Jill Clark awarded Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award to Canada

Jill Clark, associate professor in the John Glenn College of Public Affairs, was recently awarded a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award to Canada for “Scaling-up food democracy: An analysis of Canadian and U.S. food policy councils.” Clark is collaborating with the Department of Political Science at Carleton University, Ottawa, most notably, Dr. Peter Andree, associate professor and academic lead on the Canadian Food Governance Project for the National Food Policy Council.

This research aims to contribute to scholarly conversations in public administration, social movement studies, and with Food Policy Council’s (FPC’s). According to Clark, in the field of public administration, there is little research on scaling-up civic public participation in the policymaking process and a lack of focus on food policy and governance. “Persistent food insecurity, chronic disease, and loss of family farms are impacts of the global food system. Food policy councils (FPCs), as governance structures, address these challenges by evoking the concept of food democracy,” said Clark. “Today there are over 238 U.S. and 42 Canadian FPCs. With the Canadian government announcing its first-ever national food policy in June and the U.S. starting debates on the omnibus Farm Bill, this is a key moment to ask, what is the role for local, state, and provincial FPCs in national food policy? The comparative analysis proposed here allows for concept formation and theory building, and provides insights into scaling-up food democracy in national-level governance.”

The project has four objectives. To understand the population of 280 FPCs, over time, across both countries. This includes each FPC’s form and function; relationship to local, state, and national government; advocacy; policy priorities; and notable accomplishments. To compare FPCs across scale —local and state in the US and local, provincial, and national in Canada. To articulate the roles of and relationship between FPCs and national policy. Integrate the U.S. into the Canadian Food Governance project’s comparative analysis of food movements’ involvement in national-level food systems governance in Australia and the UK (remaining aware that the US has omnibus legislation, not a national food strategy).

Clark went on to say that the Canadian Food Governance project associated with this study is the first of its type at the international level to bring together academics and stakeholders from Global North countries to examine civil society engagement in food policy processes. In the future, study expansion may include Johns Hopkins University in the U.S. and Lakehead University and St. Paul University in Canada.

Learn more about the Fulbright Scholarship Program.