October 8, 2013

Fuel before food: The U.S. position on biofuels

FAO Delegation October 8, 2013 1 Comment

By Stevie DuFrense, Becca Haydu, and Cara Weber The issue of biofuels and their impacts on world food security is a contested topic here at CFS 40 in Rome. The text is up for negotiation as civil society works to influence the voting member governments of the CFS. Students from the United States, Becca, Cara and Stevie, have been following U.S. biofuels policy and its impacts on world food...

Hard and Fast Facts – Part 2

khristian October 8, 2013 0 Comments

by Khristian Méndez The talks and negotiations going on at the FAO Headquarters in Room have changed rooms, have changed voices and have changed tones. After having a few days for Civil Society to try to come to consensus, the texts on the table are now being bracketed and picked apart by Member States, the Private Sector as well as other players. Before my peers carry on delivering a breakdown...

Day 1: Policy Convergence?

FAO Delegation October 8, 2013 0 Comments

By Nimisha Bastedo It’s hard to know how to begin articulating all that’s going on, but I’ll try and get some of the cloud that’s taking over my brain onto this page. The contrast between the weekend’s civil society forum and today’s official proceedings is huge. The morning was filled with the formalities of introduction speeches all quoting the most recent reports on the state of...