As a demonstration and exploration of our work around food security, the Mandela University Food Systems programme – established in 2021 – has started taking shape to as an architecture to guide our response to food security as an institution. It has organised a secretariat, steering committee and working group, comprised of more that 28 projects and programmes which directly relate to food and food systems. The programme is now located within the Hubs of Convergence, in Hub 2, and has identified over the short, medium and long-term three key signature projects to focus on.
The three signature projects are as follows:
1. The Student Hunger Subgroup - positioned in the Social Development Professions Department - is looking at designing and implementing approaches to address student hunger that are student-centred, sustainable and humanizing.
2. The Greenhouse Project - led by GreenTEC and CIPSET - aims to brings convergence between the development needs of unemployed young students and the need of community farmers for seedling production to support local food production and assists in building eco-consciousness and climate change resilience.
3. The Community Kitchens project is looking to evolve traditional ‘soup kitchens’ into catalysts for great community agency, whereby these sites can become spaces of learning, sharing and empowerment for communities by engaging in a range of activities. Led by non-profit organisation, Ikhala Trust.