Food Policy Council for KFL&A

For immediate release November 7, 2024

The Food Policy Council (FPC) for KFL&A is embarking on a long-awaited project to develop a comprehensive food strategy for the Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington area. In collaboration

with Kingston Community Health Centres, the group has secured a grant to hire a community researcher and a research assistant to start work on the project.

“Our goal is to build a food strategy that will help guide policies and projects within the local food system for years to come,” says FPC co-chair Ellen Mortfield. “Over the next year, we will be talking to as many stakeholders as possible to build a clearer picture of what’s working and what’s not in our local food system.”

The funding comes from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, and the proposal was lead by Kristen Lowitt, Assistant Professor in Environmental Studies at Queen’s University, with support from Charles Levkoe, Canada Research Chair in Equitable and Sustainable Food Systems at Lakehead University. Additional funding has been secured from Frontenac County.

The job posting for the part-time community researcher can be found at FPC for KFL&A website www.foodpolicykfla.ca. The deadline for applications is November 22, 2024.

The work will build on a project completed this spring in collaboration with the City of Kingston and the Queen’s PhD Community Initiative where the FPC helped students develop a set of proposed pillars for a food strategy. These pillars include food education & literacy, food system governance, food infrastructure, food production, food access, culture and community.

The FPC was formed in 2013 to serve as a forum for discussing food issues, to assess the community food system in the region, and to inform and influence food-related policies and programs. Members

include representatives of municipalities, community groups and academia with an interest in the local food system.

Through this project, KFL&A will join a growing number of regions and municipalities across Canada that have already developed their own food strategies, and are now in the process of implementing a wide variety of actions such as local food promotions, procurement policy changes and distribution hubs to make local foods more accessible to all. The FPC for KFL&A, in collaboration with local partners, will be undertaking a series of outreach events over the next year to gain wide community input on regional food system priorities. Please watch our website and social media for next steps and how to get involved!

The Food Policy Council (FPC) for Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington (KFL&A) is hiring a part-time Community Researcher to work on two principle tasks:

1) To identify the key elements of a regional food strategy through broad and participatory engagement

2) To produce a food strategy that will lay out a framework for regional food systems development and guide the FPC's ongoing education, assessment, and policy activities. 

To achieve these objectives, the Community Researcher will organize a series of outreach events throughout the region. These will guide participants through an iterative and participatory process of dialogue and discussion to share their experiences and knowledge in the food system and co-produce with other citizens the content for the food strategy. The position will also require building a strong network of community contacts in the local food realm, covering all aspects of the regional food system including: food access, food production, education & literacy, governance, infrastructure & distribution, culture & community.

Job Responsibilities

Reporting to the Project Committee of the FPC, the Community Researcher will:

• Review background work on food strategy developed by the Queen’s University PhD Community Initiative and research other recent community food strategy development processes
• Attend monthly FPC meetings
• Create and maintain a project database, cataloguing existing FPC documents as well as research, interviews and work in progress on an accessible Google Drive
• Finalize a consultation process with support from the project committee, reporting to the FPC regularly
• Schedule and carry out a series of community consultation events, documenting and summarizing all feedback and participation
• Draft a food strategy document for review by the FPC and community partners

The work can be carried out primarily remotely, but some FPC meetings are held in person, and community consultations will occur throughout the KFL&A area, so ideally, the candidate will reside in the Kingston area. When required, a workspace can be available at Kingston Community Health Centre (263 Weller Avenue). Project funding also includes the hiring of a Queen’s University student as a research assistant.

Currently, the funding covers 12 hours per week for 50 weeks, from December 2024 to October 2025. If additional funding is secured, an extension of the contract may be possible.

Requirements

• Master’s degree in a relevant field and/or equivalent work experience
• Previous experience in conducting community-based research and evaluation
• Ideally, the candidate should already be involved in some aspect of the food sector
• Strong written and communication skills
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with FPC Members, non-profit, municipal government, private sector partners, and the community
• Experience in preparing and making presentations to various audiences and providing technical assistance and support to various stakeholders and staff
• Training in research methods
• Experience in project management and meeting deadlines
• Proficiency with MS Office Suite
• Experience with a volunteer board is an advantage
• Must be a self-starter, able to work independently and collaborate with others
• A driver's license in good standing and access to a vehicle

To Apply:

Please send a cover letter, a resume including 3 references, and a writing sample (report, paper, article, blog, etc.) to foodpolicykfla@gmail.com. The deadline for submission is November 22, 2024 or until position filled.