2023 Zero Hunger Interns Study Policy Solutions to Hunger

Evyn Appel
6th Class, 2023

Evyn Appel is an honors student at the University of Delaware majoring in Sustainable Food Systems. On campus, she founded and serves as the president of the Hydroponics Club and is a university tour guide. Originally from center city Philadelphia, Evyn worked at the Vetri Community Partnership throughout high school leading a nutrition and culinary education class for middle school students. At UD, the Hydroponics Club partners with nearby restaurants, food banks, and the dining halls to expose more people to local, sustainably grown hydroponic produce. She is a self-proclaimed foodie and hopes to make the privilege of accessible, nutritious, and delicious food a reality for everyone. This summer, she is hoping to gain experience in research-propelled policy. Evyn will be interning at the Food Research & Action Center supporting their summer and pandemic EBT program.

Garreth Bartholomew
6th Class, 2023

Garreth Bartholomew hails from Falls Church, Virginia, and is pursuing a degree in Public Policy and Politics from the University of Virginia. As a dedicated on-Grounds leader, Garreth heads the university's Remote Area Medical chapter and serves as a Student Disability Advisor. Passionate about addressing food scarcity and poverty, he holds the roles of President for UVA's Food Recovery Network and lead Chair for the Food Pantry Collaborative. Driven by the belief that food has the power to combat health, environmental, and economic injustices, Garreth seeks to deepen his understanding of the role of nutrition in improving health both domestically and globally. This summer, he is excited to intern at the Alive & Thrive Initiative, which focuses on delivering impactful nutrition results in communities across the world. He looks forward to exploring the policy potential of food work through the Summer Seminars and aims to uncover innovative strategies for enhancing health through nutrition, fostering positive nutrition and health outcomes for those in the United States and abroad.

Olivier Bradley
6th Class, 2023

Olivier resides in Harvard, Massachusetts and attends the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he studies economics, public policy, and civic engagement. On campus, Olivier participates actively in the Community Scholars Program, a two-year academic community engagement and leadership program centered around intentional service, learning, discussion, and visioning. He works weekly with the Amherst Survival Center, fulfilling various functions to meet community needs. Olivier is also in Sophomores-Serve, a one-year honors program centered around science-informed public food policy. He recently presented his research to policymakers at the Massachusetts State House and plans to share his findings in an upcoming testimony session. Olivier is passionate about diagnosing hunger's root causes and prescribing system-level remedies. This summer, Olivier is interning with InterAction in their Global Development Policy and Learning division, where he is excited to cultivate advocacy skills and acquire a deeper understanding of food security in the context of global development work. Olivier looks forward to not only developing his research, advocacy, and policy skills, but also—most importantly—better understanding the role he plays in the fight to eradicate hunger.

Erin Katahira
6th Class, 2023

Erin Katahira is from Honolulu, Hawaii, and is pursuing a BS in Public Health with Minors in Psychology and Emergency Health Services from The George Washington University. At the university, Erin is the Sponsorship Director for GlobeMed, a GW Capital Peer, and a volunteer with OneTent Health and Miriam’s Kitchen in DC. She is passionate about improving health accessibility in her communities by working to include minority voices in the hunger conversation to improve public health education and thus health outcomes. Erin hopes to gain more experience in nonprofit health organizations and will be interning with the Congressional Hunger Center’s Development Department.

Patience Lightfoot
6th Class, 2023

Patience Lightfoot is from Edmond, Oklahoma, and is a first-generation honors student attending Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Patience is studying Business Administration with a concentration in Pre-Law and minors in Nonprofit Management and Sociology. At OSU, Patience serves as the founder and president of Nonprofit Club and is the Community Outreach Coordinator for the on-campus open education program. Patience has worked with organizations such as The Bail Project, Wings of Hope, and Our Daily Bread, each with causes that aim to alleviate poverty and hunger. Patience is passionate about being an advocate for underserved people and their communities as she hopes to help bridge the gap between access and equity. This summer, she wishes to develop her skills to become best equipped to reach these goals.

Ignacia Méndez
6th Class, 2023

Ignacia Méndez is from Santiago, Chile, and attends The College of Wooster, where she studies Economics, Math, and Political Science. Previously, Ignacia supported her school's volunteer program by providing basic needs to people throughout Chile. She also served as a math and physics teacher for Chilean children. This summer, Ignacia is excited to learn new ways to reduce poverty and hunger worldwide. She looks forward to research opportunities, developing new policies, and learning from other's solutions to make a better world.

Fawad Mohammadi
6th Class, 2023

Fawad is an international student from Afghanistan attending Oberlin College, majoring in Psychology and minoring in Politics and Law & Society. He has a few on-campus jobs and is a member of Bonner Leadership Team. Through the Bonner Scholars program, he has worked for Oberlin Community Services to provide food packages and hygiene packs for Oberlin residents. He is interested in advocating for marginalized groups, including BIPOC and international students. Fawad hopes to develop his leadership skills this summer and learn more about anti-hunger programs through his field placement with ACDI/VOCA through the Congressional Hunger Center. He is excited to participate in the Zero Hunger Internship Program because it provides a unique opportunity to work towards eradicating hunger and malnutrition while gaining valuable skills and experiences in the field of sustainable agriculture and food security.

Nerissa Ng
6th Class, 2023

Nerissa Ng is from Great Neck, NY and is a student at Binghamton University in Binghamton, NY studying English Literature and Biological Sciences. She is the president and founder of her university’s Swipe Out Hunger chapter and has been heavily involved with her campus food pantry and national members of Swipe Out Hunger. These experiences have allowed her to work on both community-centric and policy-oriented solutions to hunger, as she has been meeting with individuals facing food insecurity as well as legislators regarding it. When not tackling hunger on a systemic level, Nerissa can often be found cooking for her friends, writing poetry, or enjoying nature. This summer, she hopes to learn more about amplifying people’s voices and what goes into getting bills passed through her internship at Share Our Strength through the Congressional Hunger Center.

Livie Nute
6th Class, 2023

Livie Nute is from Crested Butte, Colorado and is a recent Global Public Health graduate from the University of Virginia (UVA). At UVA, Livie worked as a Food Policy Intern for the Office of Sustainability. She also served as a student coordinator for a Global Studies partnership program with indigenous communities, and as an intern for a NGO in Marrakech, where she assisted in anti-hunger and community organizing efforts through rural Morocco. Livie is passionate about intersections between sustainability, food justice, and food sovereignty. This summer, Livie hopes to learn more about how to leverage policy for localized solutions to malnutrition, and how to be a more effective leader and facilitator of this process. One aspect of the ZHI program that I am very excited about is participating in a cohort of peers who are also deeply invested in anti-hunger work. Livie looks forward to exchanging different perspectives and internship experiences, and seeing where host organizations' efforts intersect.

Khadija Rashid
6th Class, 2023

Khadija Rashid is from Brooklyn, New York and currently studies at Cornell University, majoring in Government with a minor in Fashion and Business. On campus, Khadija is involved in various activities, including the South Asian Council, Pakistani Student Association, Cornell International Student Society, and volunteering with Cornell Hunger Relief and Muslims Give Back. Driven by her passion for combating hunger and poverty, Khadija is actively engaged in anti-hunger and anti-poverty initiatives. She deeply interested in social justice, equitable access to education, and empowering marginalized communities. Khadija dedicated to creating a more just and inclusive society where everyone has equal opportunities to thrive. This summer, Khadija is interning with the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), a renowned nonprofit organization addressing hunger and poverty nationwide. Khadija aims to gain hands-on experience in program development, policy advocacy, and community engagement. Through this internship, she hopes to deepen her understanding of effective strategies for addressing these complex challenges and make a meaningful contribution to the organization's mission of building a hunger-free world.

Sabine Umuhire
6th Class, 2023

Sabine Umuhire is originally from Rwanda, and attends Case Western Reserve University (CWRU), Ohio, where she is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and a minor in Chemistry. At CWRU, Sabine is involved in the Diabetes Prevention Program, volunteers at food banks, organizes donation drives for local families in need, and does accessibility work for the university nutrition department. She also participates in fundraising by drafting letters to potential donors to sponsor a project she pioneered in her native town, which distributes necessities to in-patients without caretakers. Sabine is interested in gaining an understanding of the systemic disadvantages faced by marginalized communities, and how they can be addressed to end hunger and malnutrition. This summer, she hopes to gain a deeper understanding of the complexities of the issue of hunger and develop skills needed to become a powerful advocate for effective anti-hunger programs and policies.

Lauryn White
6th Class, 2023

Lauryn White is from Phoenix, Arizona, and attended the University of Arizona. She graduated with honors in May with a B.S. in Nutritional Sciences and minors in Spanish and Health/Human Values. During her time at UArizona, she worked as an emergency medical technician and served as the student body Administrative Vice President. In this role, she was the sole student advisor and advocate to 8 programs and services, including Campus Pantry, Campus Closet, and many more. She also worked with her executive team to advocate for expansion of SNAP benefits to Arizona Governor Hobbs, fare-free public transportation in the city of Tucson, and equitable access to meal plans for incoming freshmen. This summer, she hopes to learn more about the intersection between policy and efforts to reduce food insecurity. She is interning at the USDA's Department Food & Nutrition Service in their Child Nutrition Programs, School Meals Policy Division.

Daniel Zavala Paramo
6th Class, 2023

Daniel Zavala was born and raised in Mexico until he immigrated with his family to the US in 2008. Daniel attends the University of Oklahoma, majoring in Community Health and Environmental Sustainability. He serves as the Director of Policy Research at the first student-run OU think tank, Students For Local Action, focusing on policy change at the municipal and state level. He is involved in passing anti-hunger and anti-poverty policies, and hopes to further his expertise in policy advocacy at Prosperity Now. Daniel is excited to participate in the Zero Hunger Internship Program to learn more about anti-hunger efforts act the nation's capital, and to help in the effort through a variety of partner non-profits.