February 2010

Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security: Rescheduled

The Chicago Council is very pleased to announce that its Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security, originally planned for February 22, 2010, has been rescheduled for Thursday, April 22, 2010 in Washington, D.C.

Dan Glickman (former secretary, US Department of Agriculture) and Catherine Bertini (former executive director, World Food Programme) will continue as event cochairs.

Rajiv Shah, administrator, US Agency for International Development, will deliver a keynote address.

There will be a great deal happening on food security this spring and a mid-April symposium will be both timely and policy-relevant. The event will occur right before the annual World Bank/IMF meeting, and the Senate is expected to consider the Lugar-Casey legislation after the spring recess. Moreover, the policymaking and NGO community will have had time to consider newly-released details from the Administration’s Global Hunger and Food Security Initiative. .

The Chicago Council will continue to partner with the following organizations for this event:

• Bread for the World
• Concern Worldwide
• Global Harvest Initiative
• InterAction
• International Center for Research on Women
• ONE Campaign
• Partnership to Cut Hunger and Poverty in Africa
• United States Institute of Peace
• World Food Prize Foundation

To seek further information about the new symposium plans, please contact Lindsay Iversen, or phone (312.821.7560).

We appreciate your patience as we have endeavored to reschedule the event and thank you for your continued interest.


Second Annual Partnership to Cut Hunger and Poverty in Africa - Putting Principles into Action:  A US-Africa Forum on Food Security in Sub-Saharan Africa
February 25-26, 2010
The Washington Court Hotel, Washington, D.C.
 
2008 was a year of global food crisis.  2009 was a year of global resolve.  And 2010 must be a year of global action on food security. The Forum will bring together a diverse set of US and African public sector leaders, businesspeople, development practitioners and farmers to consider how the US can carry through its commitment to increase funding and improve US assistance for food security so that it is more responsive to country-determined priorities. 
 
The Forum's objectives are:

• to develop a clearer, shared understanding of the challenges affecting the ability of the US to respond
• to country-determined food security priorities and other Rome principles; and
• to identify pragmatic options for addressing these challenges

 
Plenary and small-group discussions will focus on options for improving the areas deemed most critical to transforming the impact of US assistance for food security.
Preliminary Agenda


5th Annual University Hunger Summit
February 26-28, 2010
Auburn, Alabama
With the number of hungry people dramatically increasing worldwide, never has the challenge to address both short‐term and long‐term solutions to ending hunger been greater. In response, President Obama has pledged to end child hunger in America by 2015 and recently dedicated $3.2 billion to agricultural development in an effort to assist in the fight against global hunger. You don’t want to miss this opportunity to learn more about these efforts and to be actively involved in Universities Fighting World Hunger, a dynamic partnership with the UN World Food Programme. We recommend that a combination of students, faculty, and/or university administrators from each university attend the Summit. Other attendees will include NGO, government, and corporate representatives.

Food and Agriculture Policies for a Sustainable Future: Responding to Global Challenges and Opportunities
February 25-26, 2010
OECD Conference Centre, Paris, France
In the coming decades, the global food and agriculture system will have to provide sustainably for billions more people and meet greater demands on quality, affordability and availability. Farming will be competing with other sectors for land, water and investment, while climate change adds a new unknown to the equation. Ministers from OECD member countries and key emerging economies will meet in Paris on 25-26 February to identify action that best responds to the needs of a rapidly changing world.

Agricultural Outlook Forum 2010
February 18 - 19, 2010
Crystal Gateway Marriott, Arlington, Virginia
USADA's 2010 Outlook Forum will be held Feb. 18-19 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott Hotel in Arlington, Va. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will keynote the forum titled “Sustainable Agriculture: The Key to Health & Prosperity.” Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan will open the annual forum on Feb. 18 at 8 a.m. A panel, which features Whole Foods Market Co-President Walter Robb, recently retired Sysco Corporation CEO Richard Schnieders, Bon Appétit Management Company CEO Fedele Bauccio, and Science and Technology Advisor to the U.S. Secretary of State Nina Fedoroff, is titled “Sustainability, Stakeholders and Customers: Achieving a Healthier 21st Century.” USDA’s Under Secretary Jim Miller will present the foreign trade outlook and Chief Economist Joseph Glauber will deliver the domestic agricultural economic outlook. It will focus on a broad range of topical issues related to rural communities, nutrition, sustainable agriculture, conservation, and food safety and security. The forum also will feature traditional USDA commodity supply and demand and food price outlooks. USDA will Web cast the entire morning plenary speeches. USDA has hosted the Outlook Forum since 1923 to provide farmers and ranchers, government, and agribusinesses with sound information for decision-making. Attendees are expected to include members of farm organizations, food and fiber firms, academia, foreign governments, and the news media.
Session and Speakers
Program at a Glance
Public Registration

2010 World Ag Expo
February 9 - 11, 2010
Tulare, California
With 2.6 million square feet of show grounds and 1,600 exhibitors, World Ag Expo is an industry leader in agriculture expositions. Attracting an annual average of 100,000 attendees, this three day expo transforms Tulare, California into the World’s hot spot for agriculture technology and innovation.
Register

2009 Commitment to Development Ideas in Action Award
February 5, 2010
Center for Global Development, Washington, D.C.
Please join us in honoring Diego Hidalgo Schnur, the 2009 winner of the Commitment to Development Ideas in Action Award, sponsored jointly by the Center for Global Development (CGD) and Foreign Policy magazine. Hidalgo’s career reflects his resolute dedication to helping the world’s poorest people. He is the founder or key sponsor of numerous organizations committed to promoting development and democracy across the globe.. The award, bestowed annually since 2003, honors an individual or organization that has made a significant contribution to changing attitudes and policies towards the developing world.
Register

International Conference on Food Security and Climate Change in Dry Areas
February 1 - 4, 2010
Amman, Jordan
The dry areas of the developing world occupy some 3 billion hectares, and are home to one-quarter of the global population. About 16% of the population lives in chronic poverty, particularly in marginalized rainfed areas. Characterized by water scarcity, the dry areas are also challenged by rapid population growth, frequent droughts, high climatic variability, land degradation and desertification, and widespread poverty. Poverty and other social problems are leading to unsustainable agriculture, degradation of natural resources and increased migration. Another challenge is the impact of globalization, due to changes in the world trade system and potentially skewed forces of competition. This instability is further exacerbated by the unrest in financial markets. The conference will provide recommendations to policy makers and other stakeholders on steps to be taken to reduce the impacts of climate change on food security in dry areas, as well as a framework for supporting research and development to address the threats identified.
Background



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