Source: http://www.grassrootsonline.org/
The Landless Worker Movement (MST) of Brazil has been announced the 2011 Food Sovereignty Prize winner by the International Links Committee of Community Food Security Coalition (CFSC). The Family Farm Defenders and the Via Campesina are among the past winners of the award. The prize will be awarded to MST at the 15th Annual CFSC conference “Food Justice: Honoring our Roots, Growing the Movement” that will be held from November 4 – 8, 2011 in Oakland, California. The award ceremony will take place on Sunday, November 6 from 4:00 – 7:00 pm.
The prize is awarded every year to an organization that best:
- promotes food sovereignty by raising public awareness, on-the-ground action, or developing and implementing programs and policies
- recognizes the importance of collective action in bringing about social change
- recognizes global linkages in food sovereignty work, and
- demonstrates clear recognition of the importance of women in agriculture and food issues
MST is the largest popular movement of Latin America and is at the forefront of social action for comprehensive agrarian reform and food sovereignty. The MST works with landless peasants to identify and settle on underutilized land, gain legal title to the land and bring it into productive use. Through the MST’s efforts, more than 350,000 families have been settled on 17 million acres of land and currently another 89,840 families are living in encampments, awaiting settlement. The MST is also one of the most powerful peasant and landless workers movements and plays a vital leadership role within the Vía Campesina.
“Food cannot be a commodity – that has to be included as one of our principles of food sovereignty. Food must be a right for everybody,” said Joao Pedro Stedile, an MST leader and member of Grassroots International’s Resource Rights Advisory Group.
The Community Food Security Coalition is a national coalition of more than 600 organizations dedicated to building food systems that are healthy, sustainable, just and democratic by building community voice and capacity for change. The community is committed to ending hunger, promoting public health, and supporting sustainable agriculture through policy advocacy, education, research and organizing. CFSC expects 1,200 people to attend the 15th Annual Conference.
In addition to the MST, the 2011 Food Sovereignty Prize awarded honorable mentions to: Campesino a Campesino Movement, South Central Farmers, and GBIAC (Grow Biointensive Agricultural Center of Kenya).
