Led by a professional chef instructor, the six-week pre-employment program, Cooking for Life, trains young people for entry-level jobs through hands-on experience, including preparing some items in bulk for the residents' meals.

1. Guaranteeing the Right to Food. Guaranteeing the human right to adequate food--now and for future generations--requires that policymakers incorporate this right into food security laws and programs at the regional, national, and international level. Governments have a role in providing the public goods to support sustainable agriculture, including extension services, farmer-to-farmer transmission of knowledge, storage facilities, and infrastructure that links farmers to consumers.
2. Harnessing the Nutritional and Economic Potential of Vegetables. Micronutrient deficiencies, including lack of vitamin A, iodine, and iron, affect 1 billion people worldwide. Promoting indigenous vegetables that are rich in micronutrients could help reduce malnutrition. Locally adapted vegetable varieties are hardier and more dependable than staple crops, making them ideal for smallholder farmers. Research organizations like AVRDC/The World Vegetable Center are developing improved vegetable varieties, such as amaranth and African eggplant, and cultivating an appreciation for traditional foods among consumers.
3. Reducing Food Waste. Experts continue to emphasize increasing global food production, yet our money could be better spent on reducing food waste and post-harvest losses. Already, a number of low-input and regionally appropriate storage and preservation techniques are working to combat food waste around the world. In Pakistan, farmers cut their harvest losses by 70 percent by switching from jute bags and containers constructed with mud to more durable metal containers. And in West Africa, farmers have saved around 100,000 mangos by using solar dryers to dry the fruit after harvest.
4. Feeding Cities. The U.N. estimates that 70 percent of the world's people will live in cities by 2050, putting stress on available food. Urban agriculture projects are helping to improve food security, raise incomes, empower women, and improve urban environments. In sub-Saharan Africa, the Educational Concerns for Hunger Organization (ECHO) has helped city farmers build food gardens, using old tires to create crop beds. And community supported agriculture (CSA) programs in Cape Town, South Africa, are helping to raise incomes and provide produce for school meals.
5. Getting More Crop per Drop. Many small farmers lack access to a reliable source of water, and water supplies are drying up as extraction exceeds sustainable levels. Only 4 percent of sub-Saharan Africa's cultivated land is equipped for irrigation, and a majority of households depend on rainfall to water their crops--which climate scientists predict will decline in coming decades. Efficient water management in agriculture can boost crop productivity for these farmers. By practicing conservation tillage, weeding regularly, and constructing vegetative barriers and earthen dams, farmers can harness rainfall more effectively.
6. Using Farmers' Knowledge in Research and Development. Agricultural research and development processes typically exclude smallholder farmers and their wealth of knowledge, leading to less-efficient agricultural technologies that go unused. Research efforts that involve smallholder farmers alongside agricultural scientists can help meet specific local needs, strengthen farmers' leadership abilities, and improve how research and education systems operate. In southern Ethiopia's Amaro district, a community-led body carried out an evaluation of key problems and promising solutions using democratic decision-making to determine what type of research should be funded. 
7. Improving Soil Fertility. Africa's declining soil fertility may lead to an imminent famine; already, it is causing harvest productivity to decline 15-25 percent, and farmers expect harvests to drop by half in the next five years. Green manure/cover crops, including living trees, bushes, and vines, help restore soil quality and are an inexpensive and feasible solution to this problem. In the drought-prone Sahel region, the Dogon people of Mali are using an innovative, three-tiered system and are now harvesting three times the yield achieved in other parts of the Sahel. 
8. Safeguarding Local Food Biodiversity. Over the past few decades, traditional African agriculture based on local diversity has given way to monoculture crops destined for export. Less-healthy imports are replacing traditional, nutritionally rich foods, devastating local economies and diets. Awareness-raising initiatives and efforts to improve the quality of production and marketing are adding value to and encouraging diversification and consumption of local products. In Ethiopia's Wukro and Wenchi villages, honey producers are training with Italian and Ethiopian beekeepers to process and sell their honey more efficiently, promote appreciation for local food, and compete with imported products.
9. Coping with Climate Change and Building Resilience. Global climate change, including higher temperatures and increased periods of drought, will negatively impact agriculture by reducing soil fertility and decreasing crop yields. Although agriculture is a major contributor to climate change, accounting for about one-third of global emissions, agricultural practices, such as agroforestry and the re-generation of natural resources, can help mitigate climate change. In Niger, farmers have planted nearly 5 million hectares of trees that conserve water, prevent soil erosion, and sequester carbon, making their farms more productive and drought-resistant without damaging the environment.
10. Harnessing the Knowledge and Skills of Women Farmers. According to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, women represent 43 percent of the agricultural labor force, but due to limited access to inputs, land, and services, they produce less per unit of land than their male counterparts. Improving women's access to agricultural extension services, credit programs, and information technology can help empower women, while reducing global hunger and poverty. In Uganda, extension programs are introducing women farmers to coolbot technology, which uses solar energy and an inverter to reduce temperatures and prolong the shelf life of vegetables.
11. Investing in Africa's Land: Crisis and Opportunity. As pressure to increase food production rises, wealthy countries in the Middle East and Asia are acquiring cheap land in Africa to increase their food productivity. This has led to the exploitation of small-scale African farmers, compromising their food security. Agricultural investment models that create collaborations between African farmers and the foreign investing countries can be part of the solution. In Ethiopia's Rift Valley, farmers grow green beans for the Dutch market during the European winter months, but cultivate corn and other crops for local consumption during the remaining months.  
12. Charting a New Path to Eliminating Hunger. Nearly 1 billion people around the world are hungry, 239 million of whom live in sub-Saharan Africa. To alleviate hunger, we must shift our attention beyond the handful of crops that have absorbed most of agriculture's attention and focus on ways to improve farmers' access to inputs and make better use of the food already produced. Innovations--such as the human-powered pump that can increase access to irrigation and low-cost plastic bags that help preserve grains--offer models that can be scaled-up and replicated beyond Africa.
13. Moving Ecoagriculture into the Mainstream. Agricultural practices that emphasize increased production have contributed to the degradation of land, soil, and local ecosystems, and ultimately hurt the livelihoods of the farmers who depend on these natural resources. Agroecological methods, including organic farming practices, can help farmers protect natural resources and provide a sustainable alternative to costly industrial inputs. These include rotational grazing for livestock in Zimbabwe's savanna region and tea plantations in Kenya, where farmers use intercropping to improve soil quality and boost yields.
14. Improving Food Production from Livestock. In the coming decades, small livestock farmers in the developing world will face unprecedented challenges: demand for animal-source foods, such as milk and meat, is increasing, while animal diseases in tropical countries will continue to rise, hindering trade and putting people at risk. Innovations in livestock feed, disease control, and climate change adaptation--as well as improved yields and efficiency--are improving farmers' incomes and making animal-source food production more sustainable. In India, farmers are improving the quality of their feed by using grass, sorghum, stover, and brans to produce more milk from fewer animals.
15. Going Beyond Production. Although scarcity and famine dominate the discussion of food security in sous-Saharan Africa, many countries are unequipped to deal with the crop surpluses that lead to low commodity prices and food waste. Helping farmers better organize their means of production--from ordering inputs to selling their crops to a customer--can help them become more resilient to fluctuations in global food prices and better serve local communities that need food. In Uganda, the organization TechnoServe has helped to improve market conditions for banana farmers by forming business groups through which they can buy inputs, receive technical advice, and sell their crops collectively.

New York City should support existing community-based farmers markets and promote the establish- ment of new ones. The City needs to cut red tape, streamline permitting processes, establish clear procedures where current systems are ad hoc, and align fees with the policy goal of increasing access to fresh fruits and vegetables in underserved communities. Specifically, in order to improve the operating environment for community-based farmers markets, the City should:

1. Eliminate Daily Permit Fees for Markets in Low-Income Areas

2. Simplify and Clarify the Process

• Assign oversight of farmers markets to a single City entity 

• Create a uniform application process 

• Create a guide to operating a farmers market

3. Create Standard Procedures for Farmers Market Parking

• Department of Transportation must create a clear policy for requesting signage 

• Appropriate agencies must develop farmers market parking placards 

• NYPD traffic officers must be trained regarding enforcement for farmers market parking

4. Create Information and Outreach Campaign About Using Federal and State Nutrition Supports at Farmers Markets

5. Increase Access to Urban Land for Farming

• Assess land availability and suitability for urban agriculture 

• Create a citywide urban agriculture program 

• Ensure the permanence of community gardens

6. Increase Access to Commercial Kitchen Space

• Explore use of City-owned kitchens 

• Create online portal of available kitchen space

1. Make a difference in the global clean water crisis. One in eight people -- almost one billion -- on our planet do not have access to safe water. Illnesses resulting from a lack of safe water kill more young children than AIDS, malaria, and measles combined. Tragically, the United Nations has reported that even more people die from unsafe water than from all forms of violence, including war. This is one of the great tragedies and challenges of our time and it's something that our generation has the technology and resources to address. There are several outstanding and highly credible organizations that are making a measurable difference for communities throughout the world. I recommend NYC-based charity: water.
2. Manage your personal water footprint. Your water consumption goes far beyond the tap. We teamed up with the National Geographic Society to put together a simple and robust water calculator at NationalGeographic.com/water. It's amazing how easy and practical it is to cut your water footprint by 10 to 15-percent.
3. Get involved on your own waterfront. Every single one of us lives on the waterfront. Your waterfront may be the storm drain on your street, the creek in your backyard or the ocean that borders your town -- our relationship with water in all of its forms is critical to the health and well being of our families, our communities and our water planet. Taking care of this intergenerational community asset goes beyond what most think of as "environmentalism" and gets to the very heart of how we define healthy communities; how we manage the resources that create jobs and local economy; and how we build local capacity now for the challenges ahead.

My grandfather Jacques-Yves Cousteau was always baffled when people would ask him why he was such a vocal advocate for protecting water resources. He would usually begin his response with, "When you go and see..." and then paint the picture as only he could of the majesty and importance of the water place in question.

His advice still rings true today. I challenge you to explore your local waterfront. Take a walk along the creek or river in your city and ask yourself if it's the kind of place where you'd let your children swim. Stop for a moment the next time it rains and consider the water you see running off of your property or along a nearby street and ask yourself if you'd eat fish from the waters it drains to. Go and see the places where your drinking water is sourced.

Regardless of backgrounds or political philosophies, I believe we all want to live and raise our families in communities where our local water is safe enough for swimming, drinking and fishing. On this World Water Day, I challenge you to explore and get involved in your own waterfront.