2023 SAFSF Forum Recap
Over 200 attendees gathered for three days in our nation’s capital, Washington, D.C. for the 2023 SAFSF Forum. During our time together, we dug into deep conversations about promising solutions and strategies for agriculture and food systems that address the roots and consequences of racial inequities, socio-economic and geographic divides, and community disenfranchisement and disinvestment. This Forum was unlike any other! The energy from attendees, the chatter of new and old connections being ignited, and the eagerness to learn filled the rooms. The agenda was packed with engaging plenaries, incredible site visits, and funder-led sessions featuring amazing speakers including many…
Land Acknowledgement: Washington, D.C.
Renee Catacalos, SAFSF Vice President of Strategy and Impact, shared this Indigenous Land Acknowledgement as part of the 2023 SAFSF Forum. As funders and advocates working to create a more equitable U.S. agriculture and food system, it is imperative for us to acknowledge that the roots of today’s inequities lie deep in the history of land theft and dispossession from Indigenous peoples dating from the European colonization of this continent. We in this room are aware that Indigenous people were forced to move, dispossessed of their land, detached from their cultural traditions, and murdered to cover this up and to…
June 2023 Policy Connection
The Policy Connection is a regular digital publication for SAFSF members, providing insights into key policy issues for sustainable agriculture and food systems. Blog post will now be embedded within the recurring publication to provide space for deeper sharing of news and resources. Congressional News House and Senate Committees Advance Food and Ag Appropriations Bills From public health to environmental protection, to food assistance, to the military, the annual appropriations process influences the entire economy and funds government services essential to our collective well-being. On the agriculture and food side of the equation, the House Appropriations Committee advanced a Republican-led bill to…
Job Announcement: Executive Director
At a critical moment of continued and sustained transformation, SAFSF seeks a dynamic, visionary, and equity-driven leader as its next Executive Director. The ideal candidate will be a strategic and tactical leader and expert relationship builder with a strong equity lens. They will bring 7+ years of philanthropic or nonprofit leadership experience in sustainable food and agriculture systems. Reporting to the Board of Directors, the Executive Director will work closely with board and staff to articulate and implement the next strategic direction for SAFSF’s work. The position requires a strong vision for the role of networks as agents of purposefully…
Board of Directors Transitions
SAFSF Board Elects 2023 Officers The SAFSF Board has elected the following directors to serve one-year terms as officers from June 1, 2023 – May 31, 2024. Chair – Esperanza Pallana, executive director of Food and Farm Communications FundVice Chair – Leslie Hatfield, senior partnership and outreach advisor at GRACE Communications FoundationTreasurer – Olivia Watkins, co-executive director, internal resilience at Black Farmer FundSecretary – Ila Duncan, trustee, Lumpkin Family Foundation Dear Friends, I’m delighted to say hello to you today as board chair and, on behalf of the full board, I’m delighted to introduce the four exceptional individuals joining our esteemed board as new directors…
Premiere Screening of “Digging In” Documentary
Check out the trailer and get set for the premiere screening of SAFSF’s documentary “Digging In” on June 11 in Washington, D.C. The film explores the interconnected issues of concentration and consolidation, land access, and climate change. Funders will find a jumping-off point to take more concrete action in these areas, with further resources coming through the companion website. “Digging In” is underwritten by the Vatheuer Family Foundation and produced by Nathan.Works, a Kansas City-based documentary film and digital communications firm. Hear more at a panel discussion with the filmmakers and series narrator Masika Henson after the film. The event precedes the kick-off…
Important SAFSF Forum News
Registration for the upcoming 2023 SAFSF Forum will be open for a few more weeks. If you are still on the fence about attending, read on for some important tidbits that I hope will convince you that now is the time to commit! The Last SAFSF Forum Until 2025 That’s right, the SAFSF board and staff have decided to take 2024 off from holding the SAFSF Forum, to give ourselves the space to fully welcome a new executive director next year. Rather, we’ll focus our energy on multiple in-person events around the country that will enable everyone—including our new leader—to connect and deepen…
Member Spotlight: Butterfly Equity Foundation
“I serve as the Butterfly Equity Foundation’s first and sole staff member. The Foundation was created in tandem with its parent company and funder, Butterfly Equity, a food-focused private equity firm. I stepped into my position about 2 ½ years ago to help formally launch and lead the Foundation. From its start, the Butterfly Equity Foundation has focused on issues surrounding food equity here in Los Angeles County. After having always worked in a collaborative environment, I suddenly found myself working from home and without coworkers. It was certainly peaceful! However, I quickly began to miss learning from and operating…
May Picks of the Month
Climate Change Is Walloping US Farms. Can This Farm Bill Create Real Solutions? “As negotiations around the 2023 Farm Bill, the country’s most important piece of food and farm legislation, heat up, the question is: will it play a meaningful role in addressing and responding to the climate crisis?” Nonprofits Are Still Struggling to Bridge the Digital Divide, Survey Finds This article looks at results from Connect Humanity’s “State of Digital Inequity” survey. A lack of technological literacy and digital infrastructure affects both nonprofit staff and the people they serve. From Farmworkers to Land Healers An interesting article about immigrant and Indigenous farmworkers who are “reclaiming…
April 2023 Policy Connection
Congressional News House Passes Debt Limit Framework as Negotiating Tactic The House on Wednesday voted 217-215 in favor of Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s debt limit framework. The 320-page “Limit, Save, Grow Act” would raise U.S. borrowing authority by $1.5 Trillion or through March 2024, whichever comes first, and roll back spending levels for most federal programs to 2022 levels. In addition, the framework also seeks to: Increase SNAP work requirements “able-bodied adults without dependents” (ABAWDS) from 18 to 49 to 18 to 55. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities notes this could harm up to 1 million older adults facing…