Food Summit in Bhutan
I attended the Global Conscious Food Systems Summit in Paro, Bhutan, from August 31st to September 4th. The Summit aimed to “activate the heart of food systems transformation” with penetrating questions like, “What would our food systems look like if culture, values, and consciousness shaped them, not just policy and profit?” Over 400 participants from more than 60 countries came to explore food systems through immersive farm trips, panels, discussion groups, and breakout sessions. Bhutan was a fitting location for the Summit as the only carbon-negative country in the world; it has long sought to reframe how it views things, with a Gross National Happiness (GNH) index instead of Gross National Product (GNP). The irony wasn’t lost on me that I spent four days flying to get to the only carbon-negative country in the world. But I was instantly struck by the peaceful countryside, participants eager to connect, and the daily rainstorms. Bhutan was stunning, with 60% of the landscape covered by forest (by law it must remain this way), storybook mountains covered in wispy clouds, and not a single stoplight in the entire country. Equally inspiring were people from all around the world dedicated to food systems, advocating for growers, and bringing innovations to their communities. The first day of the Summit began with H.E. Tshering Tobgay, Prime Minister of Bhutan, saying, “So perhaps we might pause for just a moment and look at the plate and see more than food. See the farmer, see the land, see the family. See the future. The journey towards a more conscious food system will not end here, and it can begin with something very simple."
This theme echoed through many site visits, presentations, and lunch conversations. In one presentation, everyone was given an apple from a local farmer. The farmer stood up and was acknowledged for their work, as were the conference participants who picked the apples. This was the first time in my life when I had food where both the grower and the labor were acknowledged before eating. It led me to question what parts of food systems get the least attention and should be recognized more. If you have thoughts you’d like to share on this, please email me at: torrananderson@arizona.edu
Another highlight for me was traveling and attending the Food Summit with Raymond Antone from San Xavier Co-op. The Co-op is doing amazing work here in Arizona, and it was exciting to see Raymond share his experience with farmers and advocates from around the globe. Raymond said of the trip, “Attending the first-ever Global Conscious Food Systems Summit in Paro, Bhutan, has deepened my appreciation of the work we do here at the farm. We were guided in sharing circles, deep discussions, and were asked to fully engage with our minds and bodies at times. Participating in these sessions, I reflected on my role as an O’odham Farmer and how a lot of what was shared ties directly to our Himdag (Way of Life) here in the desert. Also, hearing from different parts of the world and learning more about our host country has opened my mind to what possibilities can come from a more conscious food system.”
To learn more about the Summit, you can watch recordings here. The Prime Minister's opening address set the overall tone for the Summit. The Royal Government of Bhutan, the Conscious Food Systems Alliance (CoFSA), and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) co-hosted the Summit. You can read about the framework and case studies that the Summit is based on here.
On one of the last nights of the Summit, Raymond and I were standing outside waiting for dinner. I was speaking with Ashish Gupta, who has led social ventures like Gram Disha Trust. He has also created innovations to literally “see the farmer,” as the Prime Minister mentioned, where consumers can scan a product with their phones to trace its geographic journey and who produced it. I mentioned how much I liked the large scarf he was wearing. Ashish immediately took the scarf off his neck and handed it to me, “It’s yours.” We offered him a shell necklace that the Indigenous Resilience Center got from San Xavier on the Tohono O'odham Nation. Ashish placed a traditional hat from Himachal Pradesh in northern India on Raymond’s head (see photo). Unfortunately, it is not cool enough in Tucson yet for us to wear the scarf and hat, but the spirit of generosity and cultural exchange was there throughout the Summit. When Ashish received the shell necklace, he said, “It’s like a mala.” Traditional prayer beads used during meditation. As we rode the bus from the conference to the hotel, Ashish was running the shells through his fingers the way one would with a mala. Raymond and I were both snug in our warmer clothing, and I thought about the benefits of bringing people from opposite sides of the world together on the same bus, let alone the same Summit. The Summit's lasting impact will be the connections made between conference sessions, chatting in a hallway, or while waiting for dinner to start on a chilly evening in Bhutan.
