Giving Compass' Take:

• Food Tank interviewed Jill Isenbarger, the CEO of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, a nonprofit education center and farm that aims to increase sustainability within the food system through meaningful and strategic partnerships. 

• What is philanthropy's role in increasing food sustainability?  How can donors be the most useful in this regard? 

• Read about recent impact investing in food sustainability. 

Jill Isenbarger is the CEO of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, a nonprofit education center and 80-acre farm working to create a healthy and sustainable food system. Isenbarger works to forge partnerships among farmers, engineers, policy makers, chefs, conservationists, educators, and others. Isenbarger aims to help bring about a system of agriculture and a way of eating that values ecological health, strong communities, and the integrity of place, region, and season.

Food Tank had the opportunity to speak with Jill about her work at Stone Barns Center and her hopes for young farmers and entrepreneurs seeking to change the food system.

FT: How are you helping to build a better food system?

JI: Whether it’s an in-depth conversation at one of our many convenings at Stone Barns, leading a tour or hands-on activity on our farm, or through a meal at our partner restaurant Blue Hill at Stone Barns, we try to create experiences that people want to replicate. We strive to create an inviting environment where people can explore their own ideas and think more creatively about food and farming.

FT: What’s the most pressing issue in food and agriculture that you’d like to see solved?

JI: We need to transform farming away from resource-intensive and exploitative methods toward one that relies on natural systems and biological processes. We can encourage people to eat in harmony with regional ecosystems while reducing their reliance on fossil fuel-based inputs to sustain agricultural productivity in the future.

Read the full article about the food system's impact on the environment by Katherine Walla at Food Tank.