Who Studied Food Systems with CLF?
Abby Reich
MPH Concentration in Food Systems, 2018
Graduate: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Undergraduate: Connecticut College, Environmental Science and Dance
Hometown: Greater Boston, MA
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Abby began her formal education studying both dance and environmental science, a combination that situated her at the intersection of creativity, human health, and our environment. Building on previous learnings in wildlife conservation in Kenya and Tanzania, she started to understand the connections between agriculture and community health. Her interests led her to a career in nutrition education and media, and then to the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, where she earned her degree in 2018, with a Concentration in Food Systems. Prioritizing positive transformation for climate change and food systems, Abby is currently living in Baltimore, Maryland, and working as the Knowledge Mobilisation Manager for EatSafe at the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN).
“While at Hopkins, Dr. Keith West advised me that when working in food systems and/or public health, it's important to get comfortable with not seeing quick changes. Especially in food systems, change can take decades. With that advice, I hope in 10 years time, safe, nutritious food can be universally accepted as a basic human right.” —Abby Reich
Anne Rosenthal
Certificate in Food Systems, the Environment and Public Health, 2018
Graduate: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Undergraduate: Wesleyan University, Environmental Studies and French
Hometown: Baltimore, MD
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After college, Anne gained work experience in a number of fields, from supporting community health workers in rural Mexico, to researching sustainability in Belgium, to building communications tools for global health initiatives in New York. Connecting these diverse experiences was an interest in equity—she was keenly interested in helping to further equal access to food, health care, information, and opportunity. While earning her MPH degree, she focused on health systems and policy and enrolled in the Food Systems Certificate Program. Her current work continues to focus on equity, as she focuses on school meals and food education in the Baltimore City Public School System as Food & Nutrition Specialist.
“What gives me hope is hearing elementary students from Baltimore City Public Schools chant “BROC-CO-LI! BROC-CO-LI!” during local farm field trips and watching them dig into gardens at their schools.” —Anne Rosenthal
Audrey Tran Lam
Certificate in Food Systems, the Environment and Public Health, 2021
Graduate: University of Iowa, College of Public Health / Occupational and Environmental Health
Undergraduate: Luther College, Iowa, Environmental Studies and Sociology
Hometown: Vinton, Iowa
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After graduating from Luther College, Audrey wanted to participate in climate change solutions. Her work on an organic farm helped her realize that there are a lot of dots to connect—land use, climate, nutrition, food access, to name a few—and that it all came back to public health. While attending an APHA conference at which CLF’s founding director spoke, Audrey realized that the Center for a Livable Future was making food system connections that she hadn’t been able to articulate, and she began thinking about the food system in a new way. Her investigations into the Center led her to apply for the Certificate Program in Food Systems, the Environment and Public Health. Determined to make real, positive change in the Midwest, she is currently the Environmental Health Program Director at the Center for Energy & Environmental Education at the University of Northern Iowa, and she serves on several organizations, including the Iowa Rural Health Association, the Iowa Food Systems Coalition, the Heartland Health Research Alliance, and the Pesticide Action Network.
“I suddenly saw the food system as one problem, repeated over and over: fewer players, less diversity. Fewer famers, bigger farms. Fewer crops, higher yields.” —Audrey Tran Lam