United Way of BC
VFR: Kendahl and Heather, please tell us about yourselves and the work that you do at United Way BC.
Kendahl (she/her): I have worked at United Way British Columbia (UWBC) for almost 3 years and truly love my role as a Food Security Coordinator. I am honoured to support our Regional Community Food Hub Initiative across British Columbia. We work collaboratively with a network of local organizations to increase the food security of our communities by providing dignified access to nourishing and culturally-appropriate food.
On a personal note, I live with my husband and 8-year-old twins in Kitsilano on the unceded Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territory. Once it feels safe, smart, and fair to do so, I can’t wait to take the twins back to Costa Rica where we lived for 1.5 years when they were toddlers.
Heather (she/her): I joined UWBC in June 2021 as Food Security Coordinator working alongside Kendahl to support the provincial expansion of the Regional Community Food Hub Initiative and with food recovery and redistribution organizations through the Food Fillers Community of Practice. Before joining UWBC, I worked for almost 10 years in organic and natural food sales and distribution, and I am excited to continue to build relationships across the province in my new role at UWBC as Business Development Manager – Food Security. I live with my wife, our 12-year-old kid, a barky dog and an energetic cat in East Van on unceded Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territory.
Together we support UWBC’s Food Security team working towards an equitable and sustainable food system for BC.
VFR: United Way BC has made food security a top priority. Tell us about the Regional Community Food Hubs (RCFH), the Food Fillers program and the impetus for these important community initiatives.
In July 2021, six United Ways across the province amalgamated to become United Way British Columbia – working with communities in BC’s Interior, Lower Mainland and Central & Northern Vancouver Island. Our Food Security team is currently working in 16 regions across the province with the Regional Community Food Hub (RCFH) Initiative.
Our RCFHs are a network of organizations working together to address gaps in the food system to ensure people have dignified access to nourishing food. Food Fillers play a key role in this ecosystem as their focus on food recovery redistributes surplus food from local businesses, agriculture, and food producers to community organizations and residents. UWBC has been involved in food security for over 10 years focused primarily on food literacy, education and community gardens.
In 2020, we recognized the opportunity to support a coordinated collaborative approach to addressing food insecurity across BC and launched RCFHs and the Food Fillers program in response. Approaching this from a regional lens ensures that the food solutions support the unique challenges in each community. The redistribution of food into our communities not only ensures that food waste is decreased, but also brings an awareness and a connection to where our food comes from. It’s place-based, community-led, systems change work!
VFR: Between COVID-19, wildfires, and flooding, a lot has happened in our province over the last two years. How has food insecurity been impacted at the household level?
Food insecurity can affect anyone, and the last few years have really shown how vulnerable our food system is. The hoarding we saw in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic brought the idea of food insecurity into many of our homes. Those conversations increased as the wildfires and floods not only affected BC-grown produce and products, but also disrupted the supply chain and our roadways. There is an increased awareness of where our food comes from and how vulnerable we all are. The past two years have reinforced the need for locally grown and sourced food. We also know that household food security is directly linked to income security, which for many folks has been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the recent natural disasters.
VFR: How have COVID-19 and the recent environmental events affected non-profits and community organizations focused on food programming, and what are some of the key issues and learnings happening in this sector as a result?
The events of the last few years uncovered the gap in our food systems and how we address food access across BC. One of the things we saw was that non-profit and community organizations who were not previously focusing on food programming had to shift to ensure members of their community were getting access to food. Now, more than ever, people are connected to food support services right in their neighbourhood providing crucial community support in addition to food. We have seen the devastating effect wildfires and floods have had on our supply chain making it even more necessary that we strengthen local food sources and the local food system. The more localized our food system is, the better prepared we will be when the next disruption comes.
We have been so inspired by our non-profit partners’ interest and commitment to collaborate, to learn from each other and to offer support via our communities of practice and beyond. It has become very clear that by working together we can create a more equitable and just food system.
VFR: The Food Fillers initiative has a Community of Practice component, which Vancouver Food Runners is grateful to be a part of. Please share about this CoP and the importance of collaboration between organizations, especially during times of crisis.
These meetings are so inspiring! The CoP meets monthly and is a place where Food Fillers can share successes or challenges. We also come together to learn what is happening in each region and how we can support each other with various resources, tools, and in some cases surplus food! Many of the Food Filler organizations have been working together in various ways, and you really see the collaboration and shared passion for this work. Food Fillers are addressing similar goals when it comes to food recovery. These meetings have included conversations from volunteer recruitment and retention and other operational topics to dialogue about collective impact and reach through mapping and data sharing.
VFR: Are there any moments of community resilience, strength, and/or adaption that have stood out to you over the last two years? Please share.
Everything in the last two years has shown how resilient, strong and adaptive our communities are! Collaboration and mobilization are the words that resonate with us. Collaboration with our amazing donors who have given generously allowing United Way British Columbia to continue to quickly and efficiently support organizations across the province. Quick mobilization of all our fabulous volunteers who have helped with food pickups, food distribution, wellness check phone calls and even hamper packing at our Food Hub locations. Being able to reliably show up and support our communities during the pandemic, wildfires, heat dome and during the flooding. This is possible because of our amazing donors, stakeholders, volunteers and community partners like Vancouver Food Runners!
Be the first to read our E-newsletter
Subscribe to our bi-weekly newsletter that arrives to your email inbox every other Saturday!