“Diversity and Inclusion in Emergency Food Systems”

A native of Rochester, New York, Madelaine Britt is a graduate of the School of Architecture and Planning at the University at Buffalo (SUNY), a Western New York Prosperity Fellow and a Harry S. Truman Scholar. Growing up in the Rust Belt, she is passionate about centering community voice in urban planning practices to address socio-economic and racial disparities in her hometown, with a specific focus on increasing access to healthy food and affordable housing. Before becoming an Emerson National Hunger Fellow, Madelaine worked as a city planner for the City of New York, working in partnership with East Harlem and Washington Heights community organizations to organize small business owners, support community wealth building initiatives and placemaking programming. In addition, she is a former intern for the World Health Organization on the Special Program on Sustainable Development and Health Equity, where she reported on regional planning and policy tools that improve health and human security. Madelaine first came to understand the close relationship between food equity and planning through her experience as an undergraduate research associate at the Food Systems Planning and Healthy Communities Lab in Buffalo.

The Feeding America network is the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization, working to connect people with food and end hunger. Donors, staff, and volunteers all play an important role in their efforts to end hunger in the United States. Their mission is to feed America’s hungry through a nationwide network of member food banks and engage the country in the fight to end hunger.