We want to send youth out to measure food environments at local markets.
MyLens aims to empower young Africans to engage in surveys focusing on food accessibility, hygiene, and security—offline! Through our digital platform, MyLens, they are able to receive valuable training, skills, and importantly, earn income. Everyone should have the Right to food and good nutrition. Citizen Science is the way forward.
MyLens allows for continuous data collection, over extended periods of time, into these otherwise infeasible or inaccessible informal markets. The obtain information offers valuable insights into food accessibility, hygiene, and security, informing targeted interventions to address food security in Africa. This data will fill gaps in the scientific literature which is currently holding back food systems improvement in rural areas (and elsewhere).
How it works
Employ youth and equip them with phones to go collect nutritional data at local food markets.
2. Log into Mylens before heading out to the markets and load surveys.
4. Data collection and food monitoring in order to understand food security in the face of climate change.
3. Youth collect data at local food markets. Surveys are accessible with or without internet access.
Conceptual Framework:
We are monitoring elements of the food environment as outline in Turner et al. (2018) and measure availability prices, accessibility, affordability, vendor and product properties, convenience, desirability and marketing and regulation.
