Links to Web Sites

Antonia Demas, Ph.D.
www.foodstudies.org

Antonia Demas has taught food studies in a variety of educational settings to people of all ages from diverse ethnic and economic backgrounds throughout her life. After graduating from Godard College with a B. A. in Community Nutrition, she worked for 20 years in food education before completing a Ph.D. at Cornell University. In 1999, in cooperation with distinguished colleagues dedicated to the improvement of the long-term health and education of children, she founded the Food Studies Institute.

Dr. Demas has received national recognition for her research in food studies. In 1994, her food education curriculum won national awards for the Most Creative Implementation of the Dietary Guidelines from the US Department of Agriculture and Excellence in Nutrition Education from the Society for Nutrition Education. In 1999, the curriculum was published as Food is Elementary©. Articles by Dr. Demas on the topic of achieving acceptance of healthy, low-fat, meals in schools have been published in New Century Nutrition and the American Journal of Cardiology among others. As a consultant and speaker, Dr. Demas works with schools, non-profit organizations, vegetarian societies, and corporations across the country. Television and radio appearances have included interviews with Charlie Rose on PBS TV in 1997 and on an NPR special, "Making Contact" in 1999.

Mixed Greens
www.mixedgreens.org

This organization helps children and the community to connect to the land, to food and to their surroundings through meaningful hands-on experiences that lead to sustainable and healthy choices. The group promotes school gardens in order to help kids learn to appreciate healthy food, to crate passion for nature and for making the world a sustainable place for all.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest
www.cspinet.org/schoolfoods

CSPI promotes better nutrition and more physical activity for kids; public policy advocacy work and increasing resources for improved children's health.

Veggie U
www.veggieu.org

The mission of Veggie U is to promote the well-being of children through a healthy lifestyle. Veggie U is dedicated to the creation and distribution of curricula nationally, with a focus on making wise food choices, combating adolescent and juvenile disease, and attaining an understanding of sustainable agriculture.

The Physicians' Committee for Responsible Medicine
www.pcrm.org

Founded in 1985, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) is a nonprofit organization that promotes preventive medicine, conducts clinical research, and encourages higher standards for ethics and effectiveness in research. The organization advocates for better national nutritional policies, improved school nutrition, and provides national recognition to innovative food service personnel annually.

Local Matters
www.local-matters.org

Local Matters advocates that the key to expanding a sustainable, local food system is "connecting the many dots" in the community that influence our local, community food system and makes the harvest from this local food system equally available to all central Ohioans. This holistic approach has led to our involvement in three primary program areas.

We have created a model for private and public schools that incorporates an on site, edible food garden and outdoor learning environment and also includes a health, wellness and nutrition curriculum. Students grow their own food, learn how it relates to the surrounding environment and then taste the difference between foods grown locally here in Ohio and food shipped in from hundreds of miles away.

The Edible Schoolyard
www.edibleschoolyard.org

The Edible Schoolyard, in collaboration with Martin Luther King Junior Middle School, provides urban public school students with a one-acre organic garden and a kitchen classroom. Using food systems as a unifying concept, students learn how to grow, harvest, and prepare nutritious seasonal produce. Experiences in the kitchen and garden foster a better understanding of how the natural world sustains us, and promote the environmental and social well being of our school community.

Children learn about the connection between what they eat and where it comes from, with the goal of fostering environmental stewardship and revolutionizing the school lunch program. Linking garden and kitchen activities with classroom lessons using ecological principles, students develop a deep understanding and appreciation of how nature sustains life.

The website provides resources and direction for how to start a school garden.

Better School Food
www.betterschoolfood.org

Better School Food is a group of dedicated parents, educators and health professionals committed to working with local communities to improve meals and increase awareness of the connection between good food, good health and a student's ability to learn effectively.

We support individuals, schools, and communities in their efforts to improve school food. We provide a range of services depending on where you are in the process of school food reform. We'll help you address how to get started, create wellness policies, implement new food standards, and handle situations after the change is completed.

Two Angry Moms is a documentary created by the founders of betterschoolfood that asks the question: What happens when two "fed-up" moms try to change the school lunch program? It's a film about the movement to improve school food. the film is available to be shown to parents, teachers and school administrators, and members of the community who are interested in improving school food.

Interesting Links