By Grace Hoening 

I have worked with MEANS since June 2019 when I started as an Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA) Outreach intern at the age of 16. My passion for food recovery started at the ELCA World Hunger Leadership Conference. I tagged along with my mom and grew into a passion I wanted to keep pursuing. I was able to hear Maria Rose Belding, one of our co-founders, speak at different events and connected with her because I was instantly inspired by MEANS. It just made sense. There were some minor details I needed to work out such as moving to Washington DC, but I was determined to find a way. After an interview and working out details with Sammie Paul, I was on a flight to DC.

While I was younger than most of my coworkers, I never felt that way. I was always treated as an equal regardless of my age or experience. The work environment that summer and even now while we are virtual is better than I could have asked for. It has given me valuable relationships and life experiences. From working on spreadsheets and making calls to recording for TV shows and spending time with the MEANS team, I am forever grateful for that summer and the memories and experiences that came with it.

My First Work Trip

That summer, I went to a conference in Minnesota. It was such a full circle moment because my coworkers and I were helping Maria Rose write one of her speeches. The summer prior I was sitting in the audience learning about MEANS and now I was getting to help share our story. I also was able to present at the conference with Emily Dwyer and Julia Uricheck. We shared some of the crazy donations we’ve recovered such as ketchup packets or excessive amounts of Gatorade. As a new intern at MEANS, they gave me the opportunity to meet partners and share our story.

When I started working at MEANS we were in an office. Saying goodbye was hard because I didn’t know if I’d ever get to see anyone again. When the world shut down due to COVID-19, MEANS invited me and other previous employees to come back and work online. Over COVID, it gave me a sense of community that I needed and also provided me with things to do when all of my normal high school extracurricular activities were canceled. Now that we are all virtual, I am able to continue working with MEANS 4 years later. 

Personal and Professional Growth

MEANS has helped me grow as a person. Part of that being because I have worked here at a pivotal time of my life from finishing high school all the way through college. It has helped give me professional experience while still having flexibility around my busy college schedule. Over the years, I have been mentored by different team members about working on social media and making graphics to sending emails and fundraising. The MEANS team has both helped me grow as an individual and professional. At MEANS, I’ve always been encouraged to work with my strengths. I’m a music major, so while I’m not writing MEANS a theme song, I am working on creative aspects such as video editing, social media posts, and graphic design. I made Can Man as a joke and now we regularly use him in fundraising and social media. 

MEANS encourages me to use my creativity in different ways every day. It has helped me become the person I am today. Working with MEANS has been an amazing opportunity, I would recommend it to anyone. You might not feel tech savvy or like you don’t know enough about food recovery, but you will learn and there’s an amazing team by your side who is ready to answer any questions. Right now we are moving more food than ever before. We are always accepting volunteers and you can keep your eye out for internship positions with us too! It doesn’t matter your age, if you want to help, we’ll find a way. What matters is that we waste less and feed more, together. 

By Victoria Cao 

In the United States, 22 million pounds of food is wasted by college campuses annually, and those local communities often have high rates of food insecurity. In Providence County, Rhode Island, where Providence College, Johnson and Wales, Rhode Island School of Design, and Brown University are all home, 12.7% of households face food insecurity. 

Why recover food from college campuses and why should we all get involved? 

There are a wide variety of reasons. In my own personal experience, it gives:

1. Students have an opportunity to give back to the community they lived in for four years. 

As many universities are nonprofits, they do not pay taxes on their land or other operations. In Providence, where I attend college, tax-exempt land is 40% of the city. Although it benefits college students, who can enjoy more resources or less tuition costs, this comes at the expense of permanent residents who depend on the local government for public benefits. University students, including myself, only occupy the space for a few years, but often give nothing and take too much from the place we stay. Working with food recovery and community partners to increase access to healthy food is one way to leave a more positive impact, meet the community needs, and feel less like we are occupying space, and more like community members ourselves.

2. Reduces waste, offsetting carbon emissions from food in landfills 

Composting food is excellent, which many universities do, but using that food to feed more people is more energy efficient and environmentally sustainable. At the same time, if we can combat the problem of waste, we decrease the consumption of water, fertilizers, pesticides, and other harmful pollutants in the agricultural space. 

3. Allows for a conversation about food and health inequities 

Food recovery is an excellent way to start a conversation about inequities in a very tangible way. In every community, there are individuals who do not have access to healthy, nutritious food, which many consider a basic human right. However, affluent college campuses are often removed from the community they occupy physically and therefore, are ignorant of food insecurity and other health inequities. In addition, access to food is often associated with other social determinants of health such as healthcare access, education, residential area, and food deserts. 

4. Offers a chance for students to innovate and think creatively

Food recovery on college campuses, fundamentally, is a logistical issue. There is no reason for universities to throw away thousands of pounds of food when one in nine Americans face food insecurity. We have enough, but the problem is connecting the system and closing the loop on food. Certainly, food is pervasive in every aspect of our lives as college students. It’s found at events, local grocery stores, dining halls, local restaurants, and more. There’s a space for food recovery at all these locations with a wide variety of problem-solving and innovative opportunities. 

For example, the Food Recovery Network at Brown University has struggled with finding drivers for late-night donations after dining rooms close. In order to combat this problem, we’ve partnered with MEANS Database. We also hope to collect supplies outside of food (utensils, napkins, etc) when the dining halls do not have storage, as well as collecting more from catered and department events. Likewise, we want to use this opportunity to educate our campus about food insecurity. There’s an unbelievable amount of room for innovation and problem-solving. 

Food rescue on college campuses can absolutely be done. It is protected by state legislation with the Rhode Island Food Donation Act and federally by the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Act. In January 2023, the Food Donation Improvement Act was approved, expanding the Bill Emerson Act to include additional liability protections. If you’re a college student, consider starting a food recovery group whether through Food Recovery Network or a different group. Truly, you can make a difference in people’s lives as a teenager or twenty-year-old in college—just some food for thought.

Overview

MEANS Database is a nationwide food recovery organization, connecting businesses with extra food to nearby emergency food providers supporting their community members for free. In Rhode Island and Bristol County, MA, we’ve teamed up with the EPA, RI Department of Health, and Rescuing Leftover Cuisine to increase food recovery efforts across the region. 

Program Description 

MEANS Database is seeking an Outreach Intern based in Rhode Island to join our team from May 22 to August 18 , 2023. This internship offers unique opportunities to engage in day to day nonprofit service and directly expand our reach as a nonprofit organization. Applicants that join our team will broaden their knowledge of nonprofit work, assist nonprofits in the Rhode Island and Massachusetts communities, gain experience with food recovery, and more! 

Applications are due by April 28th, 2023. This opportunity is fully remote and approximately 10 hours of work per week. This position is paid hourly at $16.50/hr. 

Tasks: 

• Reach out to food businesses including grocery stores, restaurants, farmers, and other food donors in Rhode Island to discuss food donation.
• Create materials for outreach to community partners.
• Conduct stewardship with existing MEANS partners in your region. 

Qualifications

• All high school seniors, college students, & recent post-grads are welcome to apply. 
• Passionate about food insecurity in America.
• Currently resides in Rhode Island or Massachusetts
• Able to attend weekly check-ins via Google Meets.

To apply, please send your resume and reasons why you are interested to sammie@foodrecovery.org.

Deadline: April 28, 2023