On November 20, 2019 the Santa Barbara Foundation held a Santa Barbara County Food Action Forum at the Foundation’s Santa Maria Headquarters.
At this convening, a panel of community experts, including Christine Bisson (Coordinator and Assistant Professor of Food Science, Nutrition & Culinology at Allen Hancock College), Lacey Baldiviez (Director of Community Education at the Food Bank of Santa Barbara County), and Ashley Costa (Executive Director of the Lompoc Valley Community Healthcare Organization), came together to discuss our food systems and the work being done to support vulnerable populations in our communities. The panel was moderated by Sigrid Wright, CEO of the Community Environmental Council.
This convening is building off the Santa Barbara County Food Action Plan that the Santa Barbara Foundation helped to develop in 2016.
Through community education forums like this, the Foundation hopes to bring together community members, nonprofit leaders, SBF staff, donors and fundholders to discuss our county’s most pressing issues, and work together to find innovative solutions to those problems.
Below, you can listen to the audio from our November Food Action Forum. We hope you enjoy, and please reach out to us if you have any questions. Stay tuned for additional educational forums in 2020!