AgriKulture Culture & Food Security GLoCaL Planet Reset
Dr Kris Rampersad 
Reaching Across Generations from PreSchool to Policy Making BioCultural Synergies for Environment, Gender & Culture Sensitivity & Consciousness with Dr Kris Rampersad
The Pandemic propelled countries and communities to look inward, curb foreign consumption habits and develop local food sources.
But there has been a more pernicious ailment with regards to securing food supplies, diversification of the economy through agriculture and investing in and developing the agriculture sector.It relates to the culture of agriculture, historical and entrenched attitudes that inhibit the industry.
The GloCal Knowledge Pot #AgriKulture initiative aims to unearth, cultivate new attitudes and beliefs to transform the culture and productivity of the sector as a central force for development into the Post Pandemic Planet.Sharing here a series on working for the global campaign for food security, investing in agriculture that interconnects from policy through to education and advocacy.
Global Agenda Setting: The Brussels Dialogues
The Brussels Rural Development Briefings is a series of meetings on ACP-EU development issues Briefing session n°14 was on European Union Africa Caribbean Pacific ACP Agricultural and Rural Development: why media matters?
The Kris Rampersad coordinated the Caribbean media presence and input into the CTA ACP EU Seminar on Media & Agriculture and presented on media and communications challenges on the sustainable development agenda for food security. She was also a panellist on the high level ACP-EU Brussels Dialogiues
Dr Kris Rampersad on Communicating Agriculture
Flashback: From the Conference Report
Dr. Krishendaye Rampersad, Media and Literary Consultant
from Trinidad, underlined the opportunity to have such an
open dialogue.
We perceive media as highly technological
whereas communities in ACP are largely rural and these
communities’ media embody different forms – drama, stage
street theatres – which are not recognized as media.
Politicians associate media with the screen, television, front page news. Traditional media should be seen and appreciated as a valuable
resource to get messages linked to agriculture and rural development across. In her words, the agricultural sector needs to think about how it can strengthen itself and its communication resources in order to liaise with media and get the messages across.
Agricultural producers and researchers should
be trained to convey scientific data to the agricultural
communities through the media. https://brusselsbriefings.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/report_briefing_media1.pdf
Biodata of Speakers at Brussels Briefings
Dr. Kris Rampersad Sustainable Development Consultant, Agriculture & Rural Development
Dr. Kris Rampersad is an independent media consultant, journalist and social activist associated with the Network of NGOS of Trinidad and Tobago for the Advancement of Women.
She has prepared communications and outreach strategies to help bridge
relations between international, governmental, intergovernmental agencies, private sector, and civil society with media, specifically for the CIVICUS World Alliance, the Commonwealth Foundation, and the Active Democracy – Citizens Network for Implementation of the Mandates of the Summits of the Americas process of the Organization of American States.
She pioneered environmental reporting in the region as a reporter and editor with newspaper series as Discover Trinidad and Tobago, and Environment Friendly. She also writes and produces for television, and worked on such environment/agricultural related programmes as Cross Country and Survival. Her focus has been on linking through cultural forms, communications, outreach and policy, to development needs.
She advocates and uses culture-friendly means to promoting consumer rights, food price control, better nutrition, and strengthening the agricultural sector of the region.
She introduced and is helping to entrench the Agriculture Roundtable (ART) format that provides an open forum space for media and agricultural stakeholders to interface with each other to the Caribbean.
She is an honorary member of the Pointe-A-Pierre Wild Fowl Trust.
At the moment Kris Rampersad works as a consultant with CARDI on the project “Improving CARDI Outreach and Communication”, and is coordinating the Media Awards for Excellence in Agricultural
Journalism with the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation in Agriculture.
Sources of Inspiration
The Brussels Briefings on Media and Agriculture took place at the 12th October 2009 – 14h30 – 18h30
European Commission – Borschette Centre, Rue Froissart 36 – Brussels Room 0A http://brusselsbriefings.net
More on Speakers at Brussels Briefings
More on Delegations to ACP EU Agriculture Seminarhttp://d6pkxqzj2uywe.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/CTA_Briefing_list__of__participants-Caraibes-defo.pdf
In the News
More on Caribbean participation in ACP EU Seminar: See this link:
ACP conference aims to boost media coverage of rural agri
Trinidad and Tobago’s Dr Kris Rampersad stated that there is an urgent need for investment in training to develop the sector. She said that on the part of the agriculture sector, officials there should also think of how the agency can strengthen itself where media relations are concerned. – Stabroek News
brusselsbriefings.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/br14_biodata_eng.pdf
By Stabroek News October 16, 2009
By Alva Solomon in Brussels, Belgium
Over 150 officials and journalists from African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries have gathered in Brussels, Belgium for a conference that aims to bridge the gap between agriculture development in rural areas and coverage of this sector by media.
The conference, which is being held under the theme ’The Role of the media in Agricultural and Rural Development of ACP countries’, commenced on Monday with a briefing session for participants at the European Commission building at the Borschette Centre in Brussels.
The gathering is part of the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) 25th anniversary celebrations and aims to bridge the gap between agriculture development in rural areas by reaching target audiences in ACP countries via the mainstream media. Participants hail from more than 40 ACP countries.
In his remarks at the opening briefing, Ian Barber of the European Union emphasized the importance of the media in the various democracies. He said that the media acts as a watchdog and gatekeeper, ensuring that presentations by democratic governments are important to all areas of governance.
According to the CTA head, while most governments and private entities are investing in agriculture, there is also a simultaneous need for such entities to invest in media and communication. He said that most media houses /journalists are not specialists where coverage of agricultural matters is concerned. In this light, he pointed out that the CTA has undertaken several strategies to ensure that key messages are conveyed on agricultural issues; making agriculture a better, more appealing theme where journalism is concerned.
Among the reasons highlighted for agriculture issues receiving little recognition within the mainstream media were poor infrastructure within media houses, lack of equipment, lack of education on agriculture activities on the part of journalists and poor output resulting out of the latter. Recommendations brought to the fore within the first session on Monday were the need for improved skills where journalists are concerned; improved relationships between government agencies and the media; as well as the recognition of the important roles technology plays within the field, the latter being highlighted as advanced in the Caribbean as compared to Africa and parts of the Pacific.Trinidad and Tobago’s Dr Krishendaye Rampersad – one of several Caricom representatives attending the conference, stated that there is an urgent need for investment in training to develop the sector. She said that on the part of the agriculture sector, officials there should also think of how the agency can strengthen itself where media relations are concerned.
Ignatius Jean, the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) representative based in Guyana told participants that there have been moves to improve relations between the mainstream media and the agriculture sector within Caricom. According to the former St Lucia government minister, “we love and hate the media but we can’t live without them”. He noted that it is important for partnerships to be a part of the media/agriculture development relationship. The agriculture official said the media has a symbiotic relationship with democracy, noting that it plays a powerful role as an agent for change in some societies.
Among the points raised at Monday’s session, which was moderated in part by former CNN news anchor Tumi Makgabo and Trinidad’s Dr Eugenia Springer, were the communication strategies used by various players within the mainstream media; the need for skills development of journalists; and access to more readily available information. Gender issues regarding cultural or personal issues preventing women in some societies from playing a part was also discussed.
Dr Kris Rampersad is an expert and board member of the International Institute of Gastronomy, Culture, the Arts and Tourism (ICGAT). See profile here
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