210 users have voted.

The voting period is over.

It is critical that our food systems innovate to deal with uncertainty around food security in the face of climatic changes. The diversity of experimentation and creativity to reduce food waste, enhance food security and build strong sustainable communities is staggering, but experiments are often fragmented, with enterprises working in isolation and not benefitting from the wealth of idea and experiences that are emerging around the world. In response, the SHARECITY100 database provides the first on-line, internationally comparative and interactive map of ICT-enabled urban food sharing enterprises across 100 cities. The database has identified more than 4000 enterprises in which food sharing plays an active and transformative role in advancing urban sustainability through resource conservation, food waste reduction and the building of community connections. Initial analyses confirm that London is leading the way with 198 enterprises, followed by New York with 188 and Melbourne with 144, but food sharing is also happening in Africa, South America, Asia and the Middle East, in places as diverse as Buenos Aires, Kuala Lumpur and Nairobi. The SHARECITY100 database plays a number of important roles which will contribute to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals of sustainable cities and communities, zero hunger, good helth and well-being and responsible consumption and production: • It provides planners, entrepreneurs and city residents with information about the availability of food in their cities helping to address food insecurity and food waste • It provides city inhabitants with information about spaces to grow, cook or eat together with others helping to build social capital • It provides a portal through which information, skills and expertise around growing and cooking helping to encourage greater food production within the city • It disseminates innovative new business and exchange models that other cities can learn from, promoting policy learning for sustainable urban food systems

Organisation: 

Department of Geography, Trinity College Dublin Ireland

Country: 

Ireland