BOSTON– The Henry P. Kendall Foundation, a New England philanthropic enterprise that is part of a strong and rapidly expanding network aiming to create a resilient and healthy New England food system, announced today the creation of the New England Food Vision Prize.
The Prize program invites food service leaders on the region’s more than 200 college and university campuses to submit bold, collaborative, catalytic ideas for consideration of enabling awards of up to $250,000. Up to six awards will be announced each year through 2023.
“For more than 60 years, the H.P. Kendall Foundation has supported visionary projects and leaders,” said Foundation Executive Director Andy Kendall. “By leveraging the large-scale buying power of the region’s colleges and universities, we can create the long-term demand local farmers and fishermen need to sustain and grow their operations.”
The New England Food Vision Prize is designed to accelerate progress towards the New England Food Vision, a regional goal to produce at least 50% of New England’s own food by 2060. One high-leverage strategy to accelerate the region towards that goal is to unlock the market power of large food purchasers, like colleges and universities. The Prize is designed to support ideas that result in higher procurement of regional food by institutions, more regional food on campus menus, and increased demand for regional food by students while on campus and beyond the campus as alumnae.
To qualify, ideas must be:
- Collaborative: Project teams must identify and collaborate with partners that will advance the goal.
Replicable: Ideas for the New England Food Prize should think beyond the dynamics at play on any one campus.
Sustainable: Good ideas are based on a systems-approach and designed to last.
Measurable: Applicants will share ways they plan on quantifying and qualifying progress on increasing regional food procurement and generating increased demand for regional food.
Movement-building: Ideas for the Prize should demonstrate how they contribute to the growing movement demanding local food through organizing, engaging, advocating, or educating.
“We’re eager to find new ways to approach the purchasing paradigm so we can expand our support of the local food system,” said David Davidson, Managing Director of Dining Services at Harvard University. At an institutional level, we’ve made great progress. But we also recognize that more can be done, especially when we work with some of our good friends and peers at neighboring schools. We just need new and creative solutions to make more local food more accessible for our style of purchasing.”
Food service leaders at New England colleges and universities are invited to learn more at www.kendall.org, and submit a Letter of Interest to the Foundation by June 1, 2018. The Foundation will then request full proposals from qualifying applicants, and announce up to six winners of up to $250,000 in September 2018.
–Shaun Adamec, Adamec Communications