UNDP has, with partners, initiated and led a range of global initiatives aiming to transform Food Systems, and operates as a core partner in global alliances.

UNDP Food Systems projects and initiatives aim to Change Systems through Collective Action (CSCA), an approach evolved over more than 10 years of experience in bringing stakeholders together in food and value chain systems. The Food Systems team is skilled in taking a holistic, system-wide approach to transformative change.

The Conscious Food Systems Alliance (CoFSA), is a movement of food, agriculture, and consciousness practitioners, convened by UNDP, and united around a common goal: to support people from across food and agriculture systems to cultivate the inner capacities that activate systemic change and regeneration.

The Food & Agricultural Commodity Systems Community (FACS Community) builds on the neutral convening power of UNDP to serve the learning needs of nearly 1000 project practitioners, global change makers, sector specialists and local leaders from government, business, international organizations, and civil society.

The Food and Power Initiative (FPI) is an emerging global programme which aims to support countries and stakeholders to better understand, navigate and address the power dynamics of food systems transformation. 

The Food Systems, Land Use, and Restoration FOLUR Impact Program, supported by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and led by the World Bank (WB), seeks to transform the global food system by promoting sustainable, integrated landscapes and efficient commodity value chains. UNDP, leading the Good Growth Partnership (GGP), supports this program, which consists of a Global Platform providing support services to 27 Country Projects targeting the production landscapes of eight commodities: beef, cocoa, corn, coffee, palm oil, rice, soy, and wheat. 

The Green Commodities Programme, funded by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), exists to improve the national, economic, social and environmental performance of agricultural commodity sectors. In 2010, UNDP launched the GCP in recognition of the importance of global agricultural commodities in achieving the SDGs, with a mission to improve the lives of farmers and their communities, and protect high conservation value forest and important vulnerable ecosystems.

The Systems Monitoring, Learning, and Evaluation (SMLE) initiative was launched by UNDP in 2023, with support from the Gates Foundation, to rethink how monitoring, learning, and evaluation can better be used to address complex challenges such as climate change, food insecurity, and biodiversity loss. 

Learn more about our global initiatives below.