Vitality for People and the Planet: Ashoka Globalizer in Frankfurt, Germany

The Globalizer Summit will share the vision of Nutrients for All: Vitality for People and the Planet and showcase the social innovators, businesses, and international organizations who are leading this movement from every corner of the world.

The vision stems from the growing understanding that nutrients are the connecting thread between our health and vitality, the food we eat, and the environment from which food comes: the connecting thread between stunted babies and the inability to learn in poor countries, the obesity epidemic in rich countries, and soil degradation almost everywhere.   

In South Africa, a respected mining engineer concerned about the wasting away of AIDS and TB patients developed a full nourishment food supplement that goes beyond anything available from conventional sources, enabling patients to make remarkable improvements in only a few months. In Belgium, a young pharmacist catalyzed food suppliers, restaurants, and ordinary consumers into a community focused on full nourishment food choices and preparation methods that improve wellness and the quality of life. In Zambia, a conservationist dealing with malnutrition and hunger among small farmers was able to show them how to restore the nutritional quality of their soils and improve their farming techniques, dramatically improving their ability to nourish themselves and their families.     

These examples go beyond conventional notions of nutrition, beyond the debates over food security or organic versus non-organic. They suggest solutions that can generate full nourishment in soils, crops, foods, and human beings.

The conference also features:

• Leading social entrepreneurs—Ashoka Fellows—from around the world showcasing their innovations.

• Partner organizations, companies and experts—such as the Global Alliance for Nutrition, DSM, the author Hans Biesalski, and Professor Buddy Ratner—that are joining with Ashoka to catalyze the Nutrients for All Movement.

• Disruptive methods for measuring nutrients and nourishment.

• Prospective field trials—with mothers/infants, primary school children, employer/employees, and small farmers—to document the benefits of full nutrition strategies.