Loose, tight, and improvisational learning organizations. These are descriptions of environments where some thrive and others shrink in fear. What I can happily report is that we are moving swiftly, sometimes too fast, but always with a keen eye on achieving goals that will position farmers markets and us organizationally for continued support. As you can well imagine, Carmelo is driving us towards fulfilling our goals with extraordinary gusto. Here are a few updates worth noting.
- Communications and internal systems remain one of our toughest challenges. We are designing the kind of team and division of labor that will make more sense.
- This speaks to the system-wide questions we are addressing: What is the right scale of staffing, strategic priorities, etc. We are spearheading the drafting of a document that addresses how now – with two GA’s and a handful of LOA’s under our belts – we must reevaluate how we work, and how we fund it. These are predictable growth challenges, but if unattended, we can fall behind on internal customer service demands, etc. We hope to share the strategic direction with the membership at our December digital mid-term assembly (date to be determined).
Our second General Assembly. It was outstanding. The feedback was positive. We responded to survey results from the first GA by making the 2024 GA more interactive, more strategic (sticking to our theme of “Better Together”), and as a result an improvement. It was also extremely hot. July is a tough month to pull off comfort in Rome. For the next edition, we will evaluate how we manage July (should the next UN Food systems Summit be scheduled for that time) or consider an earlier week in the year.
The Academy. The content we are developing via the MAMi Project and the Studios is among the more practical and reflective material for farmers markets. We have taken great efforts to provide simultaneous translation for the Studio’s Spanish speakers. We recognize that for many who speak English as a second or third language, sometimes the content is fast and complex. We are evaluating how best to not move too swiftly. We want everyone there and everyone to benefit.
FAO. Our Two types of LOAs (the first on methodology and the second on networking) are underway. We did a spectacular job keeping the specific interest of farmers markets in the methodology work; and we are now leaning on the insights of our practitioners’ expertise to inform how we stage global campaigns together with FAO.
Membership. We will continue to streamline the process. We are continuing to find potential members (often with your support). You have been helpful in identifying candidates.
Capacity-building and other projects. This is where we are moving forward fast, but it’s complicated. After all, the world at this moment is complicated.
- MAMi. On 26 October 2024, the Alexandria, Egypt farmers market will launch with considerable fanfare. By year’s end, there will be new markets in Kenya and Lebanon. We are grateful for our partnership with CIHEAM Bari, and for the support of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This strategy may also bear fruit in Latin America and beyond.
- USA. We are working on several strategies with our members to strengthen farmers markets and the national voice for farmers markets (FMC), and to reposition market organizations as key players in the field. Strategies include to:
- Draw a closer relationship between farmers markets and other direct to consumer strategies (based upon the multifunctional agriculture model).
- We will schedule a summit in Mississippi that evaluates the strategy of agritourism to mitigate black land loss early in 2025 with support from the WK Kellogg Foundation together with our member, the Mississippi Association of Cooperatives.
- The International Public Market Conference in Milwaukee in June 2025: We are exploring how to conduct a nationwide study to propose how to expand the Farmers Market Nutrition Programs to the world and share findings at the conference.
- International meetings: These continue to be valuable vehicles to get our priorities heard on the international stage, build credibility with international organizations and governments.
- G7 Agriculture meetings in Siracusa, Italy (Sept 2024): We met with national farmers’ associations of six of the seven countries, and shared the five compelling reasons for farmers markets.
- Terra Madre: Our close association is providing us with more reasons to collaborate with Slow Food.
- Global Family Farm Forum commemorates the half-way point in the United Nations commitment to the Decade of Family Farming at FAO Headquarters in Rome (15-18 October).
- World Urban Forum: This annual gathering of municipal leaders led by the UN Habitat comes next to Cairo, Egypt in November. We are joining forces with HealthBridge to animate a booth, stage an event at the Italian Embassy, and more.
It is worth noting that these events take time, resources, and often provide unclear outcomes. However, it is better to be present. So, we move forward with these and other signature events (G20, CGAR, ICLEI/FAO, EU meetings, etc.) with one eye on the usefulness of engagement balanced with our limited capacity.
Summing up.
We recognise that the model – as exemplified by the MAMi approach – continues to serve as our best track record to paint a picture of what is possible for places yearning for revived relations between town and country, supply and demand, and producer and consumer. Of course, throughout the world, the models must adapt to reality (of each locale). For instance, In Southeast Asia, the Vietnamese experience to change national policy via municipal action may call for a tweak to the MAMi approach. We so yearn to affect every corner of the world, but we must also take it one step at a time.
Realistically, we must build our internal capacity. There is so much to be done: from the small details of travel policies, to the internal division of labor, to building the seasonality of work with predictable players (for instance, a GA committee that helps to steer the nature, timing, and content for the next edition). We understand how important these steps are to create a culture of predictability, transparency, and efficacy. We also know that were it not for the remarkable institutional support of Coldiretti and Director General Carmelo Troccoli’s entrepreneurial brilliance, we would not even be in this position to recognise our challenges. Slowly, we are getting there.