YouTuber Mikirotta raises young people’s awareness of world food systems
This autumn, food systems will be highlighted both at the UN Food Systems Summit and in Mikirotta’s YouTube channel.
New solutions are acutely needed to transform the world's food systems. The problem will be addressed at the UN Food Systems Summit on 23 September 2021. In addition to the need to decrease hunger and malnutrition, the sustainability and equality of food systems also have a strong impact on other Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda.
The UN Summit will also provide an opportunity to bring forward young people's views on issues related to the importance and consumption of food. In cooperation with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Mikirotta – or Mikael Sundberg – took the challenge to learn about the subject matter and to invite his followers to take part in the discussion.
During the period from September to November, two different types of content will be published in Mikirotta’s channels, dealing with, for example school meals. Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Ville Skinnari will also visit in the first video in his role as the World Food Programme (WFP) School Meals Champion.
More sustainable production and equality
In food systems, Mikael is fascinated by the journey of food from its source to plate.
“I took parallel studies and completed a qualification also in cooking, which is why preparing food is close to my heart. That's why I wanted to respond to this challenge by focusing on the food theme,” Mikael says.
“Food choices have a great deal to do also with equality,” he notes.
Although many decisions are made far from the consumers, their food choices and decisions affect the global food system. Mikael hopes that his young followers would remember that their actions can have an impact, both now and in the future, as they get to decision-making positions themselves.
Mikael emphasises in his videos that he, too, is learning new things. The aim is to open discussion and to show how food systems work, in a way that interests young people.
Towards school meals for all
Through development cooperation, Finland has supported and trained around 900,000 small farmers, which means an improvement in food security for four million people since 2015. In Finland, one of the objectives related to food systems is to promote the coverage of free school feeding in the world.
“We are credible in promoting the role of school meals, because of our internationally recognised background and experience in that area. Free school feeding supports not only food security but also equality,” says Sanna-Liisa Taivalmaa, Senior Adviser on Development Policy from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
Mikael says that the cooperation has given him new information about school meals:
“I was really surprised that although there are nearly two hundred independent states in the world, very few of them provide children with free school meals. It felt good to learn that Finland was the first country to introduce free meals in schools.”
The Food System Summit (UNFS) will explore solutions to the challenges related to food systems. The aim is for everyone in the world to have access to sufficient and nutritious food and for food systems to function in a climate-sustainable manner.
The theme is linked to the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda, which aim to eradicate poverty and to ensure wellbeing in an environmentally sustainable manner. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which was adopted in 2015, concerns all countries of the world and obligates them to promote sustainable development both nationally and globally. There are a total of 17 SDGs, due to be met by 2030.
The first video will be available for viewing on Mikirotta’s YouTube channel (Link to another website.)starting on 23 September.