A new strategic partnership between the George Washington University’s Global Food Institute (GFI) and Food & Society at the Aspen Institute was made possible by a transformative donation of over $1 million from José Andrés’ Longer Tables Fund to support Food & Society’s Food Leaders Fellowship.
This investment will significantly expand the fellowship's capacity to develop emerging leaders, creating unprecedented opportunities for collaboration between practitioners and academics advancing innovative and practical food system solutions.
“We need bold new ideas to meet the challenges facing our food system, and I’m proud to support the Aspen Institute’s Food Leaders Fellowship as they train and empower the next generation of leadership across government, non-profits and the private sector,” said Andrés, HON. ’14, chef, author and GFI and Longer Tables Fund founder. “These fellows—in partnership with the Global Food Institute—will deliver the research, innovation and policy solutions that harness the incredible power of food to build longer tables where everyone can eat.”
The Food Leaders Fellowship unites the country's most promising early-stage food system leaders to ignite personal transformation and scalable change. Drawing on the Aspen Institute's history of successful leadership and policy fellowships, the program has established itself as the foremost community of leaders working to create a fair, sustainable and healthy food system since launching with its inaugural cohort in 2022.
The new partnership with GFI is designed to bridge the gap between academic research and on-the-ground practice. Fellows are invited to collaborate with faculty and students on projects, speak at GFI events and share their insights through coverage by Planet Forward fellows, creating a dynamic exchange of knowledge and expertise.
“The Global Food Institute’s partnership with the Aspen Institute is more than a collaboration—it’s a catalyst,” GFI’s Carbonell Family Executive Director Stacy Dean said. “By connecting Aspen fellows with the GW faculty and students, we are building the academic-practitioner community that is needed to transform our food system into one that is more just and sustainable.”
The fellowship motivates participants to support and challenge one another to think bigger, increase their individual and group capacity for change and find new collaborators to work with toward lasting impact.
"The Aspen Institute is grateful for and inspired by this generous investment from the Longer Tables Fund," said Dan Porterfield, president and CEO of the Aspen Institute. "The Food Leaders Fellowship and our partnership with the Global Food Institute exemplify our commitment to bringing together leaders across geographies, sectors and viewpoints to develop solutions to our world’s most pressing challenges. Through this partnership, we're investing in a future where food leaders have the resources, connections and platforms they need to drive lasting transformation.”
"The Food Leaders Fellowship has always been about the power of collaboration, bringing together a broad range of voices and perspectives to tackle our most pressing food system challenges," said Corby Kummer, executive director of Food & Society at the Aspen Institute. "This partnership with the Global Food Institute takes that to the next level, creating relationships that will generate new insights, innovations and solutions. We're hopeful that this is just the beginning of all we can accomplish together."
The Longer Tables Fund's investment comes at a critical time when food system challenges—from sustainability and environmental resilience to affordability and access—require innovative leadership and cross-sector partnerships. The donation will enable the fellowship to expand its reach, deepen its programming and create lasting connections between emerging leaders and established institutions.
Founded by GW and José Andrés, the Global Food Institute is dedicated to transforming food systems to improve population health, promote sustainability and advance equity worldwide.
