The UW Food Security Taskforce was organically formed through a student-led grassroots approach. Initial efforts to explore and address food security emerged with students, faculty, and staff in Kinesiology and Health and the Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources. Initial research was conducted by undergraduate student Alanna Elder in her honors thesis titled "Food Access and Dignity Among University of Wyoming Students." This research led to the Haub School implementing the first Food Share Cabinet in 2017.
Food security efforts at UW have always been rooted in sharing, dignity, community, and reducing stigma.
Following the creation of the food share cabinet toolkit, another 8 UW units and organizations have created their own cabinets . The Sustainability Coalition received $11,000 in ASUW Special Projects funding in 2019 to extend cabinets to up to 10 additional buildings across campus. In late 2019, the ASUW Student Government and the Sustainability Coalition formed a coalition, leveraging the bottom-up movement of the initial food share cabinets.
You can learn more about the history of the taskforce in our Crash Course of Taskforce History & 5 Strategies or in our handy pocket guide.