Committees

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Committees

Although food security efforts have been happening for many years, the UC Global Food Initiative (UC GFI) created the impetus for a systemwide approach to addressing food insecurity and sustainable food systems. This effort has brought together many previously established and new programs into a new organizational structure. Below you will find information on our committee structure, organizational chart, and clarification of how each entity works together.

The UC Global Food Initiative is managed by a statewide steering committee, the UC GFI Leadership Council. A series of topic areas and work groups were formed underneath this council. The full list of statewide groups can be found on the UC GFI organization website.

One of those work groups is the Food Access and Security Work Group. This work group proposed that each campus develop a Food Security Taskforce and through

this taskforce, create and execute a plan to address food insecurity among UC students. This proposal was accepted by President Napolitano, who allocated funding to each UC campus to do so.

Another UC GFI workgroup is the Healthy Campus Network. Their goal is to make the UC sytem the "healthiest place to live, work, and learn." As a result of their work, the President requested that the Chancellors at each campus create a Healthy Campus Network Steering Committee.

Most of the campus wide efforts related to food security are organized under the broad oversight of either the Food Security Taskforce or the Healthy Campus Network.

Below you will find a full list of campus committees working on food security. Please click the title of any committee you would like to know more information about.

Food Security Taskforce
The Food Security Taskforce is the steering committee which oversees campus efforts to reduce food insecurity among UCSB students. This committee was formed as a direct result of the recommendations of the statewide Food Access and Security Workgroup of the UC Global Food Initiative. This committee is responsible for delegating and managing the budget allocated to UCSB from the UC Food Access and Security Workgroup. This group manages the development of the Food Security Action Plan and will also oversee implementation of that plan. This group is also responsible for tracking metrics on the success of food security efforts and providing ongoing reports to UCOP and the UC GFI. This committee also advises the Chancellor on issues related to food security.

To inquire about the work of this committee or to get involved, please contact Melissa Fontaine.

Food Security Coalition
The Food Security Coalition is the broader coalition of all campus and community stakeholders who are interested in food security work at UCSB. This coalition supports the work of the Food Security Taskforce by providing broad campus feedback on topics that the taskforce is considering and developing new ideas. The coalition also helps to lead hands-on implementation actions identified in the Food Security Action Plan. Anybody can be a member of the Food Security Coalition simply by asking to join. There are no limits to the number of members that can get involved.

To inquire about the work of this committee or to get involved, please contact Melissa Fontaine.

Food Security Communications Team
The Food Security Communications Team develops messaging strategies and outreach tools to increase visibility of campus food security concerns, efforts, and resources, expands engagement of all campus stakeholders, and creates consistency in information dissemination. The Communications Team also develops and maintains the Food Security Communications Plan and oversees the implementation of the plan.

To inquire about the work of this committee or to get involved, please contact Melissa Fontaine.

Financial Crisis Response Team
The Financial Crisis Response Team was created to address the emergency financial needs of undergraduate and graduate students that may jeopardize their path to graduation. Many student financial crises are closely tied to food security. The team uses a holistic approach to solve students’ problems. The team connects students with resources on campus, such as mental health services, academic advising, financial literacy and budgeting education, etc.

To inquire about the work of this committee or to get involved, please contact Mike Miller.

Food, Nutrition, and Basic Skills (FNBS) Program Partners
This is the coalition of the organizations, departments, and individuals who host workshops for the Food, Nutrition, and Basic Skills program. They get together once or twice a quarter to review the programming for the F.N.B.S. program.

To inquire about the work of this committee or to get involved, please contact Jacqueline Garcia.

Healthy Campus Network Steering Committee
The Healthy Campus Network (HCN) aims to work with each UC location to address the need for a strong, sustainable campus-coordinating structure “to make UC the healthiest place to work, learn and live.” To maximize the Global Food Initiative’s value and further the UC’s mission of teaching, research, and service, the proposed coordinating infrastructure will spread and support food, health, and well-being innovations occurring across the University of California, one that promotes multi-stakeholder engagement, collaboration, and assures accountability.

To inquire about the work of this committee or to get involved, please contact Melissa Fontaine.

Long Term Program Sub-Committee of the Healthy Campus Network
The UC Global Food Initiative is currently only funded through June 2018. There is some discussion of potential funding extensions, however, at some point individual campuses will be expected to continue this work without the support of UCOP. Presidential Initiatives are by nature meant to provide start-up funding and support for launching new efforts. The goal of this committee is to develop a strategy for maintaining food security work at UCSB after the UC GFI sunsets.

To inquire about the work of this committee or to get involved, please contact Katie Maynard.