Join us!
Explore school food nutrition policy, food waste, and local procurement
Join us for a special three-part webinar series — Healthy School Food for Thought — hosted by Chef Ann Foundation Founder Chef Ann Cooper and CEO Mara Fleishman featuring special guests from Harvard Law School, Food Law & Policy Clinic; World Wildlife Fund; and Community Alliance with Family Farmers.
During each webinar, we’ll examine a major topic in today’s school food landscape — nutrition policy, food waste, and local procurement — to understand challenges and opportunities. Webinars will be moderated by Eva Goulbourne from Littlefoot Ventures.
Learn more about each webinar and register below! All webinars are free to attend.
Join us!
Explore school food nutrition policy, food waste, and local procurement
Join us for a special three-part webinar series — Healthy School Food for Thought — hosted by Chef Ann Foundation Founder Chef Ann Cooper and CEO Mara Fleishman featuring special guests from Harvard Law School, Food Law & Policy Clinic; World Wildlife Fund; and Community Alliance with Family Farmers.
During each webinar, we’ll examine a major topic in today’s school food landscape — nutrition policy, food waste, and local procurement — to understand challenges and opportunities. Webinars will be moderated by Eva Goulbourne from Littlefoot Ventures.
Learn more about each webinar and register below! All webinars are free to attend.
POSTPONED
From Waste to Plate: Strategies for Reducing Food Waste in School Food Programs
Featuring Pete Pearson from World Wildlife Fund
Explore innovative strategies and best practices for minimizing food waste in school food programs, from procurement to meal service and beyond. We’ll discuss the environmental, economic, and social impacts of food waste in schools and share actionable solutions for waste reduction.
POSTPONED
From Waste to Plate: Strategies for Reducing Food Waste in School Food Programs
Featuring Pete Pearson from World Wildlife Fund
Explore innovative strategies and best practices for minimizing food waste in school food programs, from procurement to meal service and beyond. We’ll discuss the environmental, economic, and social impacts of food waste in schools and share actionable solutions for waste reduction.
September 18 • 4-5 p.m. ET
Rooted in Health: Enhancing Vegetable Access through Procurement Practices in Schools
Featuring Yousef Buzayan from Community Alliance with Family Farmers
How can we improve procurement practices to increase access to fresh, locally sourced vegetables in school meal programs? We’ll examine the benefits of incorporating more vegetables into school menus, share insights on sourcing and procurement strategies, and explore ways to overcome barriers to vegetable access in schools.
September 18 • 4-5 p.m. ET
Rooted in Health: Enhancing Vegetable Access through Procurement Practices in Schools
Featuring Yousef Buzayan from Community Alliance with Family Farmers
How can we improve procurement practices to increase access to fresh, locally sourced vegetables in school meal programs? We’ll examine the benefits of incorporating more vegetables into school menus, share insights on sourcing and procurement strategies, and explore ways to overcome barriers to vegetable access in schools.
Past Events
May 22 • 2-3 p.m. ET
Nourishing Minds: Exploring Child Nutrition Policy in School Food Systems
Featuring Emily Broad-Leib from Harvard Law School, Food & Policy Clinic and Chef Ann Foundation’s Senior Director of Policy MJ Kepner
Delve into the landscape of child nutrition policy in school food systems. We’ll examine the impact of current policies, related challenges, and strategies to enhance child nutrition in schools.
Past Events
May 22 • 2-3 p.m. ET
Nourishing Minds: Exploring Child Nutrition Policy in School Food Systems
Featuring Emily Broad-Leib from Harvard Law School, Food & Policy Clinic and Chef Ann Foundation’s Senior Director of Policy MJ Kepner
Delve into the landscape of child nutrition policy in school food systems. We’ll examine the impact of current policies, related challenges, and strategies to enhance child nutrition in schools.
Chef Ann Cooper
Founder, Chef Ann Foundation
In 2009, Chef Ann Cooper founded the Chef Ann Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping schools take action so that every child has daily access to fresh, healthy, and delicious food.
Also known as the “Renegade Lunch Lady,“ Chef Ann served for 11 years as the Director of Food Services for Boulder Valley School District in Boulder, Colorado. Currently, Ann is Partner of Lunch Lessons, LLC, a consultancy for school districts going through large-scale food change. Ann attends many national conferences and performs regular speaking engagements.
A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Ann has over 45 years of experience as a cook and chef, including 20 years in school food programs. Her books Bitter Harvest and Lunch Lessons: Changing the Way We Feed Our Children have made her a leading advocate for safe, sustainable food.
Chef Ann Cooper
Founder, Chef Ann Foundation
In 2009, Chef Ann Cooper founded the Chef Ann Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping schools take action so that every child has daily access to fresh, healthy, and delicious food.
Also known as the “Renegade Lunch Lady,“ Chef Ann served for 11 years as the Director of Food Services for Boulder Valley School District in Boulder, Colorado. Currently, Ann is Partner of Lunch Lessons, LLC, a consultancy for school districts going through large-scale food change. Ann attends many national conferences and performs regular speaking engagements.
A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Ann has over 45 years of experience as a cook and chef, including 20 years in school food programs. Her books Bitter Harvest and Lunch Lessons: Changing the Way We Feed Our Children have made her a leading advocate for safe, sustainable food.
Mara Fleishman
CEO, Chef Ann Foundation
Mara Fleishman’s career in food systems advocacy started in her early 20s when she looked to the power of food after being diagnosed with an autoimmune disease. Mara has over 20 years of experience in leading systems change initiatives in the for-profit and non-profit sectors, including over a decade at Whole Foods Market where she served as Global Director of Partnerships.
In Mara’s role as CEO of the Chef Ann Foundation, she has spent the last 10 years fighting for healthier food for our nation’s kids. Mara’s niche is system-based change and although she takes on many roles as a leader, her favorite is programmatic engineering — breaking down problems to their foundation and building programmatic solutions through dynamic and integrated approaches. This type of programmatic engineering can be seen through the work of the Chef Ann Foundation, an organization recognized as the national leader in driving fresh, healthy, and delicious scratch-cooked food in schools.
Mara Fleishman
CEO, Chef Ann Foundation
Mara Fleishman’s career in food systems advocacy started in her early 20s when she looked to the power of food after being diagnosed with an autoimmune disease. Mara has over 20 years of experience in leading systems change initiatives in the for-profit and non-profit sectors, including over a decade at Whole Foods Market where she served as Global Director of Partnerships.
In Mara’s role as CEO of the Chef Ann Foundation, she has spent the last 10 years fighting for healthier food for our nation’s kids. Mara’s niche is system-based change and although she takes on many roles as a leader, her favorite is programmatic engineering — breaking down problems to their foundation and building programmatic solutions through dynamic and integrated approaches. This type of programmatic engineering can be seen through the work of the Chef Ann Foundation, an organization recognized as the national leader in driving fresh, healthy, and delicious scratch-cooked food in schools.
Eva Goulbourne
Founder & CEO, Littlefoot Ventures
Littlefoot Ventures represents a culmination of knowledge and experiences from Eva’s 15 years as a food systems practitioner. Eva was a founding team member of ReFED, where she secured the initial funding from the Rockefeller Foundation, General Mills Foundation, and Walmart Foundation to establish the organizational framework for ReFED.
Previous to ReFED, she worked at the World Economic Forum serving on the food and agriculture team. She supported multi-stakeholder partnerships in 12 countries to mobilize investment and coordination amongst global food companies, heads of state (including the G7), UN agencies, and farmer organizations.
She started Littlefoot to provide more support and services to food businesses, foundations, and nonprofits, focused on creating positive environmental, social and economic impact. Most recently, Eva is utilizing her expertise as President of the Upcycled Food Foundation Board of Directors.
Eva Goulbourne
Founder & CEO, Littlefoot Ventures
Littlefoot Ventures represents a culmination of knowledge and experiences from Eva’s 15 years as a food systems practitioner. Eva was a founding team member of ReFED, where she secured the initial funding from the Rockefeller Foundation, General Mills Foundation, and Walmart Foundation to establish the organizational framework for ReFED.
Previous to ReFED, she worked at the World Economic Forum serving on the food and agriculture team. She supported multi-stakeholder partnerships in 12 countries to mobilize investment and coordination amongst global food companies, heads of state (including the G7), UN agencies, and farmer organizations.
She started Littlefoot to provide more support and services to food businesses, foundations, and nonprofits, focused on creating positive environmental, social and economic impact. Most recently, Eva is utilizing her expertise as President of the Upcycled Food Foundation Board of Directors.
Emily Broad Lieb
Clinical Professor of Law; Director, Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation; Director, Food Law and Policy Clinic
Emily Broad Leib is a Clinical Professor of Law and Founding Director of the Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy Clinic, the nation’s first law school clinic devoted to providing legal and policy solutions to the health, economic, and environmental challenges facing our food system. She is also Director of Harvard Law School Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation.
Working directly with clients and communities, Emily champions community-led food system change, reduction in food waste, food security and access to healthy foods, and equity and sustainability in food production. Her scholarly work has been published in the California Law Review, Wisconsin Law Review, Harvard Law & Policy Review, Food & Drug Law Journal, and Journal of Food Law & Policy, among others.
Emily Broad Lieb
Clinical Professor of Law; Director, Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation; Director, Food Law and Policy Clinic
Emily Broad Leib is a Clinical Professor of Law and Founding Director of the Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy Clinic, the nation’s first law school clinic devoted to providing legal and policy solutions to the health, economic, and environmental challenges facing our food system. She is also Director of Harvard Law School Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation.
Working directly with clients and communities, Emily champions community-led food system change, reduction in food waste, food security and access to healthy foods, and equity and sustainability in food production. Her scholarly work has been published in the California Law Review, Wisconsin Law Review, Harvard Law & Policy Review, Food & Drug Law Journal, and Journal of Food Law & Policy, among others.
MJ Kepner
Senior Director of Policy, Chef Ann Foundation
MJ serves as the Senior Director of Policy and Advocacy for the Chef Ann Foundation. In this role, they advocate for state and federal policy pathways to increase healthy, scratch-cooked meals in schools and the skilled workforce needed to do so.
Prior to joining the Chef Ann Foundation, MJ managed federal and state policy work for two leading Massachusetts anti-hunger organizations, Project Bread and The Greater Boston Food Bank. They received their Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from American University and worked for several different political campaigns and organizations before moving into healthy food access work.
As someone who grew up utilizing SNAP and free school meals, MJ is passionate about ensuring that every child has access to healthy, scratch-cooked meals and hopes to eradicate the stigma and barriers associated with accessing healthy food.
MJ Kepner
Senior Director of Policy, Chef Ann Foundation
MJ serves as the Senior Director of Policy and Advocacy for the Chef Ann Foundation. In this role, they advocate for state and federal policy pathways to increase healthy, scratch-cooked meals in schools and the skilled workforce needed to do so.
Prior to joining the Chef Ann Foundation, MJ managed federal and state policy work for two leading Massachusetts anti-hunger organizations, Project Bread and The Greater Boston Food Bank. They received their Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from American University and worked for several different political campaigns and organizations before moving into healthy food access work.
As someone who grew up utilizing SNAP and free school meals, MJ is passionate about ensuring that every child has access to healthy, scratch-cooked meals and hopes to eradicate the stigma and barriers associated with accessing healthy food.
Pete Pearson
Global Initiative Lead, Food Circularity Program, World Wildlife Fund
Pete Pearson is the Global Initiative Lead for the Food Circularity program at World Wildlife Fund – the world’s leading independent conservation organization, whose mission is to create a world where people and nature can thrive together. Pete specializes in food waste prevention and food circularity as part of WWF’s larger food system efforts.
Pete has led local and national sustainability programs within the retail grocery sector across 2,000 grocery stores in 37 states. He also has over 10 years of technology experience with companies including Hewlett-Packard, Accenture, and Albertsons. He has worked with public schools and hospitals as an independent sustainability consultant, co-founded a non-profit focused on sustainable and regenerative agriculture, and has co-produced a documentary film on regenerative and local food production.
Pete Pearson
Global Initiative Lead, Food Circularity Program, World Wildlife Fund
Pete Pearson is the Global Initiative Lead for the Food Circularity program at World Wildlife Fund – the world’s leading independent conservation organization, whose mission is to create a world where people and nature can thrive together. Pete specializes in food waste prevention and food circularity as part of WWF’s larger food system efforts.
Pete has led local and national sustainability programs within the retail grocery sector across 2,000 grocery stores in 37 states. He also has over 10 years of technology experience with companies including Hewlett-Packard, Accenture, and Albertsons. He has worked with public schools and hospitals as an independent sustainability consultant, co-founded a non-profit focused on sustainable and regenerative agriculture, and has co-produced a documentary film on regenerative and local food production.
Yousef Buzayan
Farm to Market Senior Manager, Community Alliance with Family Farmers
Yousef studied Agricultural Economics and International Ag Development at UC Davis. As Farm to Market Program Manager, he provides technical expertise and assistance to farmers and foodservice operators on supply chain logistics, regulations, and best practices for Farm-to-Cafeteria sales. He has worked at farmers markets, served as a UC Davis agricultural ambassador, and formerly directed the UC Davis Whole Earth Festival.
Yousef Buzayan
Farm to Market Senior Manager, Community Alliance with Family Farmers
Yousef studied Agricultural Economics and International Ag Development at UC Davis. As Farm to Market Program Manager, he provides technical expertise and assistance to farmers and foodservice operators on supply chain logistics, regulations, and best practices for Farm-to-Cafeteria sales. He has worked at farmers markets, served as a UC Davis agricultural ambassador, and formerly directed the UC Davis Whole Earth Festival.
