A Challenging New Profession: Food Systems Development Practice

Abstract

In this issue of the Food Systems Journal we offer a bountiful fall harvest of papers on subjects ranging from urban soils and supply chains to social networks and community building. A cursory look at the titles in this issue would probably not yield a common theme, but it is there in plain sight. It's the same theme that cuts across all our accepted papers and across all issues we publish. That theme is people — us — food systems development practitioners, working hard and enjoying our work (as this fall issue's cover image depicts). We are scholars, farmer-activists, land-use officials, organizers, nutritionists, farmers market managers, food service directors, planners, program volunteers, extension educators, graduate students, and the list goes on. We are stewards of a vast, complicated, and fragile system that is linked to food security, livelihoods, culture, open space, quality of life, and many other multifunctional benefits. Yet as people we have our needs as well....