Food Growing Education Specialist at Capital Area Food Bank

The Capital Area Food Bank is the largest organization in the Washington, DC metro area working to solve hunger and its companion problems: chronic under-nutrition, heart disease, and obesity. By partnering with 450 community organizations in DC, MD and VA as well as delivering food directly into hard to reach areas, the CAFB is helping approximately 600,000 food insecure people each year get access to good, healthy food, as a means of enabling brighter futures.

It's a dynamic time at the Capital Area Food Bank (CAFB) as they embark on their next strategic plan and respond to the COVID-19 crisis. The pandemic and the resulting economic slowdown are having a significant impact on our community and CAFB is actively responding and engaged in the recovery and equitable rebuilding of our region. Additionally, their strategic plan has a dual focus on addressing hunger today and seeking innovative approaches that bundle food with other related services as they aim to have a lasting impact on longer term food security. They are looking for passionate, analytical, impact driven and collaborative individuals who believe strongly in food as a catalyst for improved nutrition, better health outcomes, enhanced educational attainment and greater economic engagement. They believe that access to and affordability of good quality food can lead to more inclusive participation in the growth of the Greater Washington area.

The Food Growing Education Specialist maintains, executes, and develops educational programming for the CAFB’s Urban Demonstration Garden. The Urban Demonstration Garden is an on-site, half-acre, hands-on educational space that helps build knowledge around wellness, nutrition, and food growing for the food bank’s partners, clients, and the general public. The garden and adjacent Urban Food Studio are used in tandem to show how to grow food in an urban setting, highlighting low-cost gardening techniques.

The Food Growing Education Specialist is responsible for managing all food-growing activities, including the gardening education curriculum, garden maintenance and planning, the garden volunteer program, and any associated grants. The Specialist serves as the primary organizational representative for food growing internally and externally but has opportunities to contribute more broadly to the food bank as a member of the Nutrition Education Department. For more information about the position and to apply, click here.