SEP Talk — Walter el Nagar on the Right to Food

Public Responsibility, Private Action, and What Happens When the Two Don’t Meet

Access to food is not a charitable gesture.
It is a right.

At our latest SEP Talk in Geneva, we welcomed Walter el Nagar for a conversation that went far beyond headlines and good intentions. The discussion explored one central question:

Who is responsible for guaranteeing the right to food — and what happens when public institutions step back?

Drawing on his work with Refettorio Geneva and his broader humanitarian engagement, Walter addressed the fragile balance between public responsibility and private initiative, and the structural risks that emerge when essential social missions are left unsupported.

This was not a theoretical debate.
It was a timely, concrete reflection on Geneva today and on what is at stake when funding, policy, and political will fall short.

Watch the video summary

Key themes discussed

• The right to food as a non-negotiable public responsibility
• The limits of relying on private or humanitarian actors to replace state action
• Why initiatives like Refettorio Geneva cannot survive on goodwill alone
• The danger of normalising emergency solutions as permanent systems
• What it means, ethically and politically, when cities withdraw support from social infrastructure + the role of "integrity" in his mission
• What is Walter's background and what makes his personal approach unique

As Walter made clear, private engagement can amplify impact, but it cannot — and should not — substitute long-term public commitment.

Why SEP hosts these conversations

SEP Talks exist to create space for voices that challenge comfort, question systems, and reconnect culture with responsibility.

Craft, heritage, and social impact do not exist in isolation.
They require ecosystems and those ecosystems only survive when responsibility is actively chosen.

This conversation reminded us that rights fade quietly when they are not defended.