Podcast appearances and mentions of alison cohen

In this episode of 401(k) Roundtable, host Rick Unser and Alison Cohen, ERISA Attorney and Partner at Ferenczy Benefits Law Center, explore nondiscrimination testing in retirement plans, focusing on long-term part-time employees and new Roth contribution guidelines. They discuss the mega backdoor Roth risks, capping highly compensated employee deferrals, student loan matching, and compliance challenges for controlled groups during mergers. The conversation also covers automatic enrollment rules and audit implications based on new rules. For more insights, visit Ferenczy Benefits Law Center's resources and articles:  https://ferenczylaw.com/read-what-we-write-2/

In today's episode, Megan Swan sits down with Alison Cohen to discuss her journey from burnout to establishing healthy boundaries and redefining success on her own terms.Key Points Discussed:Early Signs of Burnout: Recognizing the subtle and obvious signs of burnout and how Alison used these to guide her clients.The Corporate Pressure: How societal expectations around career milestones contribute to burnout, especially in millennials.Environmental Toxins: The impact of toxic work environments that cannot be mitigated by wellness routines alone.The Healing Journey: Steps Alison took to heal from burnout, emphasizing the importance of addressing mental and emotional roots.Authentic Success: How living authentically is essential for achieving sustainable success and wellbeing.TLDR: Confront burnout by recognizing its signs, removing toxic influences, and prioritizing authenticity and supportive environments to reclaim your health and professional happiness.Thank you for listening!When you are listening please take a screenshot and share it on social media and tag me @meganswanwellness ! We would really appreciate it.Connect with Megan Swan Instagram LinkedIn www.meganswanwellness.comConnect with Alison Cohen:https://www.instagram.com/transforme_coaching/www.transforme-coaching.comKeywords burnout signs, emotional eating, corporate expectations, millennial stress, work-life balance, environmental toxins, healing processes, authenticity, sustainable success, self-care rituals, energy management, stress indicators, financial advising, career transition, holistic health, mental-emotional well-being, self-compassion, hormonal balance, social pressures, spirituality, mindfulness.

In this episode, Nick Perloff-Giles sits down with Alison Cohen, founder, chair, and president of Bicycle Transit Systems, one of the oldest and largest bikesharing networks in the country. They talk about the stubborn economics of bikeshares, the history of the model from coin-operated to electrified, and what's in store as systems recover from the ebbing ridership of the pandemic.

It's been five years since the first laboratory-confirmed case of COVID-19 in the U.S., a bleak milestone in the early days of a pandemic that touched the lives of everyone. For the lucky ones, the virus mainly meant more precautions: mask-wearing, the occasional COVID test. But for others, a COVID-19 infection turned into long COVID. This is a chronic condition that lingers long after a COVID infection, and can reduce one's ability to live their day-to-day life.It's been estimated that about 400 million people worldwide have had long COVID. Some researchers say that number is much higher. But there's a lack of research on successful treatments for long COVID.Some patients living with the condition have taken things into their own hands. A recent investigation documented the experiences of 13 long COVID patients who tried taking Paxlovid for longer than the typical 5-day course. The patients had mixed results, adding to a growing body of evidence that there will not be one silver bullet for treating the condition.Joining Ira to talk about the results are two authors of the study, who have both had long COVID for years: Dr. Alison Cohen, assistant professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of California San Francisco, and Dr. Julia Moore Vogel, senior program director at Scripps Research in La Jolla, California.Transcripts for each segment will be available after the show airs on sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.

Hey everyone, it's time to review one of the most hyped up movies of 2024: Sean Baker's Anora. I think Sean Baker is a very talented filmmaker and ever since Cannes five months ago, Anora has been said by awards pundits to be one of the must-watch films of 2024. Well, they weren't kidding. I'm very curious to see how it catches on with the general audience, being that it is a Palme d'Or winner and VERY rated R but also being funnier than your typical awards fair. Anyways, here is my review of Anora! Anora: Written and Directed by: Sean Baker Produced by: Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan Executive Producers: Glen Basner, Alison Cohen, Ken Meyer, Clay Pecorin, Milan Popelka Cinematography by: Drew Daniels Editing by: Sean Baker Production Design by: Stephen Phelps Costume Design by: Jocelyn Pierce Cast: Mikey Madison, Mark Eydelshteyn, Yura Borisov, Karren Karagulian, Vache Tovmasyan Synopsis: Anora, a young sex worker from Brooklyn, gets her chance at a Cinderella story when she meets and impulsively marries the son of an oligarch. Once the news reaches Russia, her fairytale is threatened as the parents set out for New York to get the marriage annulled.

An agreement is in place for Bicycle Transit Systems (BTS) to acquire BCycle from Trek which currently operates the bike sharing market in Madison.  Alison Cohen, founder of BTS, joins […] The post Bike Share Madison appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

Episode 428."Fingernails"Director" Christos Nikou.Anna (Buckley) and Ryan (White) have found true love. It's been proven by a controversial new technology. There's just one problem: Anna still isn't sure. Then she takes a position at a love-testing institute, and meets Amir (Ahmed).“Fingernails” is the second feature and first English-language film from visionary director/writer/producer Nikou, whose directorial debut was the highly regarded Greek film, “Apples.”“Fingernails” is co-written by Nikou, Stavros Raptis and Sam Steiner. In addition to Nikou, “Fingernails” is produced by Cate Blanchett, Andrew Upton and Coco Francini for Dirty Films and Lucas Wiesendanger for FilmNation Entertainment. The film is executive produced by FilmNation Entertainment's Glen Basner, Milan Popelka and Alison Cohen alongside Ashley Fox, Kevin Lafferty and Jerome Duboz.Welcome, Christos Nikou.https://www.instagram.com/mondaymorningcritic/?hl=enhttps://www.tiktok.com/@UCjjhZfRL7uKTyoEGkgn6qew https://www.facebook.com/mondaymorningcritic/www.mmcpodcast.com

In the second Real Talk episode, I'm joined by my girls Alison Cohen and Rehema Kutua. We're best friends from college with a standing monthly date to coach each other on our businesses and careers. It's lonely at the top and entrepreneurs and leaders feel it significantly. Fewer people check in on you, offer you honest developmental feedback, invite you to informally socialise at work or feel comfortable creating space for you to be vulnerable.   Alison, Rehema and I wanted to avoid this so we created a structure that could hold us in safety where we could ask for help, share our struggles and support each other in a challenging, lonely role. Welcome to our career coaching circle. I hope you feel inspired to create one of your own.   Topics discussed: * Why Rehema and Alison said YES to starting our coaching circle * What we've each gotten out of it * How the circle has helped us grow and heal in unexpected ways * What's helped our support group to be successful * Advice for how you can start your own   Learn more about Alison, Rehema and ConnectWellEd   The Real Talk series is a regular segment where I'm chatting casually with my friends about our on the ground career and leadership experiences. I hope these relatable conversations inspire you to have chats of your own with friends that you trust about what's going on at work.   -- Book a free 1x1 coaching discovery call or reach out for leadership development for your company. Accelerate your career advancement with the ⁠Get Promoted online course⁠ Find me on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠Instagram⁠ Sign up to receive my leadership letter --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/abundantleaderswithtenji/message

This week's podcast is with the amazing Alison Cohen. I started getting to know Alison as we followed each other on instagram and I was blown away by the amazing content she offers on her page and how much I related to her burnout story. We talk all about how burnout is really being out of alignment, you could have the idea work life balance and still feel like your energy is being sucked away from you if you're denying your true essence. She shares her journey to finding her way by working with a spiritual coach, tackling limiting beliefs head on and understand that her gut health issues had a deeper reason for the dis-ease. We also touched on how having high self esteem doesn't actually equal self worth and why. She shares how connecting deeper with yourself is the key to connecting with your feminine energy and bringing true vitality. Let us know if you enjoy the episode over on instagram: My IG // Podcast IG Connect with Alison on IG here and find out more all about her work on this website. Alison Cohen is a certified holistic health coach and intuitive life coach. She is the Founder of Transforme Coaching where she helps her clients reconnect to their worth and break up with burnout. Being both an empath and a high-achiever, Alison struggled with burnout most of her life. From disordered eating to her career, Alison felt a constant need to prove her worth through her external achievements. It wasn't until she reconnected to her worth, her feminine energy, and developed an abundance mindset that she was able to free herself from the constant pressure of being a high-achieving woman. Alison now leads her clients through the inner work needed to release perfectionism, people-pleasing, all-or-nothing thinking, scarcity mindset and low self-worth.Thank you for listening, if you feel called to rate and review or share the podcast with someone that's truly appreciated!

If you are at all involved with workplace retirement plans, you would have to have been living under a rock to have not heard about SECURE 2.0. It is a hot topic, while also ambitious and even confusing. With all those factors, I couldn't think of a better person to join me to wade through all this than Alison Cohen, Partner at the Ferenczy Benefits Law Center. We do cover a lot ground today so get ready. Also, while there has been a lot announced, keep in mind many new provisions don't go into affect for one or more years and we still will need guidance from the IRS or others to answer many basic and logical questions.   Guest Bio Alison J. Cohen, J.D., APA, APR is a Partner with Ferenczy Benefits Law Center in Atlanta, Georgia. She advises clients on many issues related to qualified retirement plans, including design, mergers and acquisitions, audits, and operational issues. Alison commonly works with clients that have operational issues to guide them through the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and/or Department of Labor (DOL) corrective programs, prepare corrective filings, and prepare and support clients through an audit conducted by the IRS and/or DOL. Alison is a member of the Georgia and California State Bars. Prior to joining Ferenczy Benefits Law Center, Alison worked at a large bundled service provider for nearly 16 years as an Associate Vice President, Compliance Manager and Regulatory Liaison. As part of her responsibilities there, Alison served as a national speaker on audit and correction issues. She served on the Employee Plans Subcommittee of the IRS Advisory Committee on Tax-Exempt and Governmental Entities (ACT). Alison has been actively involved with the National Institute of Pension Administration (NIPA) serving as a speaker, author, and developer/teacher. In 2019, Alison received NIPA's Excellence in Education Award, which recognizes outstanding educators within the national membership who have made significant contributions and improvements to NIPA's educational programs. Alison holds designations as an Accredited Pension Administrator (APA) and an Accredited Pension Representative (APR) from NIPA.  Alison is the former first President and an active member of the Pension Education Council of Atlanta (PECA). Alison is a co-author of The Plan Correction eSource and in 2019 she also assumed co-authorship of ERISA: A Comprehensive Guide. Alison speaks frequently on qualified retirement plan topics and issues, bringing a sense of humor and practical solutions to clients, colleagues, and industry professionals.   401(k) Fridays Podcast Overview Struggling with a fiduciary issue, looking for strategies to improve employee retirement outcomes or curious about the impact of current events on your retirement plan? We've had conversations with retirement industry leaders to address these and other relevant topics! You can easily explore over 250 prior on-demand audio interviews here. Don't forget to subscribe as we release a new episode every other Friday!

Did you know that food is a key intersectional point for health, labor, human rights, agriculture, environment, and climate change? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Alison Cohen, Advocate and Coordinator of the National Right to Food Community of Practice. Cohen exposes false narratives around poverty and hunger, and advocates for a legal framework to protect the right to food.Related website:  file:///C:/Users/Dan/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/1QPWI2U5/OP-ED%20White%20House%20Conference%20on%20Hunger%202022%20(1).pdf

Despite what the media may depict, teaching is not all about summer vacations and chatting it up in the lounge between classes. It's challenging day in and day out, so much so that after the pandemic, we're seeing educators leave the field in record numbers. Today we're talking with Alison Cohen, a former high school teacher and professional development coach who now specializes in mindfulness including developing a personal mindfulness practice, mindful communication, and mindful classroom spaces. In our conversation we'll explore how we can reframe feelings of overwhelm, tease out the difference between stress and distress, and use mindful practices to center our hearts and minds and to avoid burnout.

During the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, much of the US was in lockdown. Many people had lost jobs or could not work from home during that time and struggled to pay their bills. Shortages of food and other basic necessities were common. Many people needed help during this time. Charitably-funded volunteer staff organizations like soup kitchens and food pantries suddenly found themselves on the front line of a massive ongoing food relief emergency. Many of them did heroic work. We're speaking today with the co-authors of a new report titled, "The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on US Hunger Relief Organizations, from August and November of 2020." Gizem Templeton is a researcher at Duke University's World Food Policy Center. Alison Cohen, formerly of WhyHunger, is a research consultant on the project. And Suzanne Babb is the director of US programs at WhyHunger. Interview Summary   So Gizem, let's begin with you. Can you tell our listeners about the survey itself and what WhyHunger hoped to accomplish through this work?   Gizem - Sure, Kelly. So as a research partner for WhyHunger, we wanted to survey hunger relief organizations, which are food banks, food pantries, soup kitchens, as well as hunger advocacy organizations during the pandemic in the summer of 2020. Our goals were twofold. First, we wanted to document what was happening in terms of pandemic impact and response. And second, we were interested to see what programmatic policy and food system recommendations they had for the future. All in all, over 240 hunger relief organizations from 39 states responded to our survey.   It was important to understand the impact on hunger relief organizations because these organizations are mostly dependent on charity donations of cash and food. Their operating budgets change from year to year. And, they're staffed largely by volunteers who tend to be older individuals. So as you can imagine, the COVID-19 pandemic created a range of daunting challenges for them.   You may probably recall the many media stories with photos of long lines of people trying to get food during the summer of 2020. The hunger relief organizations in our survey said that demand for food and other services increased significantly. We heard that people who used to donate money were coming in to get food themselves. And also, that many families were struggling simultaneously with job losses, housing issues, and reduced access to food. Hunger relief organizations did everything they could to stay open. And we saw a lot of innovation to meet the demand, in this survey.   I mean, there is no question that hunger relief organizations gave their all for our society during the pandemic, but in their own words, they also questioned the country's dependence on charitable donations to keep people fed. And survey responses highlight a need to strengthen the national social safety net and to focus on the root causes of hunger.   So Gizem, how did the hunger relief organizations grapple with these tremendous challenges during the pandemic?   Gizem - Yes, so first, all but two of the organizations who responded to our survey were able to remain open. But all of them had to make big changes very quickly to keep up with an almost overwhelming demand for food and new safety practices as more was learned about COVID. And we saw shifts to curbside pickup of food, some home delivery, and a few organizations were even able to offer client transportation for housebound individuals. Some hunger relief organizations made a shift to online ordering.   I would say the biggest challenge they faced was the loss of volunteers due to COVID risk. And they had to suspend some programming as a result of that. Many surveyed organizations said some of their volunteers and staff contracted the virus during this time. Another challenge was not enough refrigeration space for perishable food and storage for shelf stable food as the volume of food coming in increased to meet the demand.   And a big challenge, I would say, the organizations at times struggle with a lack of communication and coordination from the government that would've allowed them to prepare for changes to regulations, safety protocols, and federally sponsored programs like the Farmers to Families Food Boxes.   In terms of what helped them meet the demand, I would say philanthropic funding was key. Charitable funding for emergency food surged during this time and partnerships within and outside of the hunger relief world and increased local coordination were also big contributors to success.   It is clear that the hunger relief organizations did incredible work to support our society during this chaotic time. But we have to ask ourselves, does it make sense in a country as wealthy as ours that so many people had to turn to charity in order to have enough food?   So Alison, in your view, what were the most surprising and the most troubling and even the most hopeful things that you uncovered in the survey?   Alison - Well, I think the survey uncovered both troubling and hopeful things given that the entire emergency food system was thrown practically overnight into crisis mode. Because of the pandemic, we witnessed every single hunger relief organization pushed to its limits. And the ways in which the system was taxed during this time is not surprising given that for many working families, the local food bank has become a kind of free grocery store that helps to plug the holes in household finances year round.   For many decades now, the rate of food insecurity has not fallen below 11%. Food insecurity is, unfortunately, a way of life for far too many households. And as Gizem said, a majority saw an increase in need.   What we need to pay attention to is the way in which this increase in need was confounded by other issues that for many, were not experienced by or visible to hunger relief organizations before the pandemic. For instance, these organizations struggled with the government's response to the pandemic, particularly the inconsistency and unpredictability of the response. The government, of course, was dealing with this magnitude of crisis for the first time itself. More than 70% of HROs said that in order to fill the gaps in government support, they turned to their own forms of communication and coordination with funders, local farmers and growers and other stakeholders, other community organizations.   This survey was unique in that we queried first responders, so to speak, to a food security crisis unlike anything we've experienced in the US at that scale. And our findings in the survey add to the reports and stories in the media, those that we all heard and saw, of the miles long lines of cars waiting in parking lots to receive food and the millions of people who found themselves needing a food bank for the very first time in their lives. And all of that exposed how inadequately we, as a society, are addressing the economic precarity of a majority of American households. And therefore, how in sufficiently we are working to end hunger in food insecurity in one of the wealthiest countries in the world.   But Kelly, it wasn't all doom and gloom. There was a lot of hope, I think, that came through in the survey. And what I found particularly hopeful is that hunger relief organizations overwhelmingly embrace the both end of their missions. That is to ensure that folks who need it get healthy food now and to ultimately end food insecurity. And based on their responses, they have a multifaceted understanding of what it will take to do both and what the role in it should be. And I think that's an incredibly hopeful point and something we should pay attention to.   Well above 60% of hunger relief organizations identified dependence on volunteer staff, dependence on individual and corporate donations as issues to be addressed. They also cited lack of government support and solutions to address the root causes of hunger such as unaffordability of healthy food, low wage jobs, unresilient food supply chains, and they called out as problematic the persistence of inequitable access to healthy food is a manifestation of structural racism in the food system.   But their clarity on where the deficiencies are in the system doesn't end there. They have a strong vision for what they want to see happen and their role in it. These organizations are calling for increased sustainable and more flexible funding so they can get healthy food to people in the most dignified way possible. They're also calling for a stronger social safety net. They want to see the increases that were legislated during the pandemic become permanent features of the social safety net, including universal free school meals. And they're also advocating for snap changes such as more flexibility and broader access. And they're calling for the descaling of government food nutrition programs. Instead, advocating for programs that address the intersections of food security, affordable housing, mental health, living wages, and childcare among other issues.   One respondent wrote in the following response, which was repeated by other respondents in their right end responses as well: "People need living incomes, ones that make it possible to provide both food and shelter. Emergency food network should not be used to prop up an inadequate system of income support."   You know, Allison, as I'm listening to you, it's so clear that this was an enormous challenge with so many implications for looking back on what was done and thinking about the future and what might be done. So it's really helpful to have you talk about some of the permanent changes that could help for us stall or even avoid such a terrible crisis should something like this happen again.   So, Suzanne, let me ask you. The report presents the perspective that the US relies too much on charitable food, but if there's philanthropic support out there for the charitable food system, why is this such a problem?   Suzanne - Well, there are couple of reasons for that. I think, firstly, the charitable food system cannot meet the need. I think then it's important to think about what the charitable food system is based on, and although it has the best of intentions and is trying to fill a need, the majority of the system props up this dysfunctional system that relies on corporate waste. And far too often, these corporate donations are highly processed, filled with high fructose corn syrup, and are lacking in nutrition. And this helps to contribute to increased rates of chronic disease like diabetes and heart disease that disproportionately impact low income and BIPOC people. Also, the corporations that benefit from these tax write-offs in the process are notoriously the low wage employers who don't pay people enough money and whose staff rely on food stamps and charitable food to feed their own families.   Another reason is that the right to healthy and nutritious food is a basic human right and governments bear responsibility to their citizens to fulfill these human rights. But the US has slowly reduced its role in fulfilling that responsibility, and instead have been putting it in the hands of charitable organizations that have been vulnerable, always relying on donations and volunteers. And this is just not a sustainable system.   The US hasn't codified the right to food federally. There's one state, the state of Maine that has done so in their constitution in 2021. And there are other states that are organizing and strategizing to do the same. I think, lastly, it's important to remember that hunger is a symptom of poverty and poverty is a created condition. And the government has played a role in creating this condition and has a responsibility to be a part of the solution.   Thanks, Suzanne. So Alison, let me ask you one final question. The report offers up quite a wide range of recommendations for hunger relief organizations, also for philanthropy and for the federal government. Can you provide examples of organizations who are already implementing some of the recommendations? Could you talk about these and the opportunities that you see for a sustainable change?   Alison - Yes, yes, I'd love to. And I think that's a really important part of the report and there's much more in the report than I can say here during the podcast. So I would encourage folks to really take a look at the report, to hear more details, and to learn about very specific organizations and actions and activities that are happening.   So first, as Suzanne mentioned, yes, there's a historical over-reliance on the charitable food system and that has gotten out of balance. Hunger relief organizations, philanthropy, and the government all have a role to play in correcting that imbalance. Some 50 years ago, these organizations were designed to be temporary and crisis related, but what's emerged is a system that continues to need more and more bricks and mortar to mediate what has become a stagnant and alarming rate of food insecurity. And as we see in the results of the survey, many hunger relief organizations are expanding their strategies to include helping clients get access to government nutrition programs and policy and advocacy to improve federal nutrition programs. And a smaller, but I think growing subset of these organizations are beginning to address root causes of food insecurity such as low wages, poor working conditions, structural racism is a part of their mission.   For example there's a soup kitchen called Neighbors Together that has been operating in Brooklyn, New York for more than 30 years. About 10 or so years ago, they began engaging clients in determining their own advocacy agendas through what they called their community action program. Their participants, all of whom are patrons of the soup kitchen, identified insufficient wages and barriers to safe and affordable housing as primary reasons they required ongoing food assistance. So they organized others in their neighborhood and are currently advocating with the city of New York and the state of New York to implement policies that address housing and wages.   And in Washington State, the state's largest independent hunger relief agency known as Northwest Harvest is working to shift public opinion and change policies and practices that perpetuate hunger, poverty, and disparities while advocating for a right to food framing for statewide policies. They're one of the states that is really engaged in hoping to amend their constitution to include the right to food as Suzanne mentioned earlier.   And one last example, and again, the report contains many others, is the Black Church Food Security Network. Their mission is to ensure food security in Black communities by addressing racial and economic injustices. And they do this by co-creating sustainable local food systems in partnership with Black churches, Black farmers, and Black business owners. It's really remarkable.   So as the COVID-19 crisis continues to reshape public life around the globe, it's not over yet, unfortunately. The results of this survey strongly support the fact that we have an opportunity to organize and protect everyone's most basic human rights, nutritious food. And really, not just in response to COVID-19, but as a springboard to a social and political economy that puts people and planet first.   Bios   Gizem Templeton is a Research Associate at the World Food Policy Center at Duke University's Sanford School of Public Policy. She earned her PhD in Food Science and Human Nutrition from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her dissertation focused on the use of nanotechnology in peanut allergen and acrylamide detection while utilizing a biodegradable corn-based sensor platform. She is a native of Turkey and has been living in the States since 2011. Alison Cohen is a former Senior Director of Programs at WhyHunger.org. She has more than thirty years of experience supporting grassroots-led organizations in rural and urban communities around the world in strengthening social movements that address the root causes of hunger. She is currently coordinating a process to build a national movement for the right to food. She holds a master's degree in sociology from Virginia Tech. Suzanne Babb is Senior Co-director of U.S. programs at WhyHunger.org. She develops and oversees the implementation of WhyHunger's domestic strategies: Transforming the Emergency Food System, Black Food Sovereignty and Labor and Economic Justice. Suzanne helps to convene and support regional and national networks and alliances of emergency food organizations working to ensure the right to food by addressing the systemic inequities resulting in hunger and poverty. Additionally, Suzanne supports the growth of BIPOC led food sovereignty organizations, networks and alliances by mobilizing resources and providing technical support to aid in the creation of legislation, infrastructure and institutional structures grounded in equity and justice. Originally from Montreal, Quebec, Canada Suzanne has many years of experience working on community development

In the latest episode of the Didja Know? Podcast, LBP executive director Jan Moller and policy analyst Alison Cohen react to the increased revenue forecast from the Revenue Estimating Conference and discuss budget and tax issues for the 2022 legislative session, including a $435 million tax cut that would prematurely roll back a temporary sales tax and force cuts to health care, higher education and other vital programs and services.

America was founded on human rights. The right to speak out, to organize, to worship, but what we still haven't secured is the right to food. Although a signatory, the United States has famously declined to ratify the international covenant on economic, social, and cultural rights, which recognizes the right to food. As one of four countries in the world who have signed but not ratified, the US sites existing protections against hunger and food insecurity in Federal long. Over the past couple of years, a national alliance has been emerging to change that, and seek to amend state constitution to include the right to food. This group of advocates, state legislators, legal experts, community organizers, food and farm organizations, and those with lived experience of hunger, are coming together as a national community of practice to take action in their respective states towards securing constitutional amendments for the right to food. First is the state of Maine.   Prior to the pandemic, the US Department of Agriculture reported that 13.6% of Maine households are food insecure, a rate far higher than the national average of 11.7%. We can safely assume that figure is higher now due to the pandemic, if Maine is tracking with the rest of the United States. The Maine people face a critical choice and historic moment this November, to amend their constitution to declare that they have a natural inherent and unalienable right to food. The resolution that the voters will ratify was finally passed after three tries over six years, by 73% of the Maine house and 70% of the Maine Senate this past summer. Now Maine voters will decide if they want to enshrine the right to grow and access the nourishing food of their choosing, with dignity and self-determination in the constitution of the State of Maine. Welcome to "Rights Not Charity." This podcast series is about a big idea, ensuring everyone has enough food. Not as a charitable gift, but as a fundamental human right. My name is Alison Cohen, and I'm the Senior Director of Programs at WhyHunger, a global nonprofit organization working to end hunger and advance the human right to nutritious food in the US and around the world. Senator Craig Hickman is a Harvard graduate and a local business owner, running a successful organic farm and bed and breakfast with his husband. He served in the Maine House of Representatives for eight years, sponsoring fighting for measures that promote food sovereignty, protect individual rights and civil liberties, combat poverty and hunger, and support rural economic development. Senator Hickman currently represents Senate District 14 in Maine. He is the first black lawmaker in Maine to serve in both chambers of the legislature. He first introduced the bill that we're going to discuss today to the legislature in 2015. Welcome, Senator Hickman, and congratulations on clearing the legislative hurdles so that the people of Maine can decide the future of food and farming in their state. Sen. Craig - Thank you, Alison, it's great to be here. Alison - Heather Retberg, our other guest, is a farmer and homeschooling mother in Penobscot, Maine. Together with her husband, Phil, they live and work on Quill's End Farm, a grass-based farm and micro dairy. The health of the animals they raise and the nutrient dense food they produce is rooted in ecologically healthy, regenerative stewardship of the land. Quill's End Farm has been a leader in the efforts for food sovereignty in Maine toward community self-determination, food exchanges, seeking to protect traditional food ways, increase access to Maine raised food, and encourage more community-based food production. Heather is also a member of Food for Maine's Future, a community-based organization, working to build solidarity and alliances between rural people in Maine and around the world. Their farmer members have been pushing the local foods movement to incorporate issues like land reform and the need for political organizing to push back against the well-funded agribusiness lobby. Heather and Senator Craig Hickman have been co-designers and tireless advocates in the State of Maine for food sovereignty. The constitutional resolution for the right to food is a key stepping stone to securing food sovereignty in the State of Maine. Welcome to you, Heather. Heather - Thank you, Alison. It's good to be with you. Alison - So, let's get started, let's have this conversation. The right to food as a concept and practice goes beyond the right to be free from hunger. It encompasses such qualities as dignity, adequacy, and sufficient income, so that food isn't in competition with other essential needs such as healthcare and housing. The US does not legally protect the right of people to feed themselves according to these particular qualities, if it did, I would argue, we wouldn't see rates of hunger hovering at 11% of the population over the past four decades. The right to food ballot question is at its core about freedom of choice and accessing nourishing food. If Mainers vote "Yes" on the ballot question on November 2nd, what will it mean for Mainers' freedom of choice in accessing nourishing food? Can we start with you, Craig? Sen. Craig - I don't know that most people know this, but in 2010, The Food and Drug Administration, which regulates 80% of our nation's food, declared in US court that people "Have no fundamental right to obtain and consume the food they wish, and therefore have no fundamental right to their own bodily and physical health." They also claimed that there was no deeply rooted historical tradition of unfettered access to foods of all kinds. I think that the people of Maine would take issue with that. But our own bodily and fiscal health is not our own when the government agency that increasingly controls more and more of our food supply states that our right to our own health, our right to feed ourselves and our families, the food we want to eat is not a fundamental right of liberty. And when that agency prevails in court, because for the time being, the rule of law backs them up, well, the people are not well-served. Most people don't know that they don't have a right to the food of their own choosing. The people thought they did. If they knew this phantom right was being stripped away, little by little, and in some cases by leaps and bounds, on what legal ground will we stand if we cannot obtain the food we wish to eat, if you can't get your favorite food anymore from your favorite farmer, because your farmer has gone out of business. In the last 10 years, we have seen dozens of farm raids around the country. We have seen states suing farmers, farm customers suing states to establish their rights to acquire the food they wish. We have seen multi-national biotechnology corporations suing farmers for patent theft. We have seen seeds become the legal property of those same corporations here in Maine. We have seen an overly aggressive regulatory body tell farmers to their face that they will take their food away from them or find them because they have run a file of the law. We are losing access to the food we desire to the integrity of our food and to our own bodily and physical health. So if we vote to protect our right to the food of our own choosing by ratifying this constitutional amendment at the ballot box, we will shift the power away from corporations and toward the people. And I simply can't think of anything more important to Maine people than independence and liberty and freedom to work out their nutritional regimen as they see fit. Alison - Heather, you've been involved in this advocacy issue for quite some time yourself, and I'd like to invite you to share your vision and understanding of this right to food amendment from a farmer's perspective and from your experience in walking along this path, alongside Craig for the last 10-11 years. Heather - It's interesting to hear you frame the question that way. It doesn't seem like it's been 10 or 11 years, in a way it feels like we just started, and it also feels like we've been doing it forever. I came to this work, not at all as an advocate, but just as a farmer. The experience on our farm is our state's regulatory agency was such that in 2009, we were going to have to either stop several of the primary enterprises that we were doing, or be mandated to build infrastructure that was beyond the scale of our farm to afford, but also to sustainably continue. So I came into it thinking that our inspector had said that we should just go to our State Capitol and weigh in the process because lawmakers needed to hear from farmers before they changed the rules. So I came into it thinking that it was really about scale appropriate regulation, and that we just had to communicate with our legislators because they couldn't see what was happening out in the field, away from the State Capitol. But what I found out as it went along was that wasn't really at all the case. The more we asked questions about who is making those decisions and why didn't the people have a voice anymore, and why were we being administratively redefined. We came to understand that by losing the ability to not just control, but even have access to language and how we were defined, small farms could very easily disappear from the landscape. And indeed that is what had been happening in rural Maine for the last 60 years. So through that legislative process, we were exposed to a different idea and that was to instead work with our own community, to define ourselves and define our own food exchanges. And as we did that, again, we just kept asking questions, who's making the decisions right now? Who do those decisions benefit? What kind of relationships did we want to have in our community? And then how would we enshrine those values into law? And the further along we went, the more the conversation shifted away from a regulatory framework and more and more into an understanding that what we were talking about was rights. That people were losing the access to the food of their choosing. Losing access to healthful food. And we became pretty convinced that we needed to regain a voice in the decision-making that was some counterbalance to the industrial lobbyists, the grocery lobbies, the dairy lobbies, all of those better funded groups that because of their funding had more access to legislators and then also more access to law. So instead we came to our towns. We drafted local laws that represented the values and the relationships we were trying to maintain. And then over time, that led to meeting now Senator Craig Hickman and the then governor's office. We started working together and really kicking around how do we regain this power that we've lost to define ourselves and our food exchanges. After food sovereignty was recognized by our state legislature in 2017, we went back to thinking about this rights-based framework and working on language to ensure that in the most foundational, most powerful form of law that exists: a constitutional amendment in our Bill of Rights that we could ensure that people would have a right to food. That people would have a right to save and exchange seeds. And that people would have a right to grow and raise and produce and consume foods that they're choosing for their own health. And really regain that agency that this shift in power towards corporate control of our food supply and our food policy had stripped from us. So that was how I came into it. Alison - It's so inspiring and deeply nuanced, I think the way in which this has evolved and gotten to this point. When we were pretty comfortable, I think in the US and talking about civil and political rights, but deeply uncomfortable talking about economic rights, meanwhile, or maybe I should say all the while, corporations are gaining more and more in power. So at core, I am getting to understand this effort around a constitutional amendment on the right to food to be about so much more than the very, very important and necessary work of abating hunger. The right to food, this constitutional amendment, it's had legislative supporters, Craig, as I understand it, on both sides of the political aisle. Including Republican congressperson, Billy Bob Faulkingham, who was a co-sponsor of the bill. And often as we know, by inserting human rights into a political discussion, especially if we're talking about economic, social or cultural rights, there's a fairly predictable rift that emerges along party lines. So how have you overcome that hurdle in debate and in the dialogue since the beginning of your advocacy for this amendment? And why do you believe the right to food fundamentally should be a nonpartisan issue? Sen. Craig - Anybody who wants to live needs to eat. So that covers Republicans and Democrats and unenrolled voters. It covers libertarians and democratic socialists and any other political identification people have, green independent we have in Maine, it goes on. If you want to live, you need to eat. Politics is strange. Representative, Billy Bob Faulkingham is a Republican who put this bill in because I wasn't in the legislature when it was introduced this time. Because I had termed out of the house and was not running for the Senate, I actually came into the Senate in a special election. And so once I arrived in the Senate, this bill had received more votes in the House of Representatives that it had ever had before. And a lot of that had to do with the fact that a Republican this time sponsored it. And so he brought more members of his party to the table. They wouldn't vote for it when I introduced it, but they voted for it when he introduced it. So you can interview those folks to figure out what changed their minds, because the language of the resolution remains exactly the same. But again, that's politics. The policy is good, this shouldn't be a partisan issue. It's a basic human right. Protecting my right to choose my body's food. I can't imagine why anyone would deny that. The more food choices we have, the more food producers we have, the more community embedded food options, increased food production, the availability and accessibility of food, food price competition. And that will benefit everyone, including the hungry. Thirty years ago, maybe more, the people of this state through their representatives put into law that it is the policy of the state to be food self-sufficient, and that means all things. It means we're supposed to buy most of our food for our institutions, the Maine farmers and food producers. And it means that individuals should be able, to the extent possible, to provide for themselves the food they wish to eat. If they can't grow it, and if they can't produce it, then they clearly want to be able to find it around them. We have food deserts in Maine. Washington County in particular like none you've ever seen. And while that is the policy of the state, we still import 90% of the food we consume. And as Heather said, that it has a lot to do with food policy that has been directed by government agencies that have been co-opted regulatory capture by corporations. It's sorry to say, but having served on the committee that oversees our food supplies for six years and having chaired the committee on the house side for two terms, I can tell you unequivocally, the Department of Agriculture Conservation and Forestry exists to protect corporate interests. It says that it cares about the people, but I passed the law four years ago that required the department to do a public relations campaign, to promote food self-sufficiency for the people. And it was framed around the idea of Victory Gardens and all of that after World War II, where the USDA ran a public campaign, to make sure that people were growing their backyard gardens and raising their backyard pigs and chickens. I wanted the State of Maine to run a similar program for the time to allow for folks to understand that, to combat hunger and to decrease our reliance on food from away that people really did need to get involved in community gardens and to the extent that they could, wherever they lived, if their zoning allowed for it to grow their own food. We funded it in the legislature, but the department never implemented that program. And so it tells me that it wasn't interested in doing what the people asked it to do to its representatives. And so we find ourselves having to take back all of our own power. Fannie Lou Hamer said it, if you can grow your own food and feed yourself, nobody can push you around and tell you what to do. Mainers are by nature a libertarian people. We don't want anyone to tell us what to do. We believe in live and let live, so long as I'm not hurting anybody else, I should be able to do whatever I want. Food is life, and if you have a right to life, we have a right to food. And that means we have a right to the food and we wish to eat for our own bodily health and wellbeing. And I can't imagine a more non-partisan issue than that. Alison - There's so much about this effort that is about restoring democracy in many, many ways. It's really about looking at where the power sits, and if it's not with the people, it's not ultimately democracy. So, many, many different tributaries I think we could go down here, but our time is short. And so I do have another question, Heather, what message do you want to convey to voters in Maine on the ballot question they'll be considering in November? Why should they vote "Yes" for the right to food constitutional amendment? Heather - There are so many good reasons to do this that it sometimes can be hard to distill them. And I am notorious for speaking in paragraphs and not short sentences. I'm going to try. I've heard that said, I think maybe by you before, Alison, but that this really is a watershed moment in our nation's history. And certainly Maine has this opportunity to lead the way in securing the right to food in our constitution. We know from prohibition times as Maine goes, so goes the nation. The other bullet points, if I may, are just that this absolutely shifts the concentration of power from the corporations that control our food supply to us as individuals. And it really secures our agency, our liberty, and it gives us as individual citizens, a greater voice in the decision making. Not just about our food, but about the relationships that we have with each other in our communities. It's important to know that a right enumerated is to protect individuals, not a provision from the government. If you look at the other rights, there are 24 right now in our Bill of Rights in Maine, it's about the government securing and protecting legal space. But it doesn't provide guns, for example, though we have the right to keep and bear arms. It doesn't tell people what they should say, though we have the freedom of speech. It doesn't dictate what type of religion, though we have the freedom of religion. So the same is true for food. And then it becomes a metric to inform and guide lawmaking and policy priorities, but it doesn't make law and policy. And that I think is really important when we think about a future vision that is about a much more food-resilient Maine and thinking about what that might look like with town planning, edible landscapes, and compost, and collecting rainwater and all those things. So just people know, it exists to secure our individual rights. It's not a provision from the government and I am going let Craig share the slogan that I think it's important for people to hear as right to that. Sen. Craig - You mean the one that goes something like, "The right to food is right for me, vote yes on question three?" Heather - Yes. Alison - Can you say that again, Craig? Can you just say that again, loud and proud? Sen. Craig - The right to food is right for me, vote yes on question three. Alison - That's awesome, thank you both so much. I wanted to just end on this reflective note. Heather, I've been reading your Quills End Farm newsletters over the last year or so, as I've gotten to know you better. And you included a quote in your most recent newsletter that I'd love to hear your thoughts on. The quote was from Nelson Mandela, and it came at the tail end of your announcement to the readers of your newsletter, that this amendment passed both legislative bodies would be on the ballot box in November. And the quote reads, "It always feels impossible until it's done." How was this reflective of your experience to date in your advocacy work in particular? And how might it inspire the folks who are listening, who are also advocating for a rights not charity approach to ending hunger and protecting community food systems in their own states? Heather - A dear friend of mine and fellow advocate, Bonnie Preston, especially after losses would say that to me. She said, "Remember, Heather, it always feels impossible until it's done." It could be one of our downfalls, but I tend to approach this work with great humility. And sometimes that can lead to a feeling of it'll never happen. The forces against us are too great. There's the department, there's the all the food lobbies, there's the industrial farm organizations. But really, I think what comes to light when I think about that is this moment when, back in the beginning in 2011 or 2012, my colleague, Bonnie, invited then Congressman Mike Michaud to come to our area. And we invited him to grange in North Blue Hill. And somebody asked the question, just point blank, "When do you think the Congress is gonna recognize food sovereignty?" And Mike Michaud looked at me and it was clear that food sovereignty was a foreign language, he didn't know the words or what they meant. And when I gave him a nutshell definition on the side there that it was about self-determination of food supply. He looked back at the questioner and he just kind of laughed because it was so impossible, there's no way that would happen. So those were kind of the moments when the mountain appeared most of the time, we just kept stepping one step at a time and stayed on the path. But there were definitely times when those mountains became visible and each time we tried, more people joined and still, and yet we would lose. And each time we won, it felt like could have lost, it could have gone a different way if it hadn't been for this one person who really believed in having that one more conversation with their representative or their Senator. And then those legislators, it always took people who are willing to stand up to their party and work against the party for the constituents or for the principles of the thing. It was impossible until it happened. Alison - Let's get it done, right? Sen. Craig - Let's do it. Alison - Craig, do you have any final thoughts before we wrap up? Sen. Craig – Just to sort of extend that, you have to fight misinformation all the time. Throughout this process, we've heard everything from this right, if it is declared in our constitution, we'll preempt and, or overturn every single law, rule, regulation, municipal ordinance, zoning requirement out there, all of that is false. The declaration of a right does not touch statute or ordinance. Those are also legal instruments. Everything will remain the same unless, or until someone challenges something and maybe a court will say, "Yeah, maybe you did go a little too far with that regulation or that rule." But unless or until that happens, nothing changes. We are putting solid ground into our constitution. Quite frankly, it should be article 2A of our Declaration of Rights. It should come directly after all power is inherent in the people. As farmers, everything happens from the ground up except for rain, and this is where we put our feet in solid ground. And we put that into a constitution that would have never imagined needing it. When the founders drafted the words of our constitution, they all fed themselves. And so nobody ever thought we would have to defend this right until we now realize we do. And Maine is at the end of the line, and we always have to remember that we cannot take our food supply for granted. When the trucks stop coming, we starve. Grocery store shelves are still not refilled from this ongoing pandemic that we find ourselves in. And so we don't need to wait for say another part of an industry, which is going on right now in Maine where organic dairy farms have lost their holler and will no longer have a market for their milk in 2022. We need to stop waiting for that to happen. We need to take care of ourselves as my mother, wise as she was, always used to say, "Every tub stands on its own bottom." That is what "Yes" means. Alison - That's fantastic. I really appreciate how this conversation for me has illuminated constitutional amendment around the right to food, to ultimately be about the scaffolding, putting the scaffolding in place so that we can continue to find our way forward in erecting policies and other pathways to really support the freedom of food choice. Thank you both so, so very much for being with us today, and I hope you know that you have many observers and supporters around the country that are behind you and really looking forward to a successful outcome on November 2nd. So if you're inspired by what you've heard today, please check out our other podcasts and keep up to date with the Global Solidarity Alliance for Food, Health, and Social Justice by visiting www.rightsnotcharity.org. The Alliance is an international research, education and advocacy effort. You can find a transcript of today's discussion at http://rightsnotcharity.org/podcasts. This is Alison Cohen with WhyHunger.

You are probably wondering, first, how do you possibly make a full episode out of retirement plan document restatements and other related topics, and second, how do you make it interesting? Well, when you have Alison Cohen, ERISA Attorney and Partner at the Ferenczy Benefits Law Center, it is a piece of cake! Not much description need on this one, but plenty of good nuggets of info and best practices. Also, Alison mentioned a "Record Retention Policy Statement" which you can find a link to in the show notes.      Before we get started, if you have been enjoying the podcast please leave a review or rating on your favorite podcast service or app. That feeds the crazy algorithms and helps more people find the podcast.    Guest Bio Alison is a Partner with Ferenczy Benefits Law Center in Atlanta, Georgia. She advises clients on many issues related to qualified retirement plans, including design, mergers and acquisitions, audits, and operational issues. Alison commonly works with clients that have operational issues to guide them through the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and/or Department of Labor (DOL) corrective programs, prepare corrective filings, and prepare and support clients through an audit conducted by the IRS and/or DOL. Alison is a member of the Georgia and California State Bars. Prior to joining Ferenczy Benefits Law Center, Alison worked at a large bundled service provider for nearly 16 years as an Associate Vice President, Compliance Manager and Regulatory Liaison. As part of her responsibilities there, Alison served as a national speaker on audit and correction issues. She served on the Employee Plans Subcommittee of the IRS Advisory Committee on Tax-Exempt and Governmental Entities (ACT). Alison has been actively involved with the National Institute of Pension Administration (NIPA) serving as a speaker, author, and developer/teacher, and received NIPA’s Excellence in Education Award in 2019. The award recognizes outstanding educators within the national membership who have made significant contributions and improvements to NIPA’s educational programs.   She holds designations as an Accredited Pension Administrator (APA) and Accredited Pension Representative (APR) from NIPA.  Alison is also the current President of the Pension Education Council of Atlanta. In 2019, Alison assumed co-authorship of “ERISA: A Comprehensive Guide,” along with Ilene H. Ferenczy.   401(k) Fridays Podcast Overview Struggling with a fiduciary issue, looking for strategies to improve employee retirement outcomes or curious about the impact of current events on your retirement plan? We've had conversations with retirement industry leaders to address these and other relevant topics! You can easily explore over 200 prior on-demand audio interviews here. Don't forget to subscribe as we release a new episode each Friday!

Hunger is a solvable problem, but charity is not the only answer. Alison Cohen, Sr. Director of Programs at WhyHunger and Rob Robinson, Co-Founder of of the Leadership Committee to Take Back the Land Movement, are on today to discuss this year’s Hungerthon, which is squarely focused on the fact that COVID-19 has worsened the state of access to food and the right to housing in the United States.Executive Producer: Adell ColemanProducer: Brittany TempleDistributor: DCP EntertainmentFor additional content: makeitplain.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

What’s the relationship between school dropout, child marriage, and early pregnancy? Do girls drop out of school because of early marriage or pregnancy? Or is it the reverse? My guest today is Erin Murphy-Graham who has researched these questions extensively in Honduras. She focuses on the agency of girls in their adolescence and the disconnect between schooling and their futures. Erin Murphy-Graham is an Associate Adjunct Professor at the Graduate School of Education, UC Berkeley. She’s recently published with Alison Cohen and Diana Pacheco-Montoya a new article in the Comparative Education Review entitled: School dropout, child marriage and early pregnancy among adolescent girls in rural Honduras. freshedpodcast.com/Murphy-Graham/ -- Get in touch! Twitter: @FreshEdpodcast Facebook: FreshEd Email: info@freshedpodcast.com

Are you or someone you know struggling to afford food during this pandemic? There's a map for that, says Lorrie Clevenger, Director of US Programs for the Grassroots Action Network. She and Alison Cohen, Senior Director of Programs at WhyHunger, join today's episode to tell us about the Find Food COVID Map (link and phone number below), the change in eligibility requirements, and how their organizations are adapting and expanding to meet the rise in demand during coronavirus. Looking for a way to give back? VOLUNTEER! You can do it from anywhere in the country, from the comfort of your home, for however much time you can offer. Download today's episode then head to the link below.FIND FOOD COVID MAP: whyhunger.org/findfoodOR, CALL: 1-800-5-HUNGRYVOLUNTEER: https://bit.ly/WHVolExecutive Producer: Adell ColemanProducer: Brittany TempleDistributor: DCP EntertainmentFor additional content: makeitplain.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this Episode of Emerge I speak with Alison Cohen. Alison works as an instructional coach for public high school teachers and as a mindfulness educator for schools and social service organizations. Alison focuses on the interconnections between mindfulness and bias awareness and reduction. In this episode we speak about how mindfulness can disrupt the school to prison pipeline, the subtleties of implicit bias and cultural conditioning, and the nature of embodied racism. Enjoy the show! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/emerge/support

106.7 Lite FM is proud a partner of Hungerthon. Since 1975, the event has been an annual radio tradition, raising awareness about hunger and poverty in America. Alison Cohen, Sr. Dir. of Programs at Why Hunger, previews auction items, and explains how the event helps locally. For more, visit hungerthon.org

106.7 Lite FM is proud a partner of Hungerthon. Since 1975, the event has been an annual radio tradition, raising awareness about hunger and poverty in America. Alison Cohen, Sr. Dir. of Programs at Why Hunger, previews auction items, and explains how the event helps locally. For more, visit hungerthon.org

106.7 Lite FM is proud a partner of Hungerthon. Since 1975, the event has been an annual radio tradition, raising awareness about hunger and poverty in America. Alison Cohen, Sr. Dir. of Programs at Why Hunger, previews auction items, and explains how the event helps locally. For more, visit hungerthon.org

Food Talk with Mike Colameco is brought to you by the following generous underwriters: This week on Food Talk with Michael Colameco, host Mike Colameco kicks off the show welcoming Alison Cohen, Senior Director of Programs of WhyHunger. WhyHunger is a leader in building the movement to end hunger and poverty by connecting people to nutritious, affordable food and by supporting grassroots solutions that inspire self-reliance and community empowerment. Alison talks to Mike about facilitating the development and stewardship of WhyHunger’s organizational vision, strategy and programmatic implementation through its Grassroots Action Network, National Hunger Hotline, Food Security Learning Center and Global Movements programs. Next up, Mike brings in author and olive oil expert Joanne Lacina to the show. Telling Mike that she found herself interested in olive oil after a trip to Greece nearly eight years ago. Discussing olive oil fraud and what consumers should know about this huge global industry, Joanne shares that if it’s too good or cheap to be true, it probably is. After the break, Joanne talks about her business, Olive Oil Lovers, where she aims to do-away with the confusion by not only offering a comprehensive selection of some of the best oils in the world, but to also provide customers with the critical information necessary to help find the right oil. Lastly, Mike welcomes Sean Tobias, Co-Founder of Dock to Dish. Dock to Dish is a community and restaurant supported fishery that distributes sustainably harvested seafood to members within 24 hours from the dock. Brett Tolley also joins in the discussion of sustainable fishing and is the community organizer for the Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance. He comes from a four-generation commercial fishing family out of Cape Cod, MA and has worked in the fishing industry hanging nets, working on boats of various gear-types, and commercially shellfishing. These guys talk managing the fish population and what they hope to see in commercial fishing in the future. “Our response to hunger in this country has not really moved us closer to ending it… and we could.” [5:15] —Alison Cohen on Food Talk “There’s nobody policing the market here, in Europe you’re breaking the law.” [27:55] —Joanne Lacina on Food Talk “Currently the United States is a beacon of light around the globe for well managed, sustainable fisheries.” [50:25] —Sean Tobias on Food Talk