DECEMBER is upon us at last and as the new year begins to loom large most of us inevitably begin to reflect on the year that was and to set goals for the future. What if we were to do this as a nation?
While New Year’s resolutions for an entire country might be overly ambitious, there is value in thinking ahead and considering what it is that we are working towards.
As we’re bombarded by bad news of atrocities, inequalities and threats, any inherent hope we might have can be quickly replaced with an overwhelming sense of impotence. What difference can I make? What impact can we possibly have?
I am deeply privileged to work with a number of organisations who take these questions very seriously. I think of them as the “invisible middles”.
Invisible middles are the people, organisations and groups who fly under the radar. They are seldom in the press, they are not the first line of public scrutiny, and they are neither big nor influential enough to effect change independently. What makes them unique is that they have the purpose and ability to engage both the engine room and those steering the ship. They understand the trade-offs and conflicting interests between different sectors and yet know that there are also places of shared interest and concern.
Realising a more hopeful future will require unlikely allies to stay committed for a period of time, to debate, share, experiment and implement.
I recently took part in the southern Africa Food Lab’s Workshop on Shifting the Food System and saw the Food Lab role as an invisible middle playing out.
The Food Lab brings together diverse, influential – and sometimes opposing – stakeholders in our food system to figure out responses to systemic issues in creative ways.
At the workshop we heard the views of smallholder farmers, prominent retailers, government representatives, academics and NGOs.
It was in some ways overwhelmingly hopeless, but by thinking about it, by weaving together very different ideas and perspectives, a different picture of the future began emerge. Some of these nascent ideas only began to emerge weeks after the event as connections and ideas strengthened.
In their role as an invisible middle, the Food Lab used the workshop to inform and conscientise participants about the issues impacting the food system in the region, while also empowering them to take collaborative action to address identified levers key for making changes.
Invisible middles are critical connectors in South Africa, an environment that so often experiences intractable division. We won’t necessarily all know about these invisible middles or hear about them in the press, but as we more actively seek them out and notice their role, we might experience a change in ourselves – how we make sense of our shared challenges, who to work with, and how we choose to act together.
• Magner represents Reos Partners on the Southern Africa Food Lab Advisory Board.