Reimagining the Food-Related Social Safety Net in Chicago
Today we’re sharing Bill Emerson National Hunger Fellow Niisoja Torto's final report on Reimagining the Food-Related Social Safety Net in Chicago!
To learn more about Niisoja's involvement as a Bill Emerson National Hunger fellow with the Congressional Hunger Center, check out their website!
Here is the purpose of this toolkit, as stated by the author Niisoja Torto: “Through a patchwork of different programs, the social safety net plays an important role in protecting people around the United States and in Chicago, particularly in times of economic hardship. However, the safety net can often fail to fully meet the needs of struggling families and to address the root causes of hunger and food insecurity—a limitation made particularly clear by the COVID-19 pandemic crisis we face today.
This project aims to explore how local government in Chicago might support the development of a reimagined social safety net—one that facilitates systems change rather than piecemeal, temporary solutions and one that moves from a food security-focused paradigm towards a vision of food sovereignty. By exploring models to improve food access from across the US, this project discusses innovative strategies that Chicago might adopt to champion a right of people not only to healthy, affordable and culturally-appropriate food but also to take part in defining their food and agricultural systems.”
To learn more about the work he completed with CFPAC over the past several months, click here to download “Reimagining the Food-Related Social Safety Net in Chicago”.