Food Freedom Through Climate Change Activism

Speakers

Jenna Deane:

Jenna has spent over a decade in the field of environmental education and brings a passion for supporting climate change solutions and community resilience. From sharing tide pools and redwood trees with fifth graders, investigating science topics in the garden with elementary students, to providing experiential workshops on teaching climate change to local teachers, she believes that people are most likely to act when they feel like they will make a difference. As part of the Toward Zero Waste Team, she is passionate about increasing access to composting and recycling services and helping businesses transition from single-use plastics.  

Jenna has a BA in Environmental Education from Western Washington University and has worked in residential outdoor education, school gardens, and for environmental education non-profits. 

Brandi Hutton: 

Brandi loves connecting with our community and helping to inspire a brighter future. She has been a part of the Toward Zero Waste Team at Sustainable Connections for three years where she has had the opportunity to have an active role in helping shape the Food Recovery Program. Brandi also brings her creative energy to helping events and businesses better reduce and manage operation waste. Originally a Midwest native, Brandi arrived in Bellingham in 2006 to pursue a degree in Environmental Conservation from Fairhaven College at Western Washington University. Since graduating, she has passionately pursued and developed an authentic understanding of practical approaches to natural resource management. Whether it be working with private landowners through Whatcom County to protect water quality, or educating the public through specific outreach programs, Brandi’s unwavering commitment to our community is a constant.

Elodie Cerauskis: 

Elodie came to Bellingham in 2017 from California, to pursue her education at Western. Inspired by her previous community service educating youth about their environment and farming local foods, she decided to pursue an Interdisciplinary Concentration at Fairhaven College where she wrote her concentration titled, “Global Energy, Policy and Food Systems.” She also majored in French (her native language) and minored in environmental justice. While on her educational journey she decided to pursue her culinary passion and has cooked at several restaurants in Bellingham over the years. Through her work in the food industry and regular visits to the Outback Farm at Fairhaven College, Elodie began volunteering for several food recovery and distribution programs in town, such as the Foothills Food Bank, the Ferndale Food Bank, and Sustainable Connections’ Food Recovery Program. She is now an AmeriCorps Vista for the Food Recovery Program . Elodie’s role is to help build efficiency within the program, expand the program’s outreach, and educate the community about the Food Recovery Program.