Food, hunger, and nutrition partnership: An interdisciplinary community centered model

Purpose: To explore the academic training, research, outreach and service-learning activities needed for undergraduate and graduate students and faculty from a variety of disciplines to address food, hunger and nutrition. To develop comprehensive, meaningful solutions to food insecurity for Rhode Island's diverse, low-income populations. Background: 11% of all US households lack the necessary resources to access nutritionally adequate and safe foods. Close to 44, 000 Rhode Island (RI) residents rely on the complex network of food pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters to feed themselves and their families every month. Hunger, food insecurity, and poor nutrition outcomes are integrally linked with poverty as well as the complex cultural, political, social, medical, and environmental factors that shape food availability and intake. Methods: A Food, Hunger, and Nutrition (FHN) Partnership was developed based on an interdisciplinary, community-centered model.In concert with a wide array of community agencies, programs, and citizens, the FHN Partnership is working toward developing comprehensive, meaningful solutions to food insecurity for Rhode Island's diverse, low-income populations. Results: Accomplishments to date include: co-sponsoring an Honors Colloquium, ‘Food & Human Rights'; development of interdisciplinary seminar with participation in a national and statewide hunger survey as an experiential learning component; integration into numerous service learning activities for undergraduate students; support for graduate assistants from various disciplines to work with inter-disciplinary faculty; funding undergraduates' participation in research projects; establishment of mutually beneficial relationships with community organizations, including the leading organization serving the homeless in RI and the RI Food Bank; extensive outreach; leadership in public policy issues. Conclusions and Implications: As an inter-disciplinary and community-centered approach, the Food, Hunger, and Nutrition Partnership at the University of Rhode Island represents the type of model that is critically needed to successfully address the complex challenges associated with research, education and practice in low income populations experiencing poverty, food insecurity, and hunger in the United States.