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Linda Novick O’Keefe
Chief Executive Officer
& Co-Founder
As the co-founder of Common Threads, I have witnessed and experienced how language and culture, ethnicity and race, and religion and geographic origin guide the daily food choices that people make. We celebrate food and culture at Common Threads because we understand that food is deeply personal and by its nature, it is diverse and inclusive. However, the food system through which communities all over the country access healthy food is not diverse, equitable and inclusive enough, which is why Common Threads is taking more initiative and investing more resources in strategies that can bring positive change in communities. We aim to support communities in achieving healthier diets which can lead to better health outcomes, especially where children, adults, and families are facing systemic racism and discrimination embedded in policies that have shaped their local food systems and resources.
Statement of Commitment
Diversity, equity and inclusion nourish us to excel at what we do: bringing people together through the common threads of food and community.
We promote diversity in all areas of our organization, including recruitment and engagement of our staff and board members, our purchasing policies and our programming
We celebrate culture and heritage while promoting health & wellbeing
We build on community strengths through a collaborative model that includes partners in our planning and implementation
We prioritize our work in under-resourced communities to teach critical life skills that are essential to realizing nutrition equity
We welcome every person to share their unique experiences and have an active voice in our organization
DEI Framework: 3 Focus Areas
Common Threads developed a 2-year Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) strategic plan that will guide us toward achieving measurable improvements in how we partner with communities. This framework will be revisited and updated annually.
External Communications
Strengthen our communication and engagement with diverse communities by leveraging digital media to celebrate cultural and healthy foods and heritages.
Organizational Culture
Pursue continual improvement of staff training, resources, and employee-based policies that increase the organization’s capacity to institutionalize DEI.
Community Engagement
Pursue continual improvement of staff training, resources, and employee-based policies that increase the organization’s capacity to institutionalize DEI.
Food Philosophy Pillars
Our Food Philosophy guides Common Threads as we promote behaviors that contribute to healthy nutritional habits, cultivate relationships over a meal, and celebrate food culture and origins.
We celebrate culture through food and learning.
We support and celebrate cultural diversity in our recipes and programs by honoring food traditions, diverse ingredients, and by acknowledging that traditional foods are a part of a healthy diet.
We acknowledge that food choices are as unique as the individuals who consume them and recognize each individual’s option to choose foods that reflect their cultural identity.
We encourage our participants to celebrate the world around them through global recipes and shared meals during our programs.
We promote health through nutrient dense menus and hands-on culinary skills.
We support and celebrate cultural diversity in our recipes and programs by honoring food traditions, diverse ingredients, and by acknowledging that traditional foods are a part of a healthy diet.
We acknowledge that food choices are as unique as the individuals who consume them and recognize each individual’s option to choose foods that reflect their cultural identity.
We encourage our participants to celebrate the world around them through global recipes and shared meals during our programs.
We support local agriculture and economic development, where possible, by prioritizing local food procurement.
We support and celebrate cultural diversity in our recipes and programs by honoring food traditions, diverse ingredients, and by acknowledging that traditional foods are a part of a healthy diet.
We acknowledge that food choices are as unique as the individuals who consume them and recognize each individual’s option to choose foods that reflect their cultural identity.
We encourage our participants to celebrate the world around them through global recipes and shared meals during our programs.
For Common Threads, DEI means that nutrition education and wellness programming should be diverse and inclusive in its content and delivery, as well as equitable in reach. We will work to remove barriers that prevent our ability to achieve equitable distribution of programming and resources in communities, while considering populations that have different languages, needs, and walks of life.
