Pilot Light is proud to take part in this year’s Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), sharing our work to reshape Food Education for students across the country. Our Commitment to Action, which is grounded in the pursuit of climate resilience and health equity, has officially been accepted at the Clinton Global Initiative’s 20th annual meeting. As a CGI Commitment Maker, we are joining a global community of leaders working together on solving some of the world’s most pressing issues.
Food, Culture, Climate: About Our Commitment
Pilot Light’s CGI commitment is a multi-pronged strategy to expand our Food Education mission. Aligned to our forthcoming five-year strategic plan, our CGI Commitment to Action invests in teacher leadership, Indigenous-led organizations, and comprehensive food systems education to reach 10,000 teachers and 300,000 students over the next 5 years. Our work will continue to be grounded in our Food Education Standards, which were re-released this year with additional resources for PreK-12 educators.
At CGI 2025, we will share how we are expanding access through online tools that make our resources available to educators everywhere. We will also highlight programs such as our new Indigenous Foodways curriculum, which will be co-designed by Indigenous leaders and educators to uplift traditional knowledge and help students explore the connections between food, culture, and community.
Pilot Light’s Food Education lessons go beyond nutrition: they give teachers practical ways to weave food into the subjects they already teach, whether it is a science class on plant biology or a reading lesson exploring stories from different food cultures. This approach makes learning more meaningful. Students learn where food comes from, how it nourishes their bodies, and the traditions behind it, skills and knowledge they carry for life.
Why It Matters
Despite the growing urgency of climate change and an increasing disconnection from the origins of food, Food Education remains largely absent from U.S. classrooms. Most students graduate without understanding how food systems impact their health, their communities, or the environment, thereby limiting their ability to make informed choices and participate in meaningful solutions to pressing climate change, sustainability, and health-related issues.
Food systems are a significant contributor to climate change, accounting for over one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2022). Many students lack exposure to foundational concepts such as agriculture, sustainability, and food justice, and are rarely introduced to Indigenous and Native foodways, which offer deep-rooted, place-based knowledge about living in balance with the land.
Our Commitment Partners
Our 2025 CGI Commitment to Action includes ambitious goals, but they are attainable through the committed support of our funding and implementation partners. Thank you to the following institutions and individuals for investing in this plan with us!
- New York City Department of Education
- Giant Food
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- Decatur Public Schools Foundation
- Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences
- Chef Jessica Walks First, Ketepanen Kitchen & Board of Directors, American Indian Center (Menominee)
- Kim Sigafus McIver, Quiet Souls Events and Education (Ojibwe)
- Gina Roxas, Trickster Cultural Center (Prairie Band Potawatomi)
The Future of Food Education Starts Here
We imagine a future where every student grows up food-literate, able to choose what nourishes them, and confident in their role in building a healthier, more just food system. With the support of CGI and its network of changemakers, we are working to make that future a reality. Thank you to the Clinton Global Initiative, our dedicated partners, and all the educators and leaders who will make this Commitment to Action a reality over the next five years!
Learn more about the Clinton Global Initiative at: clintonglobal.org/2025.