Promoting Food Security in Higher Education

In early 2021, CESI and the Guelph Lab launched “Promoting Food Security in Higher Education” with Meal Exchange and staff and faculty at the University of British Columbia, the University of Guelph, McMaster University, and the University of Ottawa. The goal of the project is to catalyze a network of university administrators, researchers, students, staff and food service providers working to promote food secure campus communities. The project included:

A conference in March 2021, to support networking, learning and knowledge sharing. There were 6 learning events, 3 networking sessions, 300+ attendees. Watch the conference events.
Principles to guide and inspire action on student food insecurity. Download the Principles.
A map of 200+ food security initiatives on campuses across Canada. The map allows people to explore existing projects and highlights the volume and range of work already happening. Explore the map.
A “Readiness Assessment” that analyzes existing responses to student food insecurity on individual campuses, and provides insights into how the sector as a whole is responding to SFI. Read the Student Food Insecurity Campus Readiness Assessment.

CESI is currently engaged in a multi-year collaboration on food insecurity; it began with the Guelph Lab, Meal Exchange, and one research project, and has since evolved to include new program areas, partners, research, and advocacy efforts, including "Promoting Food Security in Higher Education." For more details on CESI's work on SFI, and work with Meal Exchange, read the blog post CESI and Meal Exchange: Working Together to Address Student Food Insecurity. For more resources related to student food insecurity, visit the Meal Exchange Resources page.