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GW Food Institute Newsletter
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July 6, 2017
Dear friends,
I have spent many years mentoring promising young people in the fields of sustainability and farm and food policy. Watching them ascend to top positions in government, business and the nonprofit sector and become agents of change has been one of the most fulfilling
aspects of my career.
The moment has come to supercharge this work. We know there is a booming interest in agriculture among young people; there are also the complex challenges of climate change, persistent inequities in the food system, and so many others. They require creative
solutions, and government must play a role. It is time to throw our collective weight behind building a bench of diverse new leaders who can carry the work, and the world, forward.
I’m excited to announce the launch of a new
Food Policy Leadership Institute that will do just that. Drawing on a
dream-team faculty with more than two centuries of practical policy experience between them, the Institute will transfer their collective knowledge to the next generation of food policy leaders, help those up-and-coming leaders understand the current policy
landscape and how it came to be, and cultivate the skills needed to affect real policy change. The mentoring relationships and networks that participants will build will serve them throughout their careers.
Program recruits will be passionate and diverse individuals from communities large and small, both rural and urban. They will be practitioners in local, state or federal government; emerging leaders in business, philanthropy or nonprofits; or graduate students
looking for deep and practical training in food policy. The curriculum will be rigorous and skills-based. Upon completion, participants will have gained not just a better understanding of the food policy landscape and the tools to impact it, but, I hope, a
renewed sense of the value of civic engagement. That’s something we need now more than ever.
The first class will be admitted for this September. Please help me get the word out and find young leaders ready for this challenge.
Best,
Kathleen Merrigan, Ph.D.
Director, GW Food Institute
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New Commentary
by Ariel Kagan, Senior Program Associate, 6/2/2017
As the US pulls out of the Paris Climate Agreement, it's important to keep in mind that changes in food and ag policy can help to sequester carbon and fight climate change.
by Jackie Lopez '18, Intern, 7/03/2017
While I stayed in Madagascar this spring, vanilla was a hot topic over dinner with my host family.
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Upcoming Events with
Our Community Partners
The GroW student garden at GW has weekly volunteer hours on Wednesday's and Sunday's. Check out the facebook
page for updates.
Thursdays, 5-7pm: DC Greens has weekly volunteer hours at the K St. Farm. Sign up
here.
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In the News
Dr. Lance Price of the Antibiotic Resistance Action Center
talks to Nature
about the spread of colistin, the 'antibiotic of last resort'.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution explains
how Wholesome Wave allows seniors with limited income to purchase twice as much produce at Georgia farmers markets.
Kathleen Merrigan participated in the Washington Post event "Transformers:
Food" on June 13. So it's no surprise she was also named as one of 22 inspirational women in food and agriculture by
FoodTank.
Food Institute Special Chef José Andrés was featured in
Modern Farmer, stating, "our children deserve to eat well."
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