Cross Generational and Inter-Group Collaboration in the Creation of Innovative Urban Food Systems

 One of the most pervasive social movements in the past decade has been the emphasis on the production, purchasing, and consumption of food. From its earliest stages this movement has been singularly characterized by abundant concern and cooperation from multiple interest groups. At Loyola University Chicago, these included student organizations with divergent missions, research centers, and university departments. These organizations successfully collaborated through the use of shared vision building exercise and productively communicated their experience and values around food. Together, they created a dynamic and collective rhetoric about the state and future of Loyola University’s food system which broadened the potential and the efficacy of solutions.  Ultimately, the collective though diverse interests in the campus food environment created unique opportunities for knowledge sharing and novel partnerships resulting in the creation of a campus food policy council and a myriad of experiential research opportunities.