Dear Partners, Friends, and Community,
I write to share important news with you about the next phase of Food Solutions New England (FSNE).
Since its beginnings in 2010, FSNE has been part of the UNH Sustainability Institute where we have been an integral part of its engaged food system work. Now, after 27 years as the founding executive director of the UNH Sustainability Institute, I will be retiring at the end of June 2025. As part of this transition, FSNE has taken stock of developments in the regional food movement and funding environment, as well as the budget constraints at UNH. Together, we determined that to ensure that our critical shared work of the last 15 years moves forward, FSNE and its programming will transition out of its organizational home of UNH beginning July 1, 2025, and pursue our work through different institutional partnerships.
Our decision was informed by many conversations with community partners and our Steering Committee. There is a genuine sense of excitement about the possibilities for the next phase of our work and we look forward to continuing to support a transition towards justice, sustainability, and resilience within the regional food system and related issue areas.
Our priorities for the next phase of FSNE include the following:
- Strengthening Regional Partnerships: We are in promising discussions with the Institute for Agroecology (IfA) at the University of Vermont to integrate our communications and narrative strategy work, as well as our regional policy initiatives, with IfA’s programming. We are also exploring the potential for our equity leadership programs, including the FSNE 21-Day Racial Equity Habit-Building Challenge and the Network Leadership Institute, to also partner with IfA.
- Reimagining Our Food Future: We are beginning to explore an inclusive process to consider the creation of a “re-vision” of A New England Food Vision, incorporating critical emerging priorities while remaining grounded in our core values and commitments. Our shared experience confirms the importance of a shared vision for our food system’s future as a valuable tool for community partners around the region.
The goal of the FSNE transition over the next weeks and months is to continue working with partners to establish an administrative, programmatic, and fundraising structure and process that ensures the work of FSNE continues for years to come. The resulting arrangements will become effective July 1, 2025.
Looking ahead, this moment of transition presents another important opportunity for the regional food system and allied issue area networks, organizations, and initiatives to build upon the developments of the last 15 years, and to double down on working collaboratively to have greater impact.
We thank all of you for your significant contributions to this shared effort over the years, and our anchor funders including the Henry P. Kendall Foundation. We look forward to working with all of you going forward. Please stay tuned for opportunities for conversation and additional updates.
Sincerely,
Tom Kelly
On behalf of the FSNE Backbone Team
