by Tom Laskawy

One of the goals here at Grist is to inspire people to move beyond reading about problems and toward doing something about them. With that in mind, I thought I’d highlight a new anti-obesity initiative launching today designed to place young workers in communities to deliver nutrition education, build and tend school gardens, and implement farm-to-school programs: FoodCorps.

Cofounded by Grist contributor Deb Eschmeyer, an organic farmer and former communications director for National Farm to School Network, and Curt Ellis, codirector of the award-winning documentary King Corn, FoodCorps officially gets rolling today. The first cohort of 50 corps members is starting training in Milwaukee, Wis., where they’ll get a chance to learn from urban ag pioneer Will Allen at his Growing Power Community Food Center. The trainees will soon fan out to 10 states — Arkansas, Arizona, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, and Oregon — to begin the work of bringing better nutrition and food choices to kids.

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