International Symposium on Understanding the Double Burden of Malnutrition for Effective Interventions

10–13 December 2018, IAEA Headquarters, Vienna (Austria)

The double burden of malnutrition (DBM) is characterized by the coexistence of undernutrition (stunting, wasting, vitamin and mineral deficiency) along with overweight, obesity or diet-related NCDs, within individuals, households and populations, and across the life-course. The developmental and economic impacts of this double burden are serious and lasting, with low and middle income countries bearing the greatest burden. The DBM is united by shared drivers and solutions and therefore calls for integrated nutrition action. 

The purpose of the symposium is to strengthen the understanding of how to address the DBM by sharing recent research findings and country experience with implementing relevant policies and programme interventions.

Objectives

The objective is to provide a forum for estimating and further exploring the magnitude of the DBM, sharing evidence on biological pathways through which early nutrition influences overweight, obesity and NCDs, identifying knowledge gaps and research needs, reviewing efforts that have been undertaken so far to create nutrition enabling environments and discussing considerations for the design and contextualisation of relevant double-duty actions and policies. Finally, the symposium will identify considerations for policies and action plans to support Member States in achieving their defined nutrition commitments within the UN Decade of Action on Nutrition and SDG2.

Topics

The symposium will cover five thematic areas:

  • Epidemiology - Prevalence, causes and consequences of the DBM.
  • Biology - Biological mechanisms contributing to the DBM.
  • Assessment - How to assess the DBM in individuals and populations.
  • Interventions - From biology to interventions targeting the DBM.
  • Policy implications - From biology to policies addressing the DBM.

Key Deadlines

  • 27 May 2018: Online submission of abstracts (INDICO).
    Submission of participation and abstract forms and grant applications (forms A, B, C).
  • 30 June 2018: Notification of acceptance of abstracts.

Abstracts must be submitted in electronic format through the online submission system INDICO available at the symposium web page.

More information on the symposium website
Detailed information on administrative procedures including participation and registration, abstract submission is provided on the symposium web site: 
https://www.iaea.org/events/understanding-the-double-burden-of-malnutrition-symposium-2018

There is no registration fee to attend this symposium.

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Slow Food and the Mountain Partnership Secretariat to bolster mountain people’s livelihoods

Slow Food and the Mountain Partnership Secretariat, hosted by FAO, have signed an agreement to improve the livelihoods of mountain people, with special focus on Cordillera’s mountain community in the Philippines.
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Humanitarian assistance continues to prevent a massive human catastrophe in Yemen but it is not enough

UN agencies warn that an urgent scale up of humanitarian assistance is needed to save lives
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Humanitarian assistance continues to prevent a massive human catastrophe in Yemen but it is not enough

As many as 20 million Yemenis are food insecure in the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. Already, 15.9 million people wake up hungry, according to the latest Integrated food security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis, which is released today by FAO, UNICEF, WFP and humanitarian partners.
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Innovation and joint action needed to achieve sustainable agriculture and food systems

No country alone will be able to overcome all the challenges we face fully, so we must act globally. Nobody must be left behind,” FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva said in closing remarks to the FAO Council.
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United States provides $14.3 million to World Food Programme to support refugees in Kenya

NAIROBI – The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is contributing US$14.3 million (1.4 billion Kenyan shillings) to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to provide food assistance to more than 400,000 refugees living in northern Kenya.
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International Innovation Award for Sustainable Food and Agriculture

Deadline: 28 February 2019

FAO and the Government of Switzerland are calling on individuals, private companies or institutions to submit nominations for the International Innovation Award for Sustainable Food and Agriculture by 28 February 2019.

There are two categories:

  • Award for Digitalization and Innovation for Sustainable Food Systems (USD 40 000) -Innovations that impact more than one level of the supply chain and strengthen the link between farmers and consumers.
  • Award for Innovations that empower youth in agriculture and food systems (USD 20 000) - Innovations that empower youth (under 35) in agriculture and food systems.

Download the nomination form, terms and conditions and explain how your innovation is contributing to the global effort to reach Zero Hunger, and why not add its support to the UN Decade of Action on Nutrition.

For further information, please write to: Innovation-Award@fao.org

 

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FAO Food Price Index declines in November

The FAO Food Price Index averaged 160.1 points for the month of November, down 1.3 percent from October and 8.5 percent from a year earlier.
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eConsultation: Towards a Common Understanding of Sustainable Food Systems

Deadline: 13 December 2018

The Sustainable Food Systems Programme of the UN One Planet Network has launched the online consultation Towards a common understanding of Sustainable Food Systems. This work is in support of the development of a publication on Key Approaches, Concepts and Terms in Relation to Sustainable Food Systems to help reach a common understanding of the challenges faced in the transformation of our food systems. Through this consultation we invite you to share your comments on the V 1.0 draft of the publication to help ensure that key concepts and principal components of a sustainable food systems approach are adequately reflected.

The discussion is also available in French and Spanish on the FSN Forum website and we welcome comments in any of the six UN-languages.

To take part, share your comments on the  FSN Forum website or send them to fsn-moderator@fao.org by 13 December 2018.

We look forward to receiving your inputs and please do not hesitate to extend this invitation to your friends and colleagues.

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Syrian women’s art on show in Istanbul subway station

ANKARA – An art exhibition created by women refugees in Turkey opened on Wednesday at Istanbul’s Yenikapı subway station, a major transit hub. Part of a three-month art initiative, it’s funded by a European Union assistance programme for refugees across Turkey.
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Increased soil contamination puts food safety and food security at risk

Urgent action is needed to address soil pollution and contain the multiple threats it poses to global food safety and food security, said FAO today marking World Soil Day.
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Russia’s PhosAgro donates $1.2 million to improve sustainable soil management in Africa, Latin America and the Near East

The contribution will help farmers to enhance their capacities in soil condition assessment and informed decision-making regarding sustainable soil management, particularly soil fertility, as well as facilitate knowledge exchange among farmers.
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