Food Indaba 2026 One-Day Conference
Water, food and the coming crisis: Lessons from Day Zero and pathways to resilience
Against the backdrop of mounting climate instability, intensifying droughts, ecosystem degradation and growing pressure on urban infrastructure, this one-day conference explores the deep and increasingly urgent relationship between water and food security. Anchored in the experiences of Cape Town’s Day Zero crisis and emerging global concerns around “water bankruptcy”, the programme brings together researchers, policymakers, activists, municipalities, innovators, community organisers and the private sector to examine what lies ahead — and how societies can respond before crisis becomes catastrophe.
The conference situates water as both an environmental issue and a political, social and food systems issue. Discussions will move from historical understandings of water in the Cape, to global trends in water scarcity, to the lived realities of drought restrictions, food access and community resilience. The programme also foregrounds practical responses: technological innovation, governance interventions, local mitigation strategies and grassroots organising.
By connecting global pressures to local realities, the conference aims to create a space for interdisciplinary dialogue, collective reflection and actionable thinking around the future of food and water security in South Africa and beyond.
Co-hosts & Supporters: The conference is co-hosted by Food Indaba and the DSTI-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security (CoE-FS), and supported by the UNESCO Chair in Science and Education for African Food Systems, and the African German Centre for Sustainable and Resilient Food Systems and Applied Agricultural and Food Data Science (UKUDLA).
Conference Programme
| Time | Activity | Speaker / Lead |
|---|---|---|
| 09h00 - 09h30 |
Arrival
|
— |
| 09h30 - 09h50 |
Welcome and opening
The conference opens with a welcome to delegates, framing the day’s central themes and objectives. The opening remarks will introduce the urgency of the global and local water crisis, the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration, and the need to connect food systems thinking with environmental, social and governance challenges. The session will also situate the conference within the broader context of Food Indaba 2026 and Cape Town’s own lived experiences of water scarcity.
|
Miles Kubheka (10 minutes)
Programme director
Kurt Ackermann (10 minutes)
CEO, SAUFFT
|
| 09h50 - 10h30 |
Context-setting: Cape Town’s origins in water
This session explores the historical relationship between water, settlement and power in the Cape. Tracing the role of water in shaping Cape Town’s origins, development and inequalities, the discussion will examine how access to water has always underpinned agriculture, trade, urban expansion and survival in the region. By grounding contemporary concerns in historical context, the session provides a deeper understanding of how colonial histories, land use patterns and ecological transformation continue to shape present-day vulnerabilities around water and food systems.
Audience engagement: 10 minutes
|
Tauriq Jenkins
High Commissioner of the Goringhaicona Khoi Khoin Traditional Indigenous Council; Save Our Sacred Lands
|
| 10h30 - 11h00 |
Provocation: Global water bankruptcy and the polycrisis
This provocation session examines the growing global threat of “water bankruptcy” — the point at which water systems can no longer sustain current patterns of extraction, consumption and economic activity. Drawing on international trends and emerging evidence, the session will explore depleted aquifers, unsustainable farming practices, climate-driven drought and the increasing implementation of water restrictions across the world, including elsewhere on the African continent.
The discussion will connect water scarcity to a broader global polycrisis: food insecurity, migration, gender, rising inequality, public health threats and the risk of social unrest. Reflecting on the possibility of a future “Day Zero 2”, the speaker will challenge audiences to consider what systemic collapse could mean for cities, food production systems and vulnerable communities — and what forms of adaptation and prevention are still possible. Recorded international contributions may also be incorporated to broaden the global perspective.
Audience engagement: 10 minutes
|
Deshni Pillay
Head of the Nature, Climate and Energy portfolio at the United Nations Development Programme South Africa
|
| 11h00 - 11h20 |
Tea break
|
— |
| 11h20 - 12h30 |
Lessons from Day Zero 1 and lockdown
Cape Town’s Day Zero crisis and the COVID-19 lockdown period exposed the fragility of food distribution systems, inequalities in household resilience and the centrality of water to everyday survival. This session reflects on the lessons learned from these overlapping crises, asking what water restrictions mean for food production, food preparation, access and dignity.
The conversation will foreground community-led responses that emerged during moments of crisis, including the role of Community Action Networks (CANs), mutual aid systems and grassroots food relief initiatives. Speakers will reflect on how communities mobilised around water and food insecurity, and what these experiences can teach policymakers, municipalities and civil society about resilience-building ahead of future crises - whether climate-related, epidemiological or economic.
Audience engagement: 15 minutes
|
Miki Redelinghuys
Independent filmmaker
Nkosikhona Swaartbooi
Movement4Care
Faeza Meyer
African Water Commons Collective
Henriette Abrahams
Community organiser and feminist activist based in Bonteheuwel
Moderator:
Zukiswa Pikoli
Daily Maverick
|
| 12h45 - 14h00 |
Lunch
|
— |
| 14h00 - 14h40 |
Showcase: Mitigation and innovation
This panel showcases practical and emerging solutions aimed at mitigating water stress across food systems, hospitality, municipalities and communities. Bringing together innovators, researchers, entrepreneurs, students and development partners, the discussion will highlight how new technologies, local innovation and collaborative partnerships can contribute to more water-resilient futures.
The panel will feature examples ranging from water-saving hospitality innovations and commercially scalable university-linked research and to digital tools. Particular attention will be given to supporting youth innovation, translating research into practice and ensuring that mitigation strategies remain accessible, contextually appropriate and socially responsive.
Audience engagement: 15 minutes
|
Miles Kubheka (10 minutes)
Leigh Waters-Maine (10 minutes)
Phoka M Holdings
Ridhaa Manuel (10 minutes)
University of the Western Cape
Professor Lise Korsten
Co-Director: DSTI-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security
|
| 14h40 - 15h00 |
Tea break
|
— |
| 15h00 - 16h15 |
Panel discussion 2: Mitigation, governance and policy
Addressing water insecurity requires more than technological solutions alone. This panel explores the governance, policy and institutional dimensions of water resilience, focusing on how governments, municipalities, researchers and regulatory bodies can prepare for increasingly volatile climate futures.
The discussion will examine policy gaps and opportunities, agricultural water use, governance coordination and the role of public institutions in balancing ecological sustainability with food security and economic pressures. Drawing on expertise from academia, municipalities and the water sector, the panel will consider what policy interventions are needed now to avoid deepening crisis in the years ahead, and how local and national strategies can better integrate water, climate and food systems planning.
Audience engagement: 15 minutes
|
Dr Florian Kroll
Project Lead, CoE-FS
Nontutuzelo Pearl Gola
Director: Biodiversity Mainstreaming at South African National Biodiversity Institute
Nishendra Moodley
CEO, Western Cape Economic Development Partnership
Disha Govender
Head of the Ndifuna Ukwazi Law Centre
Moderator:
Zukiswa Pikoli
Daily Maverick
|
| 16h15 - 16h35 |
Synthesis
This session synthesises the key themes, tensions and solutions that emerged throughout the day. Reflecting on the scale of the water crisis and its implications for food systems, governance and social stability, the session will ask what practical pathways exist for navigating an increasingly uncertain future.
These remarks will reinforce the importance of collaboration across sectors and disciplines, while challenging participants to move beyond crisis response toward long-term resilience, preparedness and systemic transformation.
|
Professor Julian May (20 minutes)
Director: CoE-FS; Holder of the UNESCO Chair in Science and Education for African Food Systems
|
| 16h35 - 16h45 |
Closing
|
Miles Kubheka
Programme director
Kurt Ackermann
CEO, SAUFFT
|