ABSTRACT
This chapter starts with information about how many Food Policy Councils (FPCs) were established, and are still led, by relatively privileged members of communities, and how FPCs often struggle to effectively involve people whose lives are most affected by structural inequality. Research is shared showing why these challenges may exist, and how they can lead to limitations in the ability of many FPCs to accurately identify and address the most pressing problems in their local food systems. The pivotal point of the chapter is that FPCs must create intentional structures to invite and include people with lived experience of inequity, and explicitly and consistently address existing power imbalances among their members. The chapter then shares one such method: the Food Leaders Lab. Case studies of two different Food Leaders Labs are presented – one based in the city of Los Angeles and the other in the state of Rhode Island. Finally, general guidelines are shared for establishing, operating, and evaluating a Food Leaders Lab.
