OUR COMMITTEES
The Colorado Blueprint to End Hunger brings together groups of individuals and organizational representatives who care about a particular topic or area of work — and they collectively advise and decide upon goals and actions together.
Our committees help spread power or influence more evenly among different areas that otherwise would not be accessible for most community members. We welcome participation from a diverse array of collaborators, so there are more voices to address hunger, increase fair food access, advance food justice, and shape community-owned food systems.
Each committee is facilitated by a staff liaison; they’re open to all interested participants unless noted otherwise. (Listed in alphabetical order below.)
Interested in joining one of our committees?
Please contact the staff liaison listed below. All new members must schedule an orientation with the staff liaison before officially joining.
As part of our commitment to equity, we offer simultaneous interpretation in Spanish, closed captioning, and compensation to those who participate outside of their regular job. (Please contact us if you have other accessibility requests to fully participate in our spaces.)
Communications & Accessibility Committee
Purpose: Support organizations with more inclusive and accessible communications that can advance food justice and food sovereignty for all in Colorado.
Goals: Encourage groups to seek input from community during the development and drafting of messaging, materials, and campaigns; promote transparency and improved communications; consider accessibility for all, including but not limited to language justice, word choices, visual communications, physical barriers, geographic factors, and more.
Participation: Open to anyone interested!
Staff Liaison: Michelle Ray, Communications Director
Meetings: Monthly on the second Thursday from 10 - 11 a.m. via Zoom
Next meeting: Thursday, July 10
Community Voice Committee
Purpose: Provide a safe and trusting space only for community members to influence systems change through a lived-experience perspective.
Goals: Ensure community members’ perspectives and experiences are at the forefront of the Blueprint’s work; insights will inform federal and state policies at the Blueprint and contribute to long-lasting changes in our food systems.
Participation: Only open to those with living or lived experience who do not represent an organization as a paid employee
Staff Liaison: Charlie Kestler, Community Justice Manager
Meetings: Every two weeks on Thursdays from 12 - 1 p.m. via Zoom (only meeting monthly on the second Thursday of each month through September)
Next meetings: Thursday, July 10
Data & Evaluation Committee
Purpose: Support the growth and development of Colorado’s food system by making data more accessible and easy to utilize.
Goals: Unite partners who value inclusive data, promote resource sharing, and practice data equity. By connecting data efforts across Colorado's food system, we can support informed decision-making and collaboration across organizations and communities. (Learn more in our committee framework.)
Participation: Open to all interested; individuals in the group are encouraged to share their projects, ask questions, make connections, and collaborate on projects!
Staff Liaison: Kasey Neiss, Data & Evaluation Analyst
Meetings: Monthly on the third Wednesday from 2 - 3:30 p.m. on Zoom
Next meeting: Wednesday, July 16 (canceled for June)
Federal Policy Committee
Purpose: Facilitate and maintain a coalition of community members, advocates, advocacy organizations, state entities, and partners that are all working towards addressing hunger and its root causes through policy-making and advocacy.
Goals: Effectively organize state anti-hunger advocacy efforts at the federal level and elevate our federal platform, which centers equity and the priorities of communities and individuals impacted by hunger.
Participation: Open for anyone to join — no policy experience or expertise is required to participate! (Access our policy committee resources, including guidance and levels of engagement for our policy committee.)
Staff Liaison: Dayana Leyva, Policy Manager
Meetings: Every two weeks on Thursdays from 3 - 4 p.m. via Zoom
Next meeting: Thursday, July 31 (only meeting monthly over the summer)
State Policy Committee
Purpose: Facilitate and maintain a coalition of community members, advocates, advocacy organizations, state entities, and partners that are all working towards addressing hunger and its root causes through policy-making and advocacy.
Goals: Create, execute, and manage a state anti-hunger policy platform that advocates for sustainable, equitable, and effective food and farm systems in Colorado.
Participation: Open for anyone to join — no policy experience or expertise is required to participate! (Access our policy committee resources, including guidance and levels of engagement for our policy committee.)
Staff Liaison: Brace Gibson, Policy Director
Meetings: Every two weeks on Tuesdays from 12 - 1 p.m. via Zoom
Next meeting: TBD — on summer recess; join the Federal Policy Committee to engage on state and federal matters!