The overall aim of the project is to support Dutch regional food initiatives with action-oriented research. This includes: the identification of characteristics of promising regional partnerships to facilitate co-learning and collective action; developing recognizable principles and narratives that promote regional food systems; scaling up across value chains, sectors, and geographies; and, identification of (governance) options to connect people and regional food initiatives.
The objectives are:
1. Develop archetypes of regional food partnerships and analyze the options for scaling up, scaling out and scaling deep of the different food partnerships and collectives. This will require developing an overview of the characteristics of partnerships and assessing a number of baseline data like aims of the partnership, motives for participation, ambitions, success factors and barriers, governance models and business models. Collecting of different narratives deployed by the regional food partnerships and combining these with consumer demands can be part of this baseline assessment.
2. Identifying and evaluating options for further collaboration across multiple scales and actors, in collaboration with (a number) of food partnerships and stakeholders.
3. Cross-fertilization and learning between regions
4. Broadening alliances and restructuring relationships to support the national food movement on local and regional food.
