About Diane Hatz
This month’s featured guest, Diane Hatz, is the founder & executive director of Change Food, a non-profit organization and “grassroots movement creating a healthy, equitable food system.”
According to its website, Change Food “provide[s] various levels of support to forward-thinking food companies and organizations that are not getting sufficient attention for creating real, replicable change. In addition, through conferences, events and special projects, Change Food raises public awareness and connects various parts of the food movement.” Change Food has just launched a Patreon page to raise money for programs that are not getting the support they should be getting. https://www.patreon.com/
Prior to creating and building the Change Food organization, Diane was the organizer and host of TEDxManhattan, “Changing the Way We Eat,” an annual independently-licensed TED event on sustainable food and farming from 2010 – 2015. Through this endeavor, as well as through the events hosted by Change Food, she has created the Change Food Fest and Change Food Video Library, which houses professional videos documenting the speakers at these events.
Previously, Diane was the Co-founder & Director of The Glynwood Institute for Sustainable Food and Farming, she also founded and ran nonprofit program called Sustainable Table to raise awareness of issues around sustainable food, eating healthier and finding the best food for consumers and their families, which used popular culture, entertainment, grassroots marketing and new technology to raise awareness in creative, innovative ways.
One of her initial projects in the food movements was as Executive Producer of The Meatrix, and award-winning, animated short considered to be the most popular online advocacy films ever, which consists of three movies released which have been viewed by well over 20 million people.
Founder of the Eat Well Guide, an online consumer directory of sustainable food outlets in the US and Canada.
Our Conversation
In our conversation, we discuss many topics, from her specific experiences transitioning from the music industry into food, her petpeeves in the food movement and her advice for people who want to get involved in the food movement, to discussing the Change Food organization, simple tips everyone can do to help reduce food waste and other projects/organizations/events she’s founded.
In the conversation we discuss:
- The difference between the Good Food and Food Tech social movements and the importance of connecting the two for the success of our overall food system
- The role investors play in our food systems and how they could do better and why understanding the food system is beneficial to them
- Areas of the food systems that aren’t getting the investors/funding they need
- Social movements – what they are/how they start
- Diane’s passion for social change/social good
- Funding opportunities in for-profit vs not-for-profit ventures and how to use that to improve the food system
- Mentalities in running for-profit vs nonprofit organizations and the need for marketing in non-profits
- How marketing and fundraising differ and why non-profits would benefit from doing more marketing
- A better way to measure effectiveness: Impact vs Profit-Motive
- Unique start-ups that are helping fight food-waste, including Rise
- Food waste -why it’s a problem and simple tips on how we can do better
- How can we work together rather an against each other to make a better world
- The power of passion and perseverance to accomplish your goals and turn a dream into action steps
- Diane’s approach to starting new projects and the importance of list making and “just starting”
- How to get involved in the food movement
- The importance of knowing who you are and being ok with it
- The struggle to finding work life balance and building a sustainable lifestyle
- The importance of inspiring action on community leaders to activate change rather than external people coming in to underserved communities
- and so much more!
Check out the episode and don’t forget to share it with your friends!
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