Increasing access to healthy, traditional foods is vital to support Tribal members’ overall health and well-being. The Nutrition and Community Food Systems Team is working to align public benefit-nutrition related programs and Food Is Medicine efforts with Tribal food sovereignty efforts. The team is building on existing nutrition programs in Tribal communities by working with Tribal nutrition educators affiliated with the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council and the Extension Health & Well-Being Institute.

The Nutrition and Community Food Systems Team is also working to develop and map career pathways to Indigenous food sovereignty in Wisconsin. The development and expansion of Tribal farms and food processing creates new opportunities to reclaim and renew Indigenous foodways while creating culturally rooted and place-based jobs. They are working to ensure that Indigenous youth and young adults seeking careers in Indigenous food sovereignty can access training and professional development to lead this work.