Podcast Topic: Advocacy & Food
The Leading Voices in Food
Podcast Topic: Advocacy & Food
E139: MAZON’s Tipping Point – Driving Nutrition in the Food Bank Safety Net
September 2, 2021
This podcast focuses on why now is the right time to fix the US food system. I’m talking today with Marla Feldman, Senior Program Director at MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, which is a national advocacy organization working to end hunger among people of all faiths and backgrounds, in both the United States and Israel. As our regular listeners will know from previous podcasts, for 36 years, MAZON has worked towards systemic change to address hunger and its root causes. This is done through a combination of initiatives, including programs with low-income populations or problems that have previously been overlooked or ignored, including food insecurity among currently serving military families, among veterans, single mothers, Native Americans, LGBTQ seniors, and the people of Puerto Rico and the territories. This is the fourth in our series of episodes in partnership with MAZON. And this time, we’ll focus on the organization’s work to increase access to nutritious foods in the charitable food network.
Related podcasts: Advocacy & Food | Equity, Race & Food Justice | Food Insecurity | Philanthropy & Food Systems |
E134: How Big Data is Fueling Youth Obesity
July 13, 2021
America’s children and teenagers spend tremendous amount of time on the internet and never more than during the Coronavirus pandemic, with families at home so much, people ordered food, got news and engaged with family and friends online. Youngsters whose schools closed relied on YouTube for educational videos, attended virtual classes on Zoom and to Google Classroom and flocked to TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram for entertainment and social interaction. The cost of digital immersion has a serious health downside however, because the nation’s youth have been exposed to a steady flow of marketing for fast foods, soft drinks, and other unhealthy products. Today we’ll be discussing a new report from the Center For Digital Democracy entitled, “Big Food, Big Tech, and the Global Childhood Obesity Pandemic.”
Related podcasts: Advocacy & Food | Child Development & Nutrition | Childhood Obesity | Diet & Nutrition | Food Policy |
E128: MAZON Series – Why are Some US Military Families and Veterans Going Hungry?
May 11, 2021
Food insecurity strikes all corners of American life including the lives of military families. For the currently serving military families there is a barrier that makes it more difficult for them to qualify for needed assistance from the SNAP program. A person who knows a great deal about this is Josh Protas, Vice President of Public Policy at MAZON, A Jewish Response to Hunger, which is a national advocacy organization working to end hunger among people of all faiths and backgrounds in the United States and in Israel. This is the third in our series of episodes on food insecurity, done in partnership with MAZON.
Related podcasts: Advocacy & Food | Food Insecurity | Food Policy |
E127: Paarlberg Tackles Misinformation about Food We Grow and Eat
May 5, 2021
Today’s guest, Dr. Robert Paarlberg, is the author of a provocative new book entitled: Resetting the Table: Straight Talk About the Food We Grow and Eat. The book is presented as a clear-eye, science-based corrective, to misinformation about our food: how it’s produced, food companies, nutrition labeling, ethical treatment of animals, the environmental impact of agriculture, and even more.
Related podcasts: Advocacy & Food | Agriculture & Tech | Antibiotic Resistance | Community & Economic Development | Diet & Nutrition | Equity, Race & Food Justice | Food Insecurity | Food Policy | History & Food | Obesity |
E125: Women, Food Insecurity and the Feminization of Poverty in the US
April 14, 2021
Hunger affects all communities, but you may not know that 40% of single mothers struggle with food security. Women dominate our central workforce, yet they face persistent structural barriers to food security and economic stability. COVID-19 has only exacerbated these challenges. Today, Abby J. Leibman, President and CEO of MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, discusses the urgent and unique needs single mothers face, and the work she’s leading to advance the anti-hunger movement.
Related podcasts: Advocacy & Food | Child Development & Nutrition | Equity, Race & Food Justice | Food Insecurity | Food Policy |
E123: Rashid Nuri and a Vision for Urban Agriculture
April 6, 2021
The term urban agriculture is becoming more familiar, but relatively few people know how this works on the ground in real world settings, and can fully appreciate the promise it has for the future. Our guest, Rashid Nuri, is the ideal person to explain. In 2006, Nuri founded the Truly Living Well Center in Atlanta to realize a vision for community food, sovereignty, and equity. This urban Ag organization grows tons of chemical-free, nutritious food, provides jobs, and works to educate communities.
Related podcasts: Advocacy & Food | Agriculture & Tech | Equity, Race & Food Justice | Food Insecurity | Food Policy | Urban Agriculture | Voice of Farming |
E124: Food Insecurity Issues are Community Issues
March 30, 2021
So what comes to mind when you think of these words: life around the table? Do you think of good food or family or sharing maybe? But what about spirituality and faith? So we’re continuing our exploration of food and faith issues in today’s podcast. And I’m speaking with Reverend Dr. Michelle Lewis, the executive director of an organization called, Life Around the Table, an ecumenical non-profit organization focused on food and on environmental justice.
Related podcasts: Advocacy & Food | Community & Economic Development | Faith & Food | Food Insecurity | Food Policy | North Carolina | Philanthropy & Food Systems |
E118: Joel Pitkowsky on MAZON – A Jewish Response to Hunger
March 2, 2021
You may not automatically think of faith organizations as advocates for a stronger food system, but boy are they ever. I’m talking today with Rabbi Joel Pitkowsky of Teaneck, New Jersey. Rabbi Pitkowsky, in addition being a rabbi, is a leader and is on the board of directors for MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger. This is a national advocacy organization working to end hunger among people of all faiths and backgrounds in the United States and in Israel.
Related podcasts: Advocacy & Food | Equity, Race & Food Justice | Food Insecurity | Food Policy |
E108: Can we Trust Industry to Reformulate Food for Health?
January 26, 2021
When the food industry promises to police itself and pledges to improve nutrition in public health, can it be trusted to make meaningful change or must government mandate those changes? Our two guests today have done groundbreaking work to help address this very question. Dr. Jessica Fanzo, Professor of Global Food and Agricultural Policy and Ethics at Johns Hopkins University, and Dr. Jennifer Harris is Senior Research Advisor for Marketing Initiatives at the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at the University of Connecticut.
Related podcasts: Advocacy & Food | Diet & Nutrition | Food Industry Behavior & Marketing | Food Policy | Food Safety & Food Defense | International Food & Ag Policy | Ultra-processed Food & Additives |
E106: Behind the Scenes of LA’s Good Food Zone Policy
January 14, 2021
In today’s episode, we’re digging into the Good Food Zone Policy that will be implemented in Los Angeles, California. The goal is to expand access to healthy food in neighborhoods considered food deserts and to create economic opportunity and jobs for residents living on low incomes. If you follow food policy work, you’ll be interested in the Good Food Zone, food entrepreneurship and Community Development Framework. Guests in this podcast include three people deeply engaged in developing this place-based policy strategy: Ronnell Hampton, of the Los Angeles Food Policy Council, Samantha Salmon, of the Local Initiatives Support Corporation, and Community Organizer and Media Specialist, Matt Sanderson.
Related podcasts: Advocacy & Food | Community & Economic Development | Equity, Race & Food Justice | Food Insecurity | Food Policy |

E134: How Big Data is Fueling Youth Obesity
E128: MAZON Series – Why are Some US Military Families and Veterans Going Hungry?
E127: Paarlberg Tackles Misinformation about Food We Grow and Eat
E125: Women, Food Insecurity and the Feminization of Poverty in the US
E123: Rashid Nuri and a Vision for Urban Agriculture
E124: Food Insecurity Issues are Community Issues
E118: Joel Pitkowsky on MAZON – A Jewish Response to Hunger
E108: Can we Trust Industry to Reformulate Food for Health?
E106: Behind the Scenes of LA’s Good Food Zone Policy