Teens for Food Justice is galvanizing a youth-led movement to build a universal, just, and equitable food system and to end the cycle of diet-related disease and poor health outcomes disproportionately plaguing low-income communities of color. TFFJ builds school-based hydroponic farms in food desert communities and trains youth in cutting-edge indoor agricultural methods, tied to STEM education, that can grow thousands of pounds of produce annually at a single school. This healthy, hyperlocal food is then incorporated into school lunch and distributed by students to local community members. TFFJ school farms are also knowledge and empowerment centers where students develop skills and vocabulary to serve as health ambassadors and food justice movement builders within their own food desert communities, while gaining the workforce skills that will enable them to lead and prosper in a new green economy.
“In New York City alone, more than 1.5M residents are now food insecure and malnourished, an increase of more than 35 percent over pre-COVID rates; 25 percent of those affected are children. It is projected that 1 out of every 6 Americans will face food insecurity this year. This is a fundamental crisis of equity and justice that challenges our nation’s concepts of basic human rights; it is also a national security and health crisis of enormous proportions. The implications of food insecurity on BIPOC communities’ disease and mortality rates were staggering prior to the pandemic but the connection between COVID morbidity rates and diseases stemming from poor nutrition, such as diabetes and heart disease, has brought us to a new level of urgency. It will take a committed and powerful alliance of public, private and not for profit actors, such as the Healthy Living Coalition, to develop a real and lasting solution to these problems. TFFJ is proud and honored to be a member of this alliance.”
– Katherine Soll, CEO and Founder, Teens for Food Justice
