Connecting the Issues of Food and Global Climate Change

by Rochelle Davis, HSC Founding Executive Director

Anna Lappe  (a bestselling author and advocate for sustainability and food justice) has just launched a new website on the connection between food and global climate change as she researches a new book, “Eat the Sky: Food, Farming and Climate Change.” 

Given Healthy Schools Campaign’s dual priorities on environmental issues and food and fitness, it is interesting to see how these two issue become connected. 

For us, the connection has been made around our work on healthy and high performing school construction.  For those of you familiar with the term “healthy and high performing,” you know that “healthy” generally refers to  healthy indoor air and “high performing” refers to energy efficiency.  The guidance document that we worked on with more than 40 stakeholders here in Illinois integrates a broader notion of health by incorporating recommendations that include kitchen facilities that can produce healthy food.   

Anna Lappe makes the connection between our two program areas even stronger when she connects food production and distribution to climate change.  We will look forward to reading her book.