Written by GLC Leaders
We are ten community leaders from across Wisconsin who bring diverse lived experiences with food insecurity, chronic disease, and the systems that shape health and well-being. We represent different races, ethnicities, languages, geographies, and life experiences, but we share a common commitment: ensuring that community voices help shape the future of Food is Medicine in Wisconsin.
We were invited to be part of the Food is Medicine governance structure because this initiative recognizes that community experience and voice are essential to developing meaningful and equitable solutions. We believe that lived experience is a form of leadership and expertise. The knowledge gained through navigating food insecurity, chronic disease, and complex systems offers perspectives that are critical to designing solutions that truly work for communities.
As the Grassroots Leadership Committee (GLC), we are not an advisory group on the sidelines—we are part of a shared governance model that seeks to bring community and organizational perspectives together in decision-making. Representatives from our committee serve on the Executive Council alongside organizational leaders, where we bring community experiences, questions, priorities, and perspectives into statewide discussions and decisions.
We see this as an opportunity to build bridges between communities and institutions, strengthen trust and relationships, and contribute to solutions that are both effective and community-centered. Over the next two years, we will continue learning together about Food is Medicine, health equity, and systems change while helping inform Wisconsin’s Food is Medicine efforts.
In future newsletter editions, you’ll get to know us better—both as individuals and as leaders—and learn more about the experiences, strengths, and perspectives we bring to this work. We also look forward to sharing our reflections, lessons learned, and progress as we continue building a Food is Medicine system that is shaped by and accountable to the communities it serves.
We invite community members, health care partners, policymakers, and organizations across Wisconsin to join us in building a Food is Medicine system that is equitable, sustainable, and shaped by the voices of the people it serves.