Taking Youth Engagement to the Next Generation: Lessons from Best Youth Engagement Practices Toward Food Sustainability

Food is one of life’s most basic necessities. Yet the problems of our food system are becoming increasingly worse: global food security is in jeopardy, health related diseases are epidemic, and generations are increasingly disconnected from their food. The youth population, in particular, is largely missing from the food engagement and decision--making process. Yet it is this group that will inherit the problems of the food system, and constitute the next generation of eaters, policy--makers, and planners. This paper aims to fill this gap by examining ways to improve youth engagement in food sustainability by making it more widespread, meaningful and effective. Using a scan and analysis of best practice research, this paper offers recommendations –including cases, tools, principles and techniques – for stakeholders (such as NGOs, local governments and municipal planners) to improve their youth engagement strategies in food sustainability.