Alternatives and Resistance to Policies that Generate Hunger

Contributors to Right to Food and Nutrition Watch 2013 have identified typologies of policies that do harm, and offer alternative approaches to address hunger. These policy alternatives are rooted in people’s knowledge and their experience gained through daily struggles to preserve their livelihoods. Rights holders—the people, their communities,their organizations and their social movements—are the most important actors when it comes to the design and implementation of policies that affect their livelihoods. More participatory models that engage small producers in identifying the kind of development they want and need is clearly a better way to ensure the achievement of the right to food and nutrition for all. The Right to Food and Nutrition Watch monitors national,regional and global food security and nutrition policies from a human rights perspective, to detect and document violations as well as situations that increase the likelihood of violations and the non-implementation of human rights obligations that lead to policy failures. The Watch provides a platform for human rights experts, civil society activists,social movements and scholars to exchange experiences on how best to carry out right to food work, including lobbying and advocacy.