Growing Hope
WASHTENAW COUNTY RIGHT TO FOOD DECLARATION
As advanced by residents, growers, workers, institutions, and leaders of Washtenaw County, Michigan.
WHO WE ARE
We are the residents of Washtenaw County—growers and eaters, elders and youth, farmers and farmworkers, healthcare professionals and educators, organizers and caregivers, nonprofit leaders and policymakers. We come from urban neighborhoods, small towns, rural townships, and shared community spaces.
We are connected by our common experience of food—the way it nurtures our bodies, embodies our cultures, and anchors our communities.
Across this county, food touches every part of life: it shapes childhood health, workforce resilience, family routines, economic opportunity, and environmental stewardship. Yet too many people and families face barriers to accessing nourishing, culturally meaningful food, even as extraordinary local assets and deep food knowledge surround us.
We ground this declaration in the conviction that food is not a commodity to be managed solely by markets, and hunger is not a problem solved by charity alone. These are public truths that call for public action.
WHAT WE STAND FOR
We affirm that food is biological, social, cultural, spiritual, and political. When any part of a person’s or community’s relationship to food is disrupted—access, production, knowledge, land, or time—the impacts ripple outward across health, belonging, and opportunity.
Diet-related illness drives rising healthcare costs, strains public systems, contributes to school absenteeism, and undermines workforce stability. Preventable hunger and chronic disease are not inevitable—they are policy outcomes.
We affirm that local political and economic control over food systems is essential to achieving lasting food sovereignty. Charity alone cannot resolve structural harm. Durable change requires organizing, policy alignment, and public investment that centers those most impacted.
RIGHTS WE ASSERT
We assert that every person in Washtenaw County has a natural, inherent right to food, including physical and economic access to adequate, safe, nutritious, and culturally meaningful food at all times.
We further assert that every person has the right to grow, raise, harvest, preserve, share, and consume food of their choosing, in a manner consistent with ecological stewardship and public health.
These rights do not depend on income, property ownership, race, immigration status, or geography. They are inseparable, mutually reinforcing, and essential to human dignity.
With recognition of the above, we, the undersigned, commit to advancing the Right to Food in Washtenaw County through:
OUR COMMITMENT
1. Prioritizing Equity and Justice
Upholding the dignity of all food system participants, from growers to eaters, and centering the voices of those most impacted in policymaking and implementation.
2. Advancing Community-Led Policy
Promoting participatory, transparent, and accountable policy processes that reflect local values and lived realities—not just technical expertise.
3. Aligning Public Investment with Wellbeing
Mobilizing and stewarding resources—through local government, institutions, philanthropy, and partnerships—to strengthen access, infrastructure, and resilience.
4. Strengthening Local Food Systems
Investing in farmers, farmworkers, entrepreneurs, and community food infrastructure to ensure that nourishment, economic opportunity, and ecological care are mutually reinforcing.
5. Building Collective Power
Working and learning together—across sectors, geographies, and experiences—to deepen shared purpose and transform our food system from one of scarcity and exclusion to one of dignity and abundance.
CALL TO ACTION
We call upon:
- County and municipal governments
- Food policy councils and advisory bodies
- Philanthropic institutions and funders
- Food banks and emergency food providers
- Healthcare systems and public health agencies
- Educational institutions
- Grocery retailers, wholesalers, and distributors
- Nonprofit and community-based organizations
- And all eaters of every background
To join us in advancing this vision—not just in words, but in policy and practice—and to collaborate in building a food system rooted in dignity, equity, and collective care.
Add your name and stand with us in advancing the Right to Food in Washtenaw County
Add your name and stand with us in advancing the Right to Food in Washtenaw County
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people have signed the washtenaw county right to food declaration
