Diversity, Equity,
& Inclusion Committee
Coordinator: Elizabeth Tobey
Equity Advisor: Jaz Bias
OCFSN Equity Statement
Oregon Community Food System Network acknowledges that our food system is built and maintained on a foundation of oppression and systemic racism of Native peoples, people of color, and immigrants. Through a coordinated statewide network, we address this historic and systemic inequality in land ownership, food access, and labor by prioritizing the allocation of resources, decision making and power to historically excluded communities. We aim to hold ourselves accountable by building relationships, seeking inclusive participation, and practicing transparency.

External Resources That Have Guided Our Work
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Racial Equity Audit for Food Systems Networks by the Wallace Center
D5’s Foundation DEI Self-Assessment
Meyer Memorial Trust Applicant Tools and Resources
Coalition of Communities of Color’s Organizational Assessment tool.
Race Matters: Organization Self Assessment focusing on staffing, operations, and next steps
Oregon Metro’s Strategic Plan to advance racial equity, diversity, and inclusion
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Sisters of the Road: organizational & personal policies
Going beyond an anti-discrimination statement and equal opportunity employer statement on job descriptions. Here’s an example from Resolutions NW: “RNW embraces excellence through diversity, advocates the principles and spirit of affirmative action, and is strongly committed to the promotion of race, gender, ability, and class equity through our hiring process. To this end, RNW is an equal opportunity employer. Candidates representing untapped communities are highly encouraged to apply.”
New England’s Food Solutions – 21 Day Equity Challenge
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Disability-Inclusive Communications Guidelines by the United Nations
Structural Racism in the Food System: An Annotated Bibliography from Michigan State University
Cultivating Food Justice by Alison Hope Alkon and Julian Agyeman (overview here)
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman
“Municipal Government and Food Justice” by Megan Horst
The Food Activist’s Handbook by Ali Berlow
Ladonna Redmond Ted Talk
The Color of Food: Stories of race, resilience, and farming by Natasha Bowen
Race and Corporate Power in the US Food System - Examining the Farm Bill
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The Nonprofit Association of Oregon has a great series of workshops. Cliff Jones is a very talented facilitator with helpful resources.
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Good Food Job’s “How to Write a More Equitable Job Post”
Why we need to end the culture of “culture fit.” – Nonprofit AF
Can we be a little nice to job applicants? – Nonprofit AF
Diverse teams feel less comfortable and that’s why they perform better – Harvard Business Review
Oregon Food Bank’s Equity Statement
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How to collect and share DEI data guide by Guidestar