Food Security; A Key Pillar of Sustainable Development

According to the United Nations, more than 2 billion people around the world are affected by some level of food insecurity. Broadly speaking, the term refers to the lack of consistent access to a nutritious and well-balanced diet.

Today, 740 million people are experiencing severe forms of this plight. Increasing wealth inequality, damaging effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the escalating consequences of climate change have compounded to create a maelstrom of challenges to tackle. Thus, one easily wonders how realistic the UN’s target of eliminating hunger by 2030 really is.

Certainly, this reality serves as a strong reminder. Many of the things that one takes for granted – such as food – are in fact dependent on trivial factors as origin, environment and individual circumstances.

Climate change, in particular, affects all aspects of the food production system – namely, its availability (due to destruction or reduction of crop yields), its access (due to elevating food prices and stagnant incomes), as well as its quality, utilization, and even the very stability of such systems. Following this thought, one can assume that even the most well-adjusted sectors within the global agriculture industry will face increasing challenges related to climate change.

Planting food crops in between rows of teak trees (pictured above) enables Nicaforest to foster the food security of our community.

According to Gilbert F. Houngbo, president of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), one cannot continue thinking of agriculture, the environment, health, poverty, and hunger in isolation. Instead, one must truly rise to the responsibility of being a global citizen – creating long-lasting change for the global community.

When thinking about what one’s impact on such a gigantic struggle can be, it’s understandable to feel powerless. After all, the most vulnerable to food insecurity are rural populations that are mostly facing severe social and economic challenges already. Thus, most people resign themselves to criticizing those governments’ inability to safeguard their own people, instead of actively searching for an alternative solution.

If you’re reading this, however, chances are you are not like most people. If you want to help these communities achieve a higher level of food security, while also ensuring the holistic wellbeing of the food production systems that sometimes serve as the entire country’s economic backbone, then you should consider supporting the Nicaforest High Impact Reforestation Project.

As of today, Nicaragua is a low-income country, severely prone to recurrent natural disasters like hurricanes, floods, and droughts. 30% of people in Nicaragua live in poverty, while over 70% of them work in the agricultural sector.

Our forests are the heart of the Nicaforest project, and our team works diligently to ensure their health as well as that of the surrounding ecosystem.

Our high-impact carbon sequestration program already boasts four teak plantations that also represent a huge potential for enhancing the local community of Chontales’ food production system. By establishing the Nicaforest plantations in the region, more than 30 local families reaped the benefits of planting over 70 tons of protein-rich beans, grown locally, right there in the fertile soil of the project’s plantations.

Consider buying carbon credits today and start supporting an ambitious project that boosts food security for vulnerable, rural food-producing communities left susceptible to the effects of climate change by their government. Contribute to the worldwide thought revolution that is needed to overturn the effects of climate change and ensure that your grant has a direct, tangible impact on those who need it the most.

Thought you couldn't make a difference? Offset your emissions through the Nicaforest project and make an impact beyond net zero