Greetings, Dish readers! The past week has been a whirlwind of celebration around the folks doing some of the world’s most transformative work to create more sustainable and equitable food systems — along with high-dollar prizes to continue that work.
First up, this year’s World Food Prize Borlaug Dialogue in Des Moines, Iowa, brought together some 1,300 scientists, farmers, and agribusiness leaders from more than 75 countries. The theme of “Harnessing Change” seemed especially fitting in an era where climate shocks and conflicts are wreaking havoc on food security worldwide.
This year’s World Food Prize winner was Heidi Kühn, who was honored at a ceremony last week. Kühn is the founder of the nonprofit Roots of Peace, which focuses on the direct link between conflict and hunger by restoring agriculture to war zones. Event organizers made the surprise announcement that the prize would be doubled to $500,000, starting with Kühn.