Community Food Systems Fellowship
2024 Community Food Systems Fellows
Vital Village Networks is thrilled to announce the ten emerging local leaders that have been selected to participate in the 2024 Community Food Systems Fellowship program! This year’s fellows include:
Isha Aran (she/her)
Three Sisters Kitchen
Albuquerque, NM
tara rodriguez besosa (they/them)
El Departamento de La Comida de Puerto Rico
Cauguas, PR
Carmen Alcantara Gonzalez (she/her)
Fresh Food Connect
Denver, CO
K. Melchor Hall (she/her)
Global Village Farms
Auburn, MA
Roberto Nutlouis (he/him)
Nihikeya
Pinon, AZ
Nia Nyamweya (she/her)
Beauty Blooms Farms
Silver Spring, MD
Cecilia Polanco (they/them)
Pupusas for Education
Durham, NC
Amara Ullauri (they/them)
Ayni Herb Farm
Millerton, NY
Bilal Walker (he/him)
Al-Munir's Farms
Newark, NJ
rivianna zeller (he/they)
dream of wild health
Hugo, MN
Previous Fellowship Cohorts
Congratulations to our 2022 and 2023 fellows for completing an incredible year of learning and growth! Learn more about previous cohorts here:
2022 Fellows 2023 Fellows
About the Fellowship
The Community Food Systems Fellowship is an 18-month leadership program that aims to increase opportunities for diverse local food system leaders to build their skills, capacity, and networks through a series of community design labs on participatory engagement and human centered design approaches, monthly learning sessions with other food systems leaders, and individualized technical assistance.
Through these opportunities, the fellowship hopes to strengthen community engagement and leadership of caregivers/families, uplift strengths-based narratives, and foster collaborative leadership that scales community identified solutions and cross sector partnerships.
Emerging leaders who are committed to food justice and equity should consider applying to the Community Food Systems Fellowship. Selected fellows will receive a stipend and can also apply for project innovation grants that can total up to $5,000.
The Fellowship is a good fit for those who are committed to:
- working to develop resilient and equitable local food systems
- community leadership, engagement, and the leadership of caregivers and families
- food justice, nutrition justice, racial equity and social transformation
- developing skills to measuring impact and success of local food systems
- developing collaborative leadership skills
Fellowship Application Information
Applications are now closed for the 2024 Vital Village Networks Community Food Systems Fellowship. Please check back in Fall 2024 for next year's program. To learn more about the application process, please refer back to the 2024 Request for Applications and FAQ below.
Request for Applications View FAQ
Advisory Partners
Thank you to our advisory partners for their continued guidance and support of this program:
- Kimberly Arnold, Black Church Food Security Network
- Bing Broderick, Haley House
- Lori Dorfman, Berkeley Media Studies Group
- Kate Fitzgerald, Fair Food Network
- Reann Gibson, Conservation Law Foundation
- Nick Hernandez, Makoce Agriculture Development
- Geri Henchy, FRAC
- Katherine Jacobs, FRAC
- Megan Macaraeg, Beloved Community Incubator
- Xavier Morales, The Praxis Project
- Vivien Morris, Mattapan Food and Fitness Coalition
- Krystal Oriadha, National Farm to School Network
- Paige Pokorney, Share Our Strength
- Ciara Segura, Mandela Partners
- Maureen Silva, Mandela Partners
- Patricia Spence, Urban Farm Institute
- Lacy Stephens, National Farm to School Network
- Sha'Von Terrell, Black Church Food Security Network
- Amy Quichiz, Veggie Mijxs
For questions, please contact Jei.Laura@bmc.org. This program is supported by a grant through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.