SYSTEMIQ is pleased to announce that Dr. David Nabarro, a SYSTEMIQ Senior Advisor, has been named one of two recipients of the 2018 World Food Prize from the World Food Prize Foundation today. The World Food Prize is the most prominent global award honouring breakthrough achievements to alleviate hunger and promote global food security. This year’s prize will be shared between David and Dr Lawrence Haddad, the Executive Director of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition.
“David’s commitment to ensuring the well-being of the poor is inspirational,” said Jeremy Oppenheim, founder and partner at SYSTEMIQ. “At SYSTEMIQ, we benefit immensely from his experience and leadership as a core member of the Food & Land Use Coalition, where he continues to be a tireless advocate of the lives and livelihoods that depend on healthy food and land use systems. David’s award is highly deserved, and we congratulate him on receiving this incredible honour.”
Founded in 1986 by Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr Norman E. Borlaug, the World Food Prize recognises individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world. This year, the Prize honours Drs Nabarro and Haddad for their leadership in maternal and child undernutrition and contributions to reducing the number of stunted children by 10 million between 2012 and 2017.
The World Food Prize recognises David’s work as head of the UN High-Level Task Force on Global Food Security in 2008 to 2014 and Coordinator of the United Nation’s Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement. During this time, David united 54 countries and one Indian state under the SUN Movement to implement evidence-based policies and fight child malnutrition in South Asia and Africa. Many participating countries reported a significant decline in the number of stunted children after adopting SUN guidelines. David continues to oversee SUN through his service on its advisory Lead Group.
“As I receive this wonderful award, I reflect on the thousands of courageous women and men who are working at local level for food systems that are well-functioning and just,” said David. “They have the wisdom needed to reduce levels of malnutrition or diet-related illness. They can devise food systems that benefit people and the planet and that contribute to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. They are the transformation leaders of the future.”
As part of his role as SYSTEMIQ Special Advisor, David serves as a core member of the Food & Land Use Coalition (FOLU), an initiative that brings together diverse stakeholders to champion sustainable food and land use policies and business models and provides the evidence base to achieve them. Bringing his rich experience in multisectoral partnerships, sustainable development and international diplomacy to bear, David plays an instrumental role in building and strengthening the FOLU network, in particular, convening the International Ambassador Network, chaired by Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever. The network is a group of leaders with diverse experience committed to the urgent transformation of food and land use systems.
Currently, David is Strategic Director of Skills, Systems & Synergies for Sustainable Development (4SD), a Switzerland-based social enterprise to mentor professionals working for sustainable development. In addition to advising FOLU, he also advises the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) on food systems issues and curates the Food Systems Dialogues initiated by EAT, a science-based global platform for food systems transformation, the World Economic Forum and WBCSD. He also holds a position as Professor of Global Health at Imperial College London.
David and Dr Haddad, a FOLU ambassador, will receive the World Food Prize at a ceremony in the Iowa State Capitol building in Des Moines, Iowa, on 18 October 2018. SYSTEMIQ congratulates David on receiving this well-deserved honour.
For more information about the World Food Prize, visit www.worldfoodprize.org/FoodPrize18.
