ABSTRACT

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explores how La Vía Campesina (LVC), since its foundation in 1993, has projected itself as a global actor and opened up political spaces for its members to articulate their needs and transmit their knowledge, interests, and demands in their own voice. It briefly presents the global context and processes around the 2009 Committee on World Food Security (CFS) reform, which gathered speed when the global food crisis hit the media headlines in 2008-2009, leading to the awareness of a crisis in global food governance. The book contributes with analysis that discusses some of the opportunities, tensions and challenges for a social movement seeking to increase its leverage in the international arena while remaining a movement rooted in local and national struggles.