Community-based solidarity movements in response to food and climate injustice

Food insecurity and climate change are coupled challenges facing modern society. While climate change directly causes weather fluctuations, with consequences for food security and sovereignty, current global food systems threaten the climate and environment. We ask: how can social work learn from and support community-based models that challenge oppressive structures, honour traditional and alternative ways of knowing, and work towards the equitable redistribution of resources and access to sustainably sourced and produced food with minimal harm to humans, non-human animals and the planet? We examine a place-based social economy model from North America, Cuba’s national small-scale organic food system, and global endeavours towards a just transition in animal agriculture. We frame these exemplars as solidarity models with divergent strategies, albeit with convergent goals towards food, climate, environmental and social justice. Social work must embrace its role in solidarity-forward, action-oriented and educational frameworks to promote radical equality, collective liberation and justice.