, BASF
Charlotte d’Erceville, BASF
Viola Möller, BASF
Anne-Laurie Rodrigues, BASF
BASF SE

With the integration of Cognis and its active ingredients business, Laboratoires Sérobiologiques (LS), BASF has broadened its product portfolio based on renewable raw materials in the last years. One of renewable raw materials is Argan oil from Morocco. more[...]

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World Food Programme: High Food Prices - 10 Questions Answered

The recent drought in the United States and its impact on maize prices has focused the world's attention back onto global food prices. The latest data from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization shows that prices are in fact up a little after a period of decline. High food prices not only put a strain on the already tight food budgets of the world’s poor, but raise the price of helping them with food aid. more[...] login_required

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For Young People to Succeed

Jeffrey A. Joerres, ManpowerGroup
ManpowerGroup

Global youth unemployment stands at record levels and significantly outstrips that of joblessness rates for other age groups. Everywhere you look, the numbers are deeply troubling. The latest statistics from the International Labour Organization put the global youth unemployment rate at more than 81 million workers – 40 percent of the total unemployed. The developing world, with generally younger populations, is disproportionately affected. According to the ILO, the highest regional youth unemployment rates exist in the Middle East and North Africa, where close to one out of every four young people are out of work. more[...] login_required

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Food Price Volatility a Growing Concern

World Bank

Given the exceptional drought in the US, current crop conditions in other grain producing regions, and the resulting increase in international food prices, the World Bank today expressed concern for the impacts of this volatility on the world's poor, who are highly vulnerable to increases in food prices. more[...] login_required

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Dispatches from the Food Movement

Regional food systems that are ecologically sound, economically viable, and that encourage healthy communities were at the epicenter of conversation at the University of Vermont’s first-ever food systems summit with a public conference titled “The Necessary (r)Evolution for Sustainable Food Systems Amplified,” held on June 28, 2012, to a packed house and a digital audience from around the country. more[...] login_required

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