Sustainable Consumption, as a concept, explores food from farm to table to waste stream with the overarching considerations of environmental sustainability, economic viability, and social justice. This four-part blended series explores food security; conventional agricultural practices; and how Western food purchasing decisions can be of concern not only for the climate and environment, but for local economies and social justice.

While long-term solutions to food insecurity will require systemic policy changes, several programs and initiatives currently exist to connect at-risk populations to healthy foods. Video 1, Sustainable Consumption: Exploring Healthy Food Access, introduces the series by exploring food security, including the prevalence of food insecurity and its ramifications. 

Video 2, Addressing Healthy Food Access, addresses actions that can be and are being taken by health care providers, community organizations, concerned citizens, and governmental organizations to promote healthy food access for all. 

Webinar 1, Sustainable Consumption: Addressing Climate Change and Environmental Sustainability through Food and Agricultural Practices, describes how current food and agriculture practices in the U.S. negatively affect the climate and the environment. It focuses on the concepts and actions of sustainable agriculture and sustainable consumption by exploring alternatives to food and agricultural practices that may mitigate agriculture’s contribution to climate change and environmental degradation. 

The final webinar in this series, Sustainable Consumption: Supporting a Sustainable Food System through Personal Food Purchasing Decisions, expands the definitions of a sustainable food system and sustainable consumption and explores the impact of our food purchasing decisions. With an eye towards decisions that all people can make, regardless of income, this webinar explores meat eating and alternatives; ultra-processed foods and packaging; supporting local farmers; and how to decipher eco-labels that may or may not reflect attributes of a sustainable food system.