Perspectives on the Roles of Civil Society in Advancing Food System Transformation and Sustainable Agriculture

Dear Colleagues,

Neoliberalism has served, and still serves, as the prevailing public governance approach across the world for more than 40 years. That frame calls on governments to minimize their roles in national political economies in favor of market and civil society institutions. This ideology implicitly assumes that the latter, particularly, will continue to ensure citizens’ acculturation to democratic values and cooperative possibility, even as those factors are subordinated to market values that are linked foremost to personal preference, acquisition, efficiency, and the influences of productivism. Proponents of neoliberalism also assume broadly that civil societies will continue to serve as incubators or laboratories for social change activism. Critics of neoliberalism, as a dominant force in the food system, seek to challenge its influence and reframe civil society-centered human rights frameworks to guide efforts toward racial, gender, environmental, and climate justice, envisioning a more sustainable food system. Given this scenario, the editors of this Special Issue welcome analyses that treat the many different roles civil society actors may play to secure more sustainable and equitable food systems in nations and cultures around the globe.

Analyses may take the form of empirical studies, theoretical explorations, or literature reviews that investigate the factors or influences that mediate how would-be civil society social change actors are building capacity, developing partnerships, or creating spaces for enhanced participation in decision making and collective action to secure increased sustainability and equity in the food systems of which they are a part. These contributions could also examine how reflexivity in civil society spaces serves as a foundation for incorporating the lived experiences of those most affected by current food system policies and practices into efforts for social change. More specifically, we welcome submissions that analyze the following:

• How civil society entities, whether organizations or social movements, may work to develop the public awareness and partnerships necessary to attain changes in social values and norms to secure shifts toward more sustainable food systems. 
• The ways in which civil society is integrating human rights in food system policy and action in and across the Global South and North.
• How civil society movements and organizations can support subsistence farmers and promote improved livelihoods in the face of the following challenges: (1) limited awareness of alternative production methods, (2) substantial opportunity costs of change, (3) the escalating impacts of climate change, (4) inadequate or underdeveloped market infrastructure and transportation access, and (5) the prevalence of frequent and prolonged armed conflicts in many countries.
• How civil society actors can partner with government or market stakeholders to drive meaningful change in prevailing food systems, including the necessary efforts and strategies to ensure that these partnerships are intentionally collaborative, fair, and effective.

We welcome studies from multiple perspectives, including theoretically informed case analyses and critical examinations of the implications of the existing neoliberal frame in alternate contexts that identify practicable paths forward or more adequate theorizations for changes that will lead to more sustainable food systems. Acknowledging the multifaceted nature of this challenge, we look forward to receiving a range of contributions that address its many dimensions.

Dr. Max O. Stephenson
Dr. Kim Niewolny
Dr. Lia Kelinsky-Jones
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• sustainable agriculture
• civil society organizations and movements
• complex partnerships for social and food systems’ change