What does community life look like in a small office?

Suzy Sumner is head of the Brussels office for foodwatch, and is alone in Mundo Madou. foodwatch is a citizen-based watchdog in the food sector: they uncover and challenge food industry practices that violate the rights or interests of consumers. “We like to call our approach advo-campaigning,” explains Suzy. “It’s a mix between campaigning and trying to influence European and national food policies.” As a non-profit campaigning organisation, foodwatch fights for safe, healthy and affordable food for all people.

The 50-people foodwatch team is split across Europe, but they all met up in Mundo Madou this year.  “The organisation is growing fast, it’s quite dynamic at the moment. With so many new people coming in, it’s important to get together.” While Suzy might be alone in her office, she is always in good company. When her European colleagues are not there, she can count on her floor neighbours for a chat. “I participate in the floor meetings and the quarterly management meetings, which allows me to get to know more people.  I have met many people on the floor and we have some common campaign issues, for example with Oxfam or Seas at Risk. In 2022, foodwatch celebrated their 20-year birthday. For the occasion, they published a retrospective guide tracing back the history of the organisation’s activism.