About the Authors: Catherine Woteki serves as Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics and Chief Scientist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Nick Sinai serves as the U.S. Deputy Chief Technology Officer.

In an exciting opportunity, the G-8 is inviting innovators to apply to present ideas that demonstrate how open data can be unleashed to increase food security at the G-8 International Conference on Open Data for Agriculture on April 29-30, 2013 in Washington, D.C.

Open data is being used by innovators and entrepreneurs around the world to accelerate development, whether it be tracking election transparency in Kenya or providing essential information to rural farmers in Uganda. The G-8 conference will convene policy makers, thought leaders, food security stakeholders, and data experts to discuss the role of public, agriculturally-relevant… more »

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton delivers remarks at a G-8 Deauville Partnership With Arab Countries in Transition Foreign Ministers meeting in New York, New York on September 27, 2012. A text transcript can be found at http://www.state.gov/secretary/rm/2012/09/198406.htm.

About the Author: Tjada McKenna serves as the Deputy Coordinator for Development for Feed the Future, and Jonathan Shrier serves as the Acting Special Representative for Global Food Security and as the Deputy Coordinator for Diplomacy for Feed the Future.

1. What is the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition, and who is participating?

The New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition is a commitment by G-8 members, African countries, and private sector partners to achieve sustained and inclusive agricultural growth to lift 50 million people out of poverty over the next 10 years. It builds upon the progress and commitments made in 2009 at the L’Aquila G-8 Summit, and offers a broad and innovative path to strengthen food security and nutrition.

The New Alliance includes specific commitments from:

- African leaders to refine policies in order to improve investment opportunities and drive their country-led plans on food security;
- Private sector partners, who have collectively committed more than $3 billion to increase investments; and
- G-8 members, who will support Africa’s potential… more »

On May 18-19, 2012, the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, and the EU joined President Barack Obama at Camp David for the annual G8 Summit. The leaders met to address major global economic, political, and security challenges, including energy and climate change, food security and nutrition, Afghanistan’s economic transition and transitions taking place across the Middle East and North Africa.

In his remarks at the closing of the Summit, President Obama said, “For the past three years, our nations have worked together and with others first to rescue a global economy from freefall, then to wrestle it back to a path of recovery and growth. Our progress has been tested… more »

The White House
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
May 19, 2012
Camp David, Maryland

THE PRESIDENT:  All right, everybody, listen up.  First of all, I want to welcome all the leaders here.  The press, you’re welcome as long as you don’t break anything.  (Laughter.) 

This is, by the way, the largest gathering ever of international leaders at Camp David, and I’m glad that we could arrange for good weather.  Last night, we had a chance to discuss some core issues that affect our common security.  And I want to say that we are unified when it comes to our approach with Iran.  I think all of us agree that Iran has the right to peaceful nuclear power, but that its continuing violations of international rules and norms and its inability thus far to convince the world community that it is not pursuing the weaponization of nuclear power is something of grave concern to all of us. 

We are hopeful about the discussions that will be taking [place] in Baghdad, but all of us are firmly committed to continuing with the approach of sanctions and pressure, in combination with diplomatic discussions.  And our hope is, is that we can resolve this issue in a peaceful fashion that respects Iran’s sovereignty and its rights in the international community, but also recognizes its responsibilities. MORE

Remarks
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State
Benjamin Franklin Room
Washington, DC
May 17, 2012

SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, this is a very exciting time for all of us, which includes everyone in this room who has been working together in order to realize the dream of an effective, functioning partnership around food and nutrition security. And to those of you who have traveled from afar to be here in Washington, we welcome you. And in particular, we are honored to have the heads of state and government who have been introduced. These gentlemen are here because they understand the opportunity that is being presented to have a true partnership, a global partnership around the ending of food insecurity, hunger, and malnutrition. And we are very impressed that you have taken this leadership position and the time to be with us.

Also in this room are representatives of the G-8 nations. This G-8 effort began in Italy, and I see friends of mine from the Government of Italy who began this process in L’Aquila. And at Camp David this weekend, in partnership with our African partners, we take it to the next level. MORE

About the Author: Tjada McKenna serves as Deputy Coordinator for Development for Feed the Future.

You may have noticed a lot of increased talk about “food security” lately, particularly in the international development realm. There’s good reason for that.

A family experiences food security when it lives without hunger or even fear of hunger. In essence, it means that people have enough food to live happy, healthy lives. It’s a right I’m sure we all wish were accessible to every man, woman, and child on the planet.

Yet global hunger and chronic malnutrition remain two of the greatest development challenges today. Nearly 20 percent of all people in the world live on less than $1.25 a day, and almost one billion suffer from chronic hunger. Compounding this problem is the fact that, by 2050, the global population is expected to grow to more than nine billion people, requiring up to a 70 percent increase in agricultural production to feed us all. Given increasingly… more »

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton poses with her G8 counterparts for the G8 Foreign Ministers Meeting at the Blair House in Washington, D.C. on April 11, 2012.