Food Systems Research Lab

Researching, convening, and advocating for positive food systems change in southern Arizona

ABOUT

The Food Systems Research Lab at the University of Arizona is a collaboration between the Center for Regional Food Studies (CRFS) and the Climate Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS), two research centers dedicating to producing usable knowledge to address complex societal challenges. Led by Drs. Laurel Bellante (CRFS) and Gigi Owen (CLIMAS), the Lab is a rotating group of geographers, anthropologists, food system practitioners, and other researchers and community collaborators dedicated to creating positive change in the local and regional food systems of southern Arizona.

Purpose

Mobilize data, research, and university resources to advocate for more sustainable, equitable food systems in southern Arizona and beyond
Support research experience and collaboration across the UA campus (undergrads, grads, post-docs, staff, faculty)
Convene and connect researchers, community partners, food system stakeholders, and others to mobilize for societal change

Approach

Local and regional food system research and analysis
Collaborative, interdisciplinary, and community-driven research and exchange

Outputs

Planning documents
Policy briefs and other public-facing reports
Academic papers
Pilot programs and evaluations

Areas of Study

Local food systems values, risks, and resilience
Justice, diversity, and equity
Food access and food security
Climate change
Land and water access
Agricultural workforce
Cultural and culinary practices
Food-based economic development
Best practices for local food systems
Food waste reduction and other sustainable practices

Contact Us

Laurel Bellante - bellante@arizona.edu; Gigi Owen - gigi@arizona.edu

RESEARCH PROJECTS

Reinvigorating Food Policy Research, Outreach, and Participation w/ the Pima County Food Alliance

University of Arizona researchers: Gigi Owen (Climate Assessment for the Southwest), Laurel Bellante (Center for Regional Food Studies), Shelby Thompson (Pima County Food Alliance/Arizona Food Systems Network), Amanda Hilton (BARA), Karrington Hamilton (SGDE), Kacy Bartels (Public Administration), Anvi Bhakta (Public Health), Rachel Gildersleeve (CRED), and Rachel Leih (CRED). This research is a collaboration between the Climate Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS), the Center for Regional Food Studies (CRFS), and the Pima County Food Alliance (PCFA).

This project is an ongoing collaboration between the UA Food Systems Research Lab and the Pima County Food Alliance (PCFA). Established in 2011, PCFA is the only food policy council in Pima County and it has been integral to advancing several key food-related policies in our region. However, the COVID-19 pandemic and its reliance on an all-volunteer staff has interrupted PCFA’s work in recent years. In 2021, the Food Lab began working with PCFA to hold a series of meetings and visioning workshops related to food-related challenges and policy needs in southern Arizona. Together, members of PCFA and the Food Systems Lab successfully applied for a Thriving Communities grant from the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona to revitalize and diversify participation in PCFA over the next two years, including several paid positions. The Food Systems Research Lab provides research and other resources to support the process of reinvigorating and refocusing PCFA’s important work in southern Arizona and linking it with state-level policy efforts spearheaded by the Arizona Food Systems Network.

REPORT: Food for Thought: Best Practices and Challenges of Food Policy Councils - By Chris Destiche (prepared for the Food Systems Research Lab and the Pima County Food Alliance, May 2022)

Building Resilience in Southern Arizona's Local Food System

University of Arizona researchers: Gigi Owen (Climate Assessment for the Southwest), Laurel Bellante (Center for Regional Food Studies), Sarah Renkert (School of Anthropology), Chris Destiche (School of Geography, Development, and Environment), and Shelby Thompson (Pima County Food Alliance/AZ Health Zone). This research is a collaboration between the Climate Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS), the Center for Regional Food Studies (CRFS), and the Pima County Food Alliance (PCFA).

The overarching goal of the study is to support the development of a local food system in southern Arizona that is more resilient to social, economic, and environmental stressors and disruptions. Our research team uses multiple research tools, including focus groups, interviews, policy analysis, media analysis, and secondary data to understand the current risks and structural barriers affecting our local food system, as well as strengths and opportunities that exist to improve and grow the local food system. Results from this research will be used to inform the Arizona Food Systems Network 3-year Statewide Food Plan as well as a Strategic Plan for Southern Arizona's food system.

Assessing the Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Southern Arizona's Regional Food System

University of Arizona researchers: Gigi Owen (Climate Assessment for the Southwest), Eden Kinkaid (School of Geography, Development, and Environment), and Laurel Bellante (Center for Regional Food Studies). This research is a collaboration between the Climate Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS) and the Center for Regional Studies at the University of Arizona.

This research examines the impacts of COVID-19 on southern Arizona’s regional food system. It provides a detailed analysis of how COVID-19 and its associated social and economic impacts have affected various parts of southern Arizona’s food system, including food production, distribution, and consumption. Our research team uses multiple research tools, including surveys, interviews, policy analysis, media analysis, and secondary data to understand how COVID-19 has impacted different parts of our regional food system and how people have responded to the disruptions and opportunities caused by the pandemic.

The preliminary results of this study are now available in the 2020-21 State of the Tucson Food System Report: Assessing the Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Southern Arizona. A PDF version of the full report can be accessed here . You can also access a PDF of the Executive Summary of the report here (or visit https://crfs.arizona.edu/publications). Hard copies of the report are available upon request (email Laurel Bellante at bellante@arizona.edu)

Additional articles/results are underway and will be posted here upon publication.

PUBLICATIONS

2020-21 State of the Tucson Food System Report: Assessing the Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Southern Arizona. A PDF version of the full report can be accessed here . You can also access a PDF of the Executive Summary of the report here (or visit https://crfs.arizona.edu/publications). Hard copies of the report are available upon request (email Laurel Bellante at bellante@arizona.edu)
Kinkaid, E., Owens, G., and Bellante, L. 2021. Tucson Opinion: COVID-19 impacts demonstrate why Southern Arizona needs more farmers. Arizona Daily Star July 17, 2021. Access the article here

LAB MEMBERS

Dr. Laurel Bellante (she/her) is assistant professor of practice and director of the BA in Food Studies in the School of Geography, Development and Environment (SGDE) and assistant director of the UA Center for Regional Food Studies. Laurel is a human-environment geographer specializing in global environmental change, sustainable food systems, and agrarian questions in both the United States and Mexico. She uses a political ecology approach to connect what is happening in people’s kitchens, farms, and communities to larger political economic and environmental changes occurring regionally, nationally, and globally. Laurel’s research is centered on understanding and supporting the creation of more just and sustainable food systems. In the US-Mexico border region, Laurel has researched organic farming networks, linkages between poverty and climate change impacts, food waste reduction strategies, and food justice and food sovereignty initiatives. Laurel also participates as a board member of Tucson City of Gastronomy. You can email Laurel at bellante@arizona.edu.

Dr. Gigi Owen (she/her) is a research scientist with the Climate Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS) program. CLIMAS supports transdisciplinary and participatory climate research and is housed in the Arizona Institutes for Resilience (AIR) at the University of Arizona. As a qualitative social scientist with training in geography and political ecology, Gigi’s research interests center on interactions between humans and their environments. Her current research involves understanding if and how local adaptation strategies help people address impacts of climate change. She has worked on air, land, and water quality issues across the Arizona-Sonora border region and spent two years studying the ecology of desert grasslands in Sonora, Mexico. More information about Gigi is on the CLIMAS website or you can email her at gigi@arizona.edu.

Shelby Thompson (she/her) is the Arizona Food Systems Network coalition coordinator and serves on the steering committee for the Pima County Food Alliance. Shelby has worked and played in various parts of the southern Arizona food system over the past eight years and is committed to creating an equitable and sustainable local food system. Shelby’s work focuses on convening food system stakeholders across the state of Arizona to foster collaboration, capacity, and advocacy work, Her overarching goal is for everyone in Pima County to have access to the nourishing foods that they desire. She relies on relationships with local organizations, coalitions, and people to advance this work.
Email Shelby at: shelby@pimafoodalliance.org

Dr. Amanda Hilton (she/her) is a research scientist at the Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology (BARA), in the School of Anthropology. Amanda is an applied environmental anthropologist working at the interdisciplinary nexus of political ecology, critical food studies, and critical heritage studies. She has worked on a variety of applied research projects in and around Tucson, in the greater Southwest, on the US-Mexico border, and in South Louisiana; her dissertation examines the motivations for and impacts of a recent geographical indication for extra-virgin olive oil from the Italian island of Sicily. She is interested in the relationships between locally and sensorially grounded experiences of people in place (especially through practices of food production) and broader political economic processes and power dynamics. Reach her at ajhilton@arizona.edu and find out more about her work on the BARA website.

Eden Kinkaid (they/them) is a PhD candidate in the Department of Geography at the University of Arizona. Eden’s research is broadly concerned with changing geographies of food and agriculture, with a particular focus on sustainable agriculture. Eden has conducted ethnographic fieldwork on issues of agrarian change, agricultural development, and the shift to organic agriculture in Uttarakhand, India. Eden’s most recent research focuses on the impacts of COVID-19 on Tucson’s food system. In addition to these projects, Eden pursues a variety of interests in human geography through their research and writing, including geographic research methods, queer and feminist geographies, geographic education, and geographic theory. For more about Eden’s research, visit their website, follow them on Twitter (@queergeog), or email them at ekinkaid@email.arizona.edu.

Karrington Y. Hamilton (she/her) is an active member of the Tucson food community as a Coordinator for the Santa Cruz River Farmers' Market. She is pursuing a Master's in Development Practice at the University of Arizona. She is a research assistant with the Food Systems Research Lab and is eager for the opportunity to put theory into practice. She is originally from the East Coast but fell in love with the desert during her AmeriCorps VISTA year of service. After several different career opportunities, Karrington found her way back to Tucson in the fall of 2021. She loves all things food and has a deep passion for the power of it, whether it be how it impacts communities or just the feeling you get when you cook/eat/review food with other folks. Looking ahead, Karrington is excited to work more directly with communities striving toward complete food sovereignty, farmers, and learning from the Tucson community.

Kacy Bartels (she/her) is a second-year student in the Master of Public Administration program and a Peace Corps Coverdell Fellow at the University of Arizona. Kacy has worked for a variety of non-profit and governmental organizations including the Peace Corps in Morocco, the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, and the Pima County Emergency Eviction Legal Services program. She is broadly interested in working on policy and programs that strengthen the social safety net. She is looking forward to learning from and collaborating with community members in Pima County to work towards a more sustainable and equitable local food system.

Red Nuss (they/them) - Red's passion for food justice has led them through various fields of food and education over the last decade. They recently finished three years of service with AmeriCorps and FoodCorps. These experiences strengthened Red's commitment to serving their community through food education and accessibility. Red will now serve as the Program Coordinator for Pima County Food Alliance. PCFA's collaboration with the UA Food Systems Research Lab will allow them to further serve community through food policy advocacy, community outreach, and organizing training opportunities, among other things.

FORMER LAB MEMBERS

Dr. Sarah Renkert (she/her) completed her Ph.D. in Anthropology at the School of Anthropology and Graduate Research Associate, the University of Arizona.

Emma Lawlor is a PhD candidate in the School of Geography, Development, and Environment at the University of Arizona.

Chris Destiche (he/his) is an student in the Master's in Development Practice program at the University of Arizona and served as a Coverdell Research Fellow with the Center for Regional Food Studies for AY2021-22. Before coming to the University of Arizona, Chris’s early career has been marked by service-work devoted to furthering social and environmental causes. Directly after receiving his degree in Anthropology with a focus on Latin American Studies from the University of Georgia, Chris worked on a food security campaign with the Public Interest Network. He then transitioned into conservation-work with the National Park Service, working on a native seed initiative in the Grand Canyon and exotic species removal in Yellowstone. He later joined the Peace Corps as an agriculture volunteer, where he worked cooperatively with Indigenous Maya farmers to promote sustainable agriculture. Seeing first-hand the disastrous effects of climate change on rural Guatemalan communities and their connection to migration inspired him to pursue a degree in Development Practices.

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