Check out tips on organizing a fab on-the-ground event, from MomsRising.org's Field Director Ashley Boyd!

Ashley spearheaded a local Good Food Force MeetUp in Berkeley, CA in early June, as part of a series of Good Food Force MeetUps happening across the country this spring. Organized in partnership with the Ecology Center, guests included Councilwoman Linda Maio, Jezra Thompson (Program Supervisor, BUSD Gardening and Cooking Program), and a representative from the Measure D Panel of Experts to help fuel the conversation and answer questions. The event was a great success: ideas were shared, connections were made, and participants left with a deeper sense of understanding and motivation around healthy schools in Berkeley. 

Ashley's Four Tips for Success: 

1. Meet the community and speakers where they're at. When lining up speakers, and kicking off the converastion, we started by acknowledging all of the good work that's already happening. In Berkeley we’ve been doing a lot of work around universal breakfast, school lunches and gardening & cooking programs. Our guests are active on these issues and more. We approached the conversation with a genuine willingness to build on all of these expereinces. 
2. Partner with groups with influence. We worked with the Ecology Center, which is already at the center of this work in the community. They're a respected name in the community, and were able to turn out a lot of participants for the event.  brought a lot of people to the event. 
3. Every participant adds value. Don’t shy away from a conversation with the “usual suspects”. Although we always hope for lots of fresh faces at these events, we're always happy to see experienced activists who've been involved in this work for a long time. They are great at bringing other folks into the fold, and greatly benefit from having space to regroup with others too.
4. Plan meetings at times that work for guests. We organized the event in the evening (after dinner) at an accessible, central location. We had a space off the main meeting room with kid’s activities. We did schedule it during an NBA final game, which wasn’t ideal. But the turnout was still great.

​Interested in organizing a local Good Food Force event in your community? Get in touch! We'd love to help! Contact beatriz@momsrising.org or karen@momsrising.org.