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Faces of Food Systems Planning: Maria Schwarz

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Maria Schwarz was elected to the APA Food Systems Division Executive Committee, and will be serving as Vice Chair for the 2026-27 term. In this Faces of Food Systems Planning post, Maria tells us about what it’s like to operate in a quickly-changing political environment, the (slow) pace of transformative change, and the steadfast superiority of toast.

Name: Maria Schwarz

Current Role: Food Systems Program Manager, Salt Lake City Sustainability Department

  1. What’s your favorite food?
    • Toast! So many options for toppings and endless varieties of bread. Good for any time of day 😊
  2. What areas of the food system do you focus on in your work, and where does that fit in with the rest of the work that you do?
    • I work on a little bit of everything in the food system. Recently, we have focused our efforts in Salt Lake City more on research and planning, so I’ve had a really broad view of our food system and trying to understand the local food landscape from production and supply chains to access and waste management as well as community priorities for food action. That said, we do have active programs that are working in the urban agriculture space. I manage a grant program that helps residents and community groups with their food production and access projects, and I collaborate with our public lands department and community partners to support community garden and urban farming programs. Food systems are built from relationships, so I try to build that network internally across departments and connect our food systems work into our city’s top priorities like affordability, economic opportunity, and environmental health.
  3. What do you enjoy about your work?
    • I’m never bored. Food systems work is so diverse, dynamic, and connected to other fields so there is always something new to learn. It also feels like this work makes a positive difference in my community and is fundamentally important for the health of people and planet. Everyone can connect over food, so there’s just a huge community of smart and caring people that I get to collaborate with both at a local level and beyond where I live. I’m really grateful that I get to work and learn in this space.
  4. What do you find challenging about your work?
    • Food systems planning and policy isn’t broadly understood. I spend a lot of time educating about what the food system is and how it relates to other fields of work. There is this sense that the food system kind of just happens and our food just is there, so there isn’t the need or urgency for action or investments in a focused way. The immense complexity of the food system and how it is tied into global, national, regional, and local policies and infrastructure also makes it kind of daunting to engage with this work. Once people can see a connection between food and something they are passionate about or that impacts the work they do, however, I think they are willing to learn more and engage. That is my hope and where I’m focusing my energy so that we can move food systems planning from this place of invisibility to something we can actively collaborate on to improve.
  5. Do you consider yourself a food systems planner? Why or why not?
    • Yes. Working for a municipality means we are uniquely positioned to influence our community through the planning work we do and the land use and resource allocation decisions we make. Cities understand their role as leaders in urban planning and if we can plan for housing, transportation, green spaces, and economic development, then we are planning for food systems as well. I see it as my job to make food visible in that planning process and take intentional steps to make healthy, affordable, and culturally relevant food more available to our community. By talking about myself as a planner and presenting food work as urban planning, I think it makes it more approachable to other city practitioners to engage in this work as well.
  6. What is the biggest food systems planning-related hurdle your community/organization faced in recent years and how was it dealt with?
    • Responding to the constantly and quickly changing political environment right now has been really hard on food work, especially from a food justice and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) perspective. We must stay rooted in those values even as we are having to adjust the language we use to describe some of our programs to remain legally compliant as a city with new state and federal legislation.
    • The other, more localized challenge we have is that our city and region is growing so fast right now and we are facing really intense land development pressures. The growth we have experienced in the past decade or so coupled with our unique geography has had an especially hard impact on our local farmers and other urban growers. A lot of farms and community gardens have lost their land to new developments, often housing (which is also a critical need), and we’re losing the community connections and knowledgeable growers along with those spaces. The increase in the cost of living here also makes any remaining land totally unaffordable. We are working to raise awareness of this issue, protect our remaining growing spaces, and find creative solutions to ensure we can continue to support local food production alongside the growth.
  7. How has your perception of food systems planning changed since you first entered the planning field?
    • I think I have grown a deeper appreciation for the truly long-term nature of this work. I really feel urgency to contribute to transformative change in food systems because there are so many things that are not working to the health and wellbeing of our communities and environment. I kind of came in with the expectation that others shared my priorities and were ready to take quick actions. One of the best pieces of advice I have been given (from Noel Didla, an incredible food justice activist, academic, and community capacity builder) is to think of food systems work as collaborative generational work. The transformative change we want to see won’t be fast and can’t be fast. It has to be deeply rooted and radically inclusive and that takes time (generations, not six months) to build. I’m still working toward the patience that that demands and probably always will be, but it has also given me a healthier perspective on what justice-centered food systems change looks like and my role in building toward that vision.
  8. Who has had the most influence on you as a planner? As a food systems planner?
    • I have learned from so many amazing folks that have influenced how I approach my work. I think the person who stands out most to me is one of the predecessors in my role, Supreet Gill. She worked in Salt Lake City’s urban agriculture and food access field for a long time and was such a great role model of community-centered solution building. Her passion for an equitable food system and deep local knowledge of this place showed in the ways she built relationships and found effective levers of change within our city. She really led by example to ensure programs and policies centered the people most impacted by them and that we build from a place of shared values and equal power.
  9. Do you have any advice for someone entering the food systems planning field? What makes you successful in your work? What skills do you use the most in your food systems planning-related work?
    • My advice is to include food systems planning as a lens in whatever it is you are doing. There aren’t too many dedicated roles for food systems planning (yet!), so we need “food systems” people in all fields. I’d say start where you are and with the food connection that is most readily available from where you’re working.
    • The skills I rely on most are relationship building and strategic planning skills. Since I work across so many different areas of the food system and urban issues, I need to have enough understanding of what is going on to ask effective questions and then root ideas/actions in the values and goals our community network shares. It’s also important that I know where some of my weaknesses are and take that as an opportunity to ask for help and collaborate with people who are more skilled than me. I get to learn from them and build a team which is great because you cannot do this work alone.
  10. What do you wish you would have known before going to planning school? (If you didn’t go to planning school, but came to this work from an allied field, what did you study and what do you wish you would have known before starting your work in food systems?)
    • I don’t have a formal planning background. I have a master’s degree in public administration, and my undergraduate degrees are in anthropology and intercultural communications. My education helped me to better understand human systems and community building with diverse groups. After school, I spent a lot of time working in community-based organizations before I moved into my role in local government. I really value having experience in running direct service programs and knowing where some of the challenges are from that practical level and using that to inform how to be most helpful now that I’m in a more policy/systems focused role. The biggest learning curve for me in that transition has been the slower pace of government work. I wish I had understood more about how to work on that timeline and set expectations around long-term change before I started.

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY | Invest Health: Strategies for Healthier Cities

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Invest Health is a new initiative that brings together diverse leaders from mid-sized U.S. cities across the nation to develop new strategies for increasing and leveraging private and public investments to accelerate improvements in neighborhoods facing the biggest barriers to better health. The program is a collaboration between the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and The Reinvestment Fund.

This initiative was developed to provide an opportunity for mid-sized cities to transform the way local leaders work together to create solution-driven and diverse partnerships. These partnerships will emphasize making changes in low-income neighborhoods to improve resident health and well-being. These changes can focus on increasing access to quality jobs, affordable housing, and nutritious food, and reducing crime rates and environmental hazards.

For more information on this funding opportunity, visit http://www.investhealth.org/#apply. Letters of Intent are due by January 29, 2016 at 5pm EST.

Job Opportunity: Community Health Planning (applications due 12/25)

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There is a vacancy at the City Planning Commission for the Community Health Planning Assignment in the City Planner 3 specification.  This innovative position bridges public health and planning and as such is also a part of the Get Healthy Philly team.  Applications are accepted through 12/25. The assignment description is just below and the full specification (and application) is linked here: https://phila.peopleadmin.com/postings/26052

COMMUNITY HEALTH PLANNING ASSIGNMENT

Integrates public health considerations into planning policy and project implementation; coordinates, conducts and analyses Health Impact Assessments (HIA) and makes recommendations for District Plans and other City Planning Commission adopted and accepted plans; communicates the health impacts of planning decisions to stakeholders; presents findings and recommendations at meetings; collaborates with a variety of city agencies and external partners to implement recommendations, including bicycle and pedestrian safety interventions and zoning re-mappings to improve access to health-supportive goods, services, and infrastructure; performs project management duties; manages HIA process for proposed development projects as required; convenes stakeholders to screen and scope each HIA.

Performs Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping and analysis; develops and utilizes spatial analysis tools designed to assist in identifying opportunities to improve health; develops proposals and reports; oversees the work of student interns; performs analysis as necessary on factors affecting fresh-food access, active transportation, and other health issues; develops new tools to evaluate the health impacts of major projects to incorporate health considerations into the daily activities of the City Planning Commission; develops educational materials for presentation to the public including the Citizens Planning Institute.

Represents Philadelphia City Planning Commission at events relevant to healthy planning goals; serves as a technical resource to community groups; solicits information from the community to establish health-related priorities; considers community input in planning process; engages design and development communities to build capacity and support for projects that support the healthy built-environment goals of the City Planning Commission and the Department of Public Health.

MINIMUM ACCEPTABLE TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE  (The following statement represents the minimum training and experience standards which will be used to admit or reject applicants for tests.  Applications submitted by candidates for this class will be reviewed based on training and experience requirements as approved on 12/13.)

EDUCATION: Completion of a bachelor’s degree program at an accredited college or university in a field related to city planning*

GENERAL EXPERIENCE: Two years of technical city planning experience in the area of assignment.

SPECIFIC EXPERIENCE: One year of technical city planning experience at the full performance level in the area of assignment.

Faces of Food Systems Planning: Becky Bodonyi

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Becky Bodonyi is a planner working as a program specialist for the Multnomah County Health Department located in Portland, Oregon. Her work focuses on bridging urban planning, public health, and food access issues. Becky is also an active member of APA-FIG’s Policy Working Group.

Kimberley Hodgson, Chair of APA-FIG, conducted this interview via email in October 2015.

  1. What is your first and last name? Becky Bodonyi
  2. What is your current position? Program Specialist, Multnomah County Health Department, Portland, Oregon
  3. How long have you held this position? Just over three years.
  4. What do you enjoy about your work? I love working at the intersection of public health and urban planning. It’s an exciting time to be a planner at the health department, as more and more people in a wide variety of sectors are starting to realize how their organization or their work influences health. The idea that place matters is becoming more widespread and I get to help people tell this story. I also love geeking out about the data – both quantitative and qualitative – making maps and working to figure out how we’ll get from a vision to tangible change in our communities. Finally, I’m always told that planners talk in “planner speak,” and I love helping non-planners understand the world of planning, for example, deciphering maps, visualizing floor-area-ration (FAR), or how a density bonus can help us achieve multiple outcomes.
  5. Similarly, what do you find challenging about your work? Change is slow. It takes time to change systems, especially when the work is about making those systems more fair and just. The health inequities we see today, especially related to food, nutrition and chronic disease, have their roots in a long history of racism and policy decisions across all sectors, from agriculture and housing to transportation and education. The challenge is understanding how all of this is related but also accepting that not everything can be “fixed” overnight and being patient with yourself. I first heard Wes Jackson’s words nearly 17 years ago: “If your life’s work can be accomplished in your lifetime, you’re not thinking big enough.” And while it has since inspired me, I will also admit that it is ultimately my biggest challenge.
  6. What areas of the food system do you focus on in your work? I’m focused on healthy food access. My projects of late have centered on food retail and integrating food access into transportation planning.
  7. In the work that you perform, where does addressing food systems issues fit in? How has this changed over time? I work mostly on the consumer end – where do people shop and how do they get there, what’s on the shelf, do customers know how to prepare it, what is actually getting eaten. That said, working in healthy retail and helping small retailers overcome barriers has also meant I have had to engage somewhat with production and distribution through farm to store efforts, joint purchasing, and learning what wholesale produce suppliers serve the region.
  8. Do you consider yourself a food systems planner? Why or why not? Yes and no. I am an urban planner by training and I work on issues directly connected to food systems. But my focus within the food system has been so narrow that I don’t immediately identify as a food systems planner. Rightly or wrongly, in my head, I’ve reserved that title for folks who are working at a systems level, say convening a process to integrate food systems into a comprehensive (or general) plan or to develop a multi-sector food action plan.
  9. How has your perception of food systems planning changed since you first entered the planning field? I was an Environmental Studies major in undergrad and I took a few sustainable agriculture classes, which opened my eyes to the world of agriculture policy and food systems. When I got to planning school, which wasn’t that long ago, I guess I was surprised to learn that food systems planning was relatively new. It seemed so obvious to me that planners should be paying attention and using their tools and planning processes to support/influence/improve the food system. I’m glad it’s getting more and more attention now.
  10. Who has had the most influence on you as a planner? As a food systems planner? I don’t have any particular influences. I am a social justice advocate and planning is just one of my tools that I use to advance equity and fairness. I was raised to believe everyone deserves to live to their full potential and to do so in a physical, social and political environment that supports their total well-being and that presents opportunity not barriers. I picked planning as a career to contribute to this vision. I also just love cities and talking with friends (and strangers) about what works and what doesn’t about a particular place. Every day conversations and observations are probably the most persistent influence I have on my planning practice. I get around mostly by walking, biking or taking transit, which gives me a lot of time to observe the city and to interact with other people. A lot of my thinking is done on the bus.
  11. Do you have any advice for someone entering the food systems planning field? What makes you successful in your work? What skills do you use the most in your food systems planning related work? Food systems planning is a broad field – don’t just limit yourself to working for a planning agency or a firm. I didn’t expect to work for a health department but am finding it to be an interesting place to be a planner and be a bridge between urban planning, public health and healthy food advocates. Skills that have proven useful in my role have been project management, negotiation, data and policy analysis, evaluation planning, and relationship building.
  12. What do you wish you would have known before going to planning school? Planning is as much an art as it is a science. I knew I didn’t want to go into the academic world so I focused my school search on programs that offered the so-called ‘professional degree.’ I didn’t exactly know what this meant and it was kind of sold to me as a two-year program where you developed technical skills, like understanding land use laws or GIS, and boom – you’re workforce ready. While those technical skills are essential, planning is about people and communities and humans’ relationships with each other and with place. It’s also about politics, conflicting priorities, and chronically underfunded cities (or counties). It is way more complicated and messy than I expected and this is where the art comes in. Planning school helped me develop skills to navigate this part of planning, but truthfully, the art of the profession is something that is better learned in the work place not necessarily a classroom. (And, I’d argue, the skills a planner needs to succeed in the art of planning don’t need to be learned in an urban planning job).

Faces of Food Systems Planning is a series of interviews with practicing planners from across North America who are engaging in food systems planning and policy work. This series is part of APA-FIG’s efforts to highlight food systems planning as an important planning topic. Click here for more information.

Request For Abstracts: Health Affairs “Food And Health” Theme Issue

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HealthAffairsJournalHealth Affairs is planning a theme issue on food and health in November 2015. The issue will present work that explores the relationship between the food we consume and our wellbeing on the individual, societal, and global levels. Articles will address causes and consequences of dietary excess and insufficiency, analyze policies and programs aimed at influencing these, and explore the roles of public policy, industry, and stakeholder groups in the context of dietary behavior. To be considered, abstracts must be submitted by midnight, EST, Monday, February 23, 2015. For more information, click here.