During the week of World Food Day 2025, young people took center stage in transforming urban food systems in Italy, demonstrating that the future of food depends on youth and cities as key drivers of change. At the World Food Forum in Rome and the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact Global Forum, youth voices, local experiences, and lessons from Latin America, Africa, and Asia highlighted how young leaders are not merely participants but active designers of policy, practice, and culture in food systems.
In Rome, sessions at the World Food Forum emphasized cities as hubs for inclusive food governance. Hivos showcased its Urban Futures program, sharing ten practical lessons for building participatory platforms in city-regions that ensure sustainability, equity, and coherence. The Youth Assembly highlighted how traditional and Indigenous food knowledge, such as school gardens in Cali and agroecological initiatives in Quito, can be harnessed as strategies for urban resilience rather than being dismissed as relics of the past. A focus on Ecuadorian cacao demonstrated how youth and women producers are reviving native varieties and promoting agroforestry, linking biodiversity, culture, and green job creation.
In Milan, over 300 cities celebrated a decade of the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact, recognizing local initiatives where youth engagement drives meaningful change. Programs such as AfriFOODLinks illustrated how African cities are co-creating policy, evidence, and investments for climate-resilient urban food systems, placing youth and informal food workers at the center of coordinated action rather than treating them as token participants. Youth leaders from Colombia, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe shared insights on authentic participation, stressing the importance of early involvement, visible influence, community building, and evolving engagement.
Across both forums, the key message was clear: cities are where food policy becomes tangible, and youth are essential agents of transformation. Hivos continues to support inclusive dialogue, capacity building, and investment in intergenerational value chains, including projects like youth-led cacao enterprises in the Amazon. By promoting faster, flexible funding for scalable local initiatives, from school gardens to agroecological markets, the movement demonstrates that trusting young people as co-creators is the most effective path to sustainable urban food system change.
