Help Bring Young Farmers to Milan: Give Expo a Soul!
21 May 2015

They are young, but they are many and they constitute a great force. They are scattered all over the world and are now preparing to converge in Milan to feed the planet with renewed hope. We are talking about the farmers, breeders, fishers and students who will meet in Milan from October 3-6 for an event organized by the Slow Food Youth Network to discuss the future of food: Terra Madre Giovani – We Feed the Planet.
The event is timed to coincide with the final weeks of Expo 2015, which is being held in Milan from May to October. Despite the theme of Expo being “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life,” it seems that many participants have failed to address the topic, focusing on elaborate pavilions rather than content. With that in mind, alongside its space at Expo, Slow Food wants to present a tangible solution to the question of how to feed the planet: the people who work hard, night and day, to ensure we have food on our plates.
With plans for the October event now well underway, an essential mechanism has been put in place to help raise funds to cover the travel costs of a number of young farmers hoping to travel to Italy for this unique meeting. The new crowdfunding platform was launched on May 21, asking people to make even a small donation to help bring those who really feed the planet to the Expo stage. Find it in English and Italian here: www.wefeedtheplanet.com
Saatchi & Saatchi, the world-renowned communications and advertising agency, created the platform. They decided to focus on young farmers, so-called Small Scale Producers, making them the protagonists of a communication campaign involving the entire city of Milan. A series of small statuettes depicting different nationalities and ethnicities, created by skilled nativity scene artisans from Naples, are being placed in strategic spots around the city, perfectly integrated within the urban context. They create surprising dioramas bearing the message: “We Feed The Planet”.
The website also features a video showing the creation of the statuettes, a journey which starts in the artisans’ small shops in Naples and takes them up to Milan. The fundraising campaign has already received the endorsement of distinguished names such as Alice Waters and Juventus footballer Claudio Marchisio, showing their support through video messages.
“The future of the planet lies in the hands of the younger generation, and the only solution is to discuss and debate, because caring about the food we eat means caring for natural resources and everyone’s health. This is why it is so important to give these young people the possibility of meeting and sowing the seeds for a better future for us all…” says Petrini.
Watch this space and make a donation today!
#WeFeedThePlanet #WFTP
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