Seeking Indigenous Lead: Local Food to School

Location: Open to any location in Canada/Indigenous Territories (or Nations)
Job Terms: 28-35 hours / week; 1-year contract from July 1 2021 – June 31, 2022 (with potential to extend)
Salary: $50,000-55,000
Application Deadline: Wednesday June 23rd, 2021 5pm PST

Position Summary:

Indigenous Nations, communities and their schools, as well as communities and schools that include Indigenous people, from coast to coast to coast are engaging students in eating, preparing, harvesting, growing, and embracing traditional and other healthy foods. Farm to Cafeteria Canada is seeking an Indigenous Lead to support these communities and schools in their efforts. The Indigenous Lead will work as a member of our national team to enable networking and relationship building, storytelling, connection and funding so that people who are looking to integrate Indigenous food ways and healthy, local foods into their school communities have more resources and connections to do so.

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About Farm to Cafeteria Canada

Farm to Cafeteria Canada (F2CC) is a pan-Canadian partnership-based organization whose vision is vibrant and sustainable regional food systems that support the health of people, place and planet. Our organization is built upon relationships and, together with our partners, we collaborate to educate, build capacity, strengthen partnerships, and influence policy to bring local, healthy, and sustainable foods to public spaces.  An area of focus for F2CC is to grow and strengthen the national farm to school movement by supporting people and organizations across the country who are connecting children and youth to their food and the land and waters it comes from. 

F2CC is a settler-led organization. Since 2011 when we were established, F2CC has committed to recognize and support Indigenous food systems in our funded projects and food literacy activities. To date, through the Farm to School: Canada Digs In! initiative, we have given grants of up to $10,000 to 120 schools in Canada, of which 17 schools across the provinces and territories of Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Nunavut and Ontario have self-identified as Indigenous or as having strong connections to Indigenous communities. 

We are proud of what we have accomplished so far; however, we know that we need to do much more to better honour the Indigenous peoples, histories and lands on which we all live today.

About our local food to school efforts

F2CC supports school communities to engage students in eating, preparing, harvesting, growing, and embracing healthy local food. Through these activities, students connect with their broader communities and develop food literacy, all while strengthening vibrant regional food systems. We typically refer to this as the “farm to school” or “local food to school” approach.

This approach can complement the work of those who are bringing traditional Indigenous food ways into schools. F2CC has funded many projects where, from remote communities to urban centres, schools are engaging Elders and Knowledge Keepers to teach about food and Indigenous food systems and are incorporating traditional foods, practices and traditions throughout the school day. For a sampling of stories, read Gudangaay Tlaats’gaa Naay Secondary School, Masset BC’s story and learn about other schools that are integrating Indigenous food ways.

Background to the Indigenous Lead position:

F2CC has been working within our own team to envision how our mandate and operations can better include and reflect Indigenous voices, perspectives, values, and ways of knowing. In February and March 2021, F2CC hosted 3 virtual sharing circles where Indigenous community members and individuals who support Indigenous communities shared stories of learning, prosperity, challenges and resiliency within their community’s school food initiatives. Participants appreciated connecting, learning about each others’ work, and sharing how they are bringing Indigenous foods and traditions to school communities.

What we heard was an interest in F2CC continuing to hold conversations and space so that people can build relationships, share how they have overcome challenges, and share resources and stories with each other of how they are reshaping their school food systems. We also heard an interest in F2CC providing flexible and accessible granting opportunities that are more suited to Indigenous schools and communities. The Indigenous Lead position has been developed to support these next steps.

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Duties and Responsibilities

The Indigenous Lead will work as a part of a team to:

Facilitate relationships and support school communities:

• Facilitate relationships and knowledge sharing with and among teachers, principals, Elders, Traditional Knowledge Keepers, public health professionals, youth, food providers, and other members of school communities who are supporting healthy school food systems.  
• Listen to the needs and opportunities that people bring forward and begin to take steps to address these needs. This may be through documenting and sharing stories of success through the F2CC blog or other platforms, sharing funding opportunities, inviting people to share how they have overcome challenges, and supporting school communities with grant applications. 

Support F2CC’s organizational approach and communications:

• Work with the F2CC team to ensure that grants are more accessible to Indigenous Nations and communities and that people across identities and traditions can see themselves in F2CC’s materials and messages. 
• Inform F2CC in its work to ensure that Indigenous values and ways of knowing are appropriately and consistently represented within the national farm to school movement.
• Support the F2CC team to engage in active processes that advance food justice and anti-oppression work including working on ways to increase knowledge among non-Indigenous people that occupy this land.
• Inform F2CC in its work toward ensuring that its structures are inclusive and support Indigenous Food Sovereignty.
• Contribute to the F2CC website including helping to develop blog content and contribute resources for the F2S Resource Centre.
• Review and provide feedback on evaluation tools.
• Attend and contribute to regular national project team meetings.

Administration:

• Report on activities.
• Support fundraising efforts to extend or expand this role. 
• Other duties as required.

Qualifications:

• Lived experience  with Indigenous protocols, teachings and worldviews 
• Experience working with urban and rural Indigenous communities and organizations 
• Familiarity with issues related to food security and food sovereignty
• Demonstrated commitment to food justice and anti-oppression
• Minimum 2 years of work experience in community development or food security programming
• Demonstrated experience in community outreach, mobilizing, facilitation, organizing, and capacity building including in an online environment
• Values listening and working to support collaborative efforts
• Excellent communicator—both oral and written (in English)
• Familiarity and comfort using digital communication tools i.e., emails, websites, social media, desktop publishing, etc.
• Self-motivated and can work from a home or partner office (if available) 
• Access to a computer and stable internet connection 

Assets:

• Knowledgeable of Farm to Cafeteria Canada and its activities
• Understands the local food to school approach and has experience advancing aspects of it
• Experience working in a non-profit environment
• Communication skills in French / one or more Indigenous language(s)

F2CC is committed to supporting the participation and engagement of the unique and diverse communities we serve. We strive to foster a fair and respectful environment that welcomes people of all cultures, ethnic origins, faiths,  gender identity or expression, sex and sexual orientation, ages, abilities and other lived experiences.

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Preference will be given to Indigenous applicants and we encourage all those with relevant skills and experience to apply.

To apply: Please send your resume and a one-page cover letter to info@farmtocafeteriacanada.ca 

Deadline for application: Wednesday June 23rd 5pm PST