Episode 217: Filling the Gaps: Solving Hunger in Oklahoma
About the Podcast
For today’s episode, Clancy speaks with Chris Bernard, a proud native of Oklahoma, as the CEO and President of Hunger Free Oklahoma. His extensive involvement in public safety, juvenile justice, and anti-poverty has showcased his adept leadership in fostering public/private partnerships and coalition building to address intricate challenges.
You won’t want to miss their discussion about the gaps in the hunger issues in Oklahoma, the solutions needed to fill these gaps, and the lack of public and private partnerships. In addition, they also talked about the importance of private and public partnerships and Chris’ definition of food dignity. Listen and enjoy the show!
About Chris Bernard
Chris Bernard is the CEO and President of Hunger Free Oklahoma. He has a robust background in policy, advocacy, legislative strategy, and program implementation. In 2023, he was honored with the Rodney Bivens Innovation Award by the Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits. In addition, Chris was named among The Journal Record's Most Admired CEOs in 2023.
Discussion Takeaways
- The gaps in the hunger issues in Oklahoma were found in the policy advocacy space and the public-private partnership space.
- Hunger is a very complex problem, but the solutions are relatively simple. As a society, the solution to hunger is to have your local school have a pantry that is open once a week or once a month.
- The partnership between the charitable food sectors and the government is so important because there are a lot of people who have no food.
- The human soul is tied to dignity.
- Food dignity is having the access and resources you need to eat the food that will nourish your body and your family when you need it, and how you need it.
#1 tip to improve access to healthy food
If you build a system that isn’t designed for the people it serves, it’s bound to fail. That’s why public-private partnerships are key—community trust, private innovation, and government scale working together.
Each week on the Food Dignity® Podcast, the Food Dignity® Movement’s Clancy Harrison hosts a wide variety of hunger experts and other people making changes on the frontlines. Join us as we dive deep into conversations that will change the way you think about food insecurity.
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