Helene is a contributor and coordinator at ARC2020, co-director of the London Freedom Seed Bank and contributor for various other publications concerned with the intersections between food, agriculture and social justice. She recently completed a Masters degree in Environmental Governance at the University of Oxford. There she wrote her thesis on seed sovereignty and biodiversity conservation in the United Kingdom. Her work focuses on agroecology, (urban) food justice, experimental and participatory policymaking and art-science collaborations for expanding the reach and potential of the food movement.
As the CAPSELLA project comes to an end, Helene Schulze reflects on her visit to the closing conference in Milan and what it means to have an open-data mindset. How can technology further agroecology? How can we ensure that this technology does not reinforce existing inequalities in the food system? […]
Disappointed at the inability of their respective agriculture ministers to produce a joint statement on the future of CAP, an alliance of French and German organisations has stepped in. Addressing their ministers, here are their propositions for the upcoming reform. […]
In part 2 of our re:CAP series we return to Christian Rehmer (BUND, Friends of the Earth Germany), Aurélie Catallo (Pour Une Autre PAC), Ulrich Jaspers (AbL and Die Verbände-Plattform) and Ariel Brunner and Harriet Bradley (BirdLife) to talk capping. What should be the level for capping and redistribution and what should be the criteria for that? […]
The next CAP will likely give more power to Member States which may renationalise CAP. This raises questions about EU-level enforcement. Christian Rehmer (BUND, Friends of the Earth Germany), Aurélie Catallo (Pour Une Autre PAC), Ulrich Jaspers, AbL and Die Verbände-Plattform and Ariel Brunner and Harriet Bradley (BirdLife) share their ideas. […]
ARC wants to know where the key NGOs and civil society groups stand on the particularly pertinent CAP questions of the moment. It’s all in here: Capping, young farmers, budget shortfalls, agri-environmental schemes, co-financing, risk management and subsidiarity. […]
IPES-Food hosted the EU Food and Farming Forum – #EU3F – the culmination of 3 years of work to create a Common Food Policy. The aim of EU3F is to co-create a Common Food Policy (CFP), following 3 years of multi-stakeholder, Brussels-based Policy Labs, a range of Local Labs in cities across Europe and work with 30 partner organisations. Helene Schulze of ARC reports on how it went.
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The European Commission has released its budgetary proposals for the CAP post-2020. Commissioner Hogan held a press conference to present his vision for the future CAP. Here’s a first look. […]
IFOAM EU and FiBL claim that their CAP plan is “a more effective and cost-efficient” as it will integrate “sustainability assessment in the design, targeting and monitoring of policies and in payment allocation.” And this more targeted, clear, performance-orientated CAP will be accepted by “both farmers and citizens.” […]
A number of NGOs, farmer and consumer organisations have issued a joint statement in French and German, calling for a fundamental CAP reform. Read our exclusive translation. […]
ARC2020 has teamed up with Meine Landwirtschaft, Friends of the Earth Europe, Heinrich Boell Foundation, European Coordination Via Campesina, Bread for the World and Pour une autre PAC, to host European Days For Action across the continent. It’s time to get organising – join us this October to raise the alarm! […]
The European Commission envisages a future CAP where funding is based on performance. How could such a delivery model ensure more ambitious environmental policy rather than business-as-usual? The IEEP provides some ideas.
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On the day of an unsuccessful Agrifish Council meeting, the ECA publishes a damning report on CAP performance and the Commission’s Communication. […]
Ministers of agriculture from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland sign joint declaration on future of CAP ,calling for full convergence of direct payments. […]
Greening measures found to be ineffective in enhancing the CAPs environmental performance, a report by the European Court of Auditors finds. As well as critique of the current greening measures, the ECA report provided a set of recommendations to improve environmental performance in the upcoming CAP reform. […]
Somewhere between convenience, efficiency, cost saving and a comprehensive EU surveillance mega state, the use of drones and other in-the-sky technologies for ensuring CAP compliance represents, as it were, a Brave New World. Helene Schultz unpacks the details. […]
Agricultural and Rural Convention