Elevating Voices, Ending Hunger

Elevating Voices, Ending Hunger is a conversational podcast series featuring change makers and everyday leaders disrupting the status quo to end systems of inequity that drive food insecurity in the United States. Host Ami McReynolds, Chief Equity and Programs Officer with Feeding America, talks with grassroots community leaders, hunger relief supporters and people facing hunger, each of whom bring unique contributions to a collective effort to end hunger.

Combating Food Insecurity—One Meal at a Time: A Conversation with Dion Dawson

Release Date:

Dion Dawson knows what it’s like to go hungry. Growing up on the South Side of Chicago, he faced hunger, homelessness and poverty. Now, he leads a multi-million-dollar organization committed to providing fresh food to his community. Dion’s Chicago Dream delivers over 11,000 pounds of food per month to more than 1,300 Chicago residents each week, helping to alleviate the food insecurity that so many in his community face. Tune in to this powerful and inspiring episode where Dion and Ami discuss how the charitable food experience must be imbued with dignity, the ways that food insecurity is a social justice issue and so much more.

Listen On:

Food Insecurity and Poverty in the LGBTQ Community with Bianca Wilson of UCLA’s Williams Institute

Release Date:

22% of LGBTQ+ adults live in poverty, which makes this community twice as likely as others to face hunger. In this podcast, Ami speaks with Senior Scholar of Public Policy Bianca Wilson, Ph.D., of UCLA’s Williams Institute, about the unique challenges LGBTQ folks face around food insecurity. What contributes to LGBTQ people coming up against barriers to accessing food? Dr. Wilson and Ami explore cultural, geographic, and other issues that play a factor. To learn more about the research referenced on today’s show.

Listen On:

Engaging Community to Start a Movement with HungerMitao

Release Date:

Anna and Raj Asava knew what hunger looked like in their home country of India but were completely unaware of what was hidden in plain sight in their community in the U.S. In this podcast, Ami talks with the founders of HungerMitao, a volunteer-driven grassroots movement focused on raising awareness about hunger in this country, about what they are doing to raise awareness about food insecurity and how they are enrolling others in the movement to end hunger.

Listen On:

Amplifying Voices of Advocacy with Capital Area Food Bank and the Client Leadership Council

Release Date:

In this podcast, we meet Latisha Reid, Vanessa Pierre and Adam LaRose who share their experiences with the Client Leadership Council, an initiative from the Capital Area Food Bank in Washington DC designed to enable members to serve as advocates and agents of change for themselves and their communities. Join Ami as she uncovers the power of using our voices and lived experience to advocate for strong, resilient communities.

Listen On:

Changing the Narrative to Nourish Communities with WANDA

Release Date:

In this episode of the podcast, we explore reclaiming our history and working to end food apartheid that has caused structural inequities in our communities. Join us as Ami talks with leaders from WANDA, an organization building a movement of women and girls of African descent who educate, advocate and innovate to change the trajectory of their communities.

Listen On:

Uprooting Racism and Seeding Sovereignty with Soul Fire Farm

Release Date:

Chances are you’re familiar with the term “food desert,” but what about the term “food apartheid”? In this episode, Ami talks about food sovereignty, land and liberation with two leaders from Soul Fire Farm, an Afro-Indigenous-centered community farm located in Petersburg, New York.

Listen On:

Closing the Racial Hunger Divide with Sherri Green and Allison O’Toole

Release Date:

The murder of George Floyd sparked outrage at myriad systemic inequities faced by people of color. Made even worse by the pandemic, those inequities grew - with Black, Latino, Asian, Indigenous populations at least twice as likely to experience food insecurity than their white counterparts. In this episode, Ami’s joined by Allison O’Toole, CEO of Second Harvest Heartland, and Sherri Green, family resource manager at Sabathani Community Center—located just blocks from where George Floyd was killed.

Listen On:

Strengthening Partnerships, Creating Joy with Melanie McGuire and Ada Saenz

Release Date:

On this episode of the Elevating Voices, Ending Hunger podcast, Ami talks to Melanie McGuire, chief program officer at the San Antonio Food Bank, and Ada Saenz, interim CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of San Antonio, about how they worked together during the pandemic to listen and support their community through this difficult time.

Listen On:

Transitioning From White Space Governance with Community Food Bank of Arizona's Rene Lopez and Michael McDonald

Release Date:

Even with the best intentions, nonprofit organizations have played a major role in maintaining racist systems - and the makeup of their leadership is one big reason why.

In this episode, we speak with Community Food Bank of Arizona CEO Michael McDonald and board member Rene Lopez about their work transitioning their organization's traditional whitespace governance into one that represents the communities it serves.

Listen On:

Building an Inclusive Democracy with Susannah Morgan and Liban Satu

Release Date:

What does democracy have to do with food assistance? For this episode, we spoke with Susannah Morgan, CEO of Oregon Food Bank, and Portland community leader Liban Satu on why building an inclusive democracy is an important step to ending hunger.

Listen On:

Power and Partnership with Nicole Robinson and Melvin Thompson

Release Date:

In this episode, we focus on the importance of sharing power and building partnerships to provide food justice. To discuss, host Ami McReynolds sits down with Nicole Robinson, the chief partnership and programs officer at Greater Chicago Food Depository, and Melvin Thompson, the executive director of community development organization located in Chicago's south side.

Listen On:

Putting Equity into Action with Claire Babineaux-Fontenot

Release Date:

Host Ami McReynolds speaks with Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America. They talk about economic inequality and food injustice, the role of philanthropy, and the power within local communities to create sustainable, transformative change.

Listen On:

Trailer

Release Date:

In the debut episode of Elevating Voices, Ending Hunger, host Ami McReynolds will speak with Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America. They will talk about inequities in poverty and food insecurity, the role of philanthropy, and the power within local communities to create sustainable, transformative change.

Listen On: