Vision: ALL PEOPLE IN ALBERTA HAVE HEALTHY FOOD, AS CLOSE TO HOME AS POSSIBLE
Mission: Working together to foster leadership, relationships, and actions that reconnect people, land, and food in Alberta; Alberta Food Matters grows through community development, research and evidence-based approaches, policy development and skill-building, educational projects, programs, and workshops. (developed Jan 2014)
Values:
- We value nature as the enduring measure, mentor, and model: sustainable, equitable, locale-driven, regenerative, and system.
- We believe successful actions and healthy food systems are built on relationships
- We value asset-based approaches that recognize everyone and every group has something to contribute
- We value equity: practices that are participatory and support open source sharing
- We value credible, evidence-based information and practices
Monthly AFM Board meetings: The AFM Board has a monthly Google Hangout meeting to manage our activities and continue to share the activities of the board in their various agencies, and develop our School food arm.
School Food: In May 2019, AFM hired two videographers to record Scott Hall and Scott Harrison talking about their amazing school food programs at a School Food mini-conference in Banff, hosted by Jill Harrison with the Town of Banff. The video has been shared on our website and on Facebook.
AFM is trying to gather a vibrant school food group in Alberta under the Alberta Chapter of the Coalition for Healthy School Food. We are sharing information including best practices, government policy that reflects educating children on their food, connecting food producers in the province with food consumers who are trying to eat local, and even those who aren’t trying very hard!
AFM has also been working on bringing together all groups and individuals interested in increasing access to healthy nutritious food for students, including teachers, farmers, and policymakers. We have finally set a date, and we will proceed! On the weekend of November 6th to 8th we will host a symposium on School Food in the province. We will gather in person, if possible, and if we should remain in isolation, we will do it virtually! We already have a stellar list of presenters on topics ranging from best practices in a school to nutrition reports from academics to gardeners currently working with schools to provide students food.
Policy Committee: has moved to just having meetings with emergent issues.
Communication and Marketing:
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- Website: Jamie and Joanna have been working hard to develop and keep our website up to date
- Social Media: Continuing to strengthen our social media presence. Looking to consolidate our two Facebook pages. We plan to use our media much more strategically to keep members and associates apprised of what’s happening in the Alberta food world!
- Newsletter: Jamie pulled together our first newsletter which was sent out widely in February. The newsletter will keep those who sign up for it current on the School Food Symposium, and other undertakings of AFM. Signup to receive our QUARTERLY newsletter by visiting the AFM website.
- Banners: Gbemiro has the AFM with GFSA logo floor display and can relay it to members who are attending various events. We need to continue to advocate for AFM using these opportunities. We should develop a new banner.
Membership: Farewell to Susan Roberts as she moves into retirement. She has our back for the fall School Food Symposium, and will likely give us input from time to time, but she is taking a well-deserved rest from this inspiring and busy board! AFM wishes to thank her so very much for her phenomenal talent and drive in starting running the GFSA network, and out of that the Alberta Food Matters board. She undertook many conferences that connected so many people from so many backgrounds, all passionate about the food we put on our plates! Nobody, absolutely nobody, can fill her shoes. We are also sad to say goodbye to Alison Van Dyke who has been a great connection for AFM to Southern Alberta. She is with the Medicine Hat Community Food Connection and has done many webinars on food-related topics. We hope she can return to the board once other priorities give her back some time! That said, we are excited to consider applications from people around the province who wish to join our board to advance our vision, mission, and values!
Our Partners – Initiatives we are supporting:
- Food Secure Canada: Bryanna Yung/Compala FSC Alberta Rep
- Coalition for Healthy School Food: Debbie Fields who has worked tirelessly with the Coalition for Healthy School Food to get School Food on the Federal Government’s platform and to have them take action to ensure our school-age children receive a universal and nutritious food program in this nation’s schools. They have achieved their goal of getting it into the Federal Liberal’s spring 2019 budget. The next step is to have all 5 federal political parties also make a nation-wide nutritious school food program part of their policy platform. The Coalition now has members from across the country, coast to coast to coast. Debbie and Carolyn are truly doing an amazing job on this!
- Alberta Policy Coalition for Chronic Disease Prevention (APCCP): Gbemiro has been attending APCCP meetings.
