On behalf of the Network Equity and Racial Justice Team, we are delighted to join you in a journey toward building a more equitable food system. 

This toolkit was created to provide:

• Conceptual grounding in trauma-informed practice
• Practical ideas that can be implemented at food assistance sites 

Who is this toolkit for? 
This toolkit is for anyone working in the emergency food system — especially those running food pantries, meal sites, regional food banks, free food markets or mutual aid networks. Whether this is your first or thirtieth year providing food to your neighbors, we hope this toolkit will provide you with ideas to improve your work. To further enhance understanding and application of this toolkit, we will host companion workshops in the future to go deeper into each section.

Why is a toolkit needed? 
There is a pressing need in hunger-relief work to shift from a charity model of food distribution toward a community-engaged model. Building from the original toolkit first developed in 2019 by Johnnie Shaver, Client Experience and Community Outreach Facilitator, this updated toolkit is full of ideas to help you engage program participants. There are limits to the traditional food banking model (aka charity model), including:

• The inability to address growing hunger needs
• A mismatch between what pantry users desire and what food banks can supply
• An inherent instability in a system/supply chain largely dependent on charitable donations 
• The cost to human dignity in being unable to feed one’s self and family 

In contrast, a community-engaged model:

• Provides nutritious, delicious food to those in need
• Addresses hunger at its root causes
• Offers the ability to serve as a community hub/be a connection point to other services 
• Provides opportunities for civic engagement