IAAS at FAO meeting in Rome

From October 13 through October 18 two IAAS delegates, one from IAAS Hohenheim and one from IAAS Iowa State University, had the opportunity to attend this year´s Committee on World Food Security (CFS) at the United Nation´s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) based in Rome, Italy. Main goal of the visit was to recreate the relationship between IAAS and the FAO and to find possible reference persons to build a long term communication where it will be possible for our members to not only get informed but also to get actively involved in the wide and complex fields of activities of FAO. We were happy to find out that the intention of a partnership between IAAS and FAO is also in the interest of the officers of partnership and corporate communication which were amazed by the diversity of IAAS with its members not only in the field of agriculture but also in nutrition, food sciences, etc. as well as by the major network of IAAS with its committees working together in more than 35 countries worldwide.

The CFS is an intergovernmental body which serve as a forum for review and follow up of food security policies. The vision of CFS is to be the most inclusive international and intergovernmental platform for all stakeholders to work together in a coordinated way to ensure food security and nutrition for all. Attending this event gave us insights into the complex process of developing political recommendations but also gave us the chance of taking part in highly interesting side events and panel discussions with high level experts like Dacian Ciolos (EU Commissioner Agricultural and Rural Development), Kathleen Merrigan (Deputy Secretary of the USDA from 2009-2013) and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands (UN Secretary-General´s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development).

If you would like to attend a meeting of the FAO, watch for future opportunities on the IAAS facebook page, newsletter, and mailing lists. You could be the next to attend!