| dc.description.abstract | A central theme in global governance is the ongoing diffusion of power and authority from nation states to a myriad of non-governmental actors. While private and civil society actors have always influenced policy, they are now increasingly participating in governance alongside governments and shaping political processes. Governance forms that include stakeholders from a broad specter of society are often referred to as public-private, multi-actor, and multi-stakeholder governance. These initiatives are by many seen as promising responses to tackle the increasingly complex political relations of a globalized world. However, there are concerns that such political initiatives can be undemocratic, illegitimate, and subject to undue corporate influence. Researchers, civil society groups, and public officials thus call for more research to understand the influence of private and multi-stakeholder actors and their role in changing the world. This case study of the EAT Foundation contributes original insight into these dynamics within the broader governance field of food. EAT is one of the multi-stakeholder newcomers which partners across business, science, and policy to catalyze a transformation in global food systems. As a platform for discussion across academic, social, and political disciplines, I found that EAT opened new epistemic terrain on how to address issues related to food more holistically. EAT thus contributed to the rise of attention to global food systems transformation and multi-stakeholder dialogues as promising approaches to overall sustainable development. EAT’s approach was in 2021 conducted at unprecedented scale with the United Nations Food Systems Summit, a global multi-stakeholder event that has been criticized for reinforcing existing power asymmetries and further strengthening the control a handful of philanthropic foundations and corporations have over the food systems agenda. The case study thus sheds lights on the broader tendency of non-state actors as brokers of “multistakeholderism,” a development that contributes to fundamentally restructure global political affairs. | eng |