Food Waste Prevention Week: Highlighting Changemakers in Nashville

Food Waste Prevention Week: Highlighting Changemakers in Nashville

Author: Environmental Law Institute April 10, 2025 Duration: 59:25

In this special episode of People Places Planet, host Dara Albrecht and ELI Senior Attorney Linda Breggin take us to Nashville for Food Waste Prevention Week, where local leaders across sectors are driving innovative efforts to reduce food waste. With nearly one-third of U.S. food going uneaten each year—impacting the environment, economy, and communities—this conversation showcases how one city is tackling the challenge head-on.

Linda speaks with four inspiring guests whose work spans K-12 education, higher ed, hospitality, and professional sports:

  • Todd Lawrence (04:28), Executive Director of Urban Green Lab, explains how training teachers and conducting school cafeteria waste audits are empowering the next generation to take action.
  • David ter Kuile (18:32), Associate Vice Chancellor at Vanderbilt University, walks us through how campus dining hit its zero waste goals through composting, waste tracking, and student engagement.
  • Tyler Lee (34:44), Executive Chef at 1 Hotel Nashville, shares how local sourcing, zero-waste cocktails, and creative kitchen strategies are changing the hospitality landscape.
  • Haley Davidson (49:48), Chief of Staff for the Tennessee Titans, describes how Nashville’s NFL team is designing a new LEED Gold stadium with food waste reduction in mind—and how it’s already making a difference at Nissan Stadium.

From teaching tools to technology to teamwork, this episode explores scalable strategies for reducing food waste and building more resilient communities. Whether you're in a school, university, restaurant, or stadium, there's something here for everyone.

 

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Produced by the Environmental Law Institute, People Places Planet is a conversation grounded in the practical realities of environmental stewardship. This podcast moves beyond abstract theory to explore how laws, policies, and innovative governance models are actively applied. Each episode features discussions with practitioners, scientists, legal experts, and community leaders who are directly engaged in crafting and implementing solutions. You’ll hear nuanced analysis on the intersection of business, regulation, and education, focusing on tangible outcomes rather than just identifying problems. The dialogue consistently centers on how complex frameworks operate in the real world, affecting specific communities, ecosystems, and industries. Listening provides a deeper understanding of the mechanisms that drive environmental progress and the challenges that arise at the intersection of human activity and planetary health. It’s an essential resource for anyone curious about the foundational rules and creative strategies shaping our relationship with the environment, offering clarity on the legal and policy threads woven through every environmental issue. Tune in for thoughtful, expert-driven perspectives that connect the dots between policy texts and their impact on the ground.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

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