Second-year University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability master's student Sami Maldonado (MS ‘25) has centered her SEAS experience around the study of food systems and food justice. “I see food as the ultimate connector in our world. It brings communities and cultures together because we all eat, and everyone knows about food to some degree,” said Maldonado, who is specializing in Environmental Justice and Behavior, Education and Communications.

Before she came to SEAS, Maldonado studied sustainable agriculture and food systems at the University of Minnesota with a minor in international agriculture. As an undergraduate student particularly interested in the justice components of the food system, Maldonado also created an individualized concentration to learn more about the connections between food and justice. In addition, she worked at a nonprofit focused on urban agriculture, community care, food justice and youth education. 

After graduating from her undergraduate program, Maldonado worked for Minnesota Farmers Union, a grassroots organization that amplifies the voices and policy interests of small-scale and family farmers in Minnesota.

Maldonado first learned about food systems in high school, and was immediately drawn to the field. She saw food as a connection between her interests in business, nutrition and environmental science. “The field just brought everything together and was a perfect harmony of all my passions,” she explained. At SEAS, Maldonado values the interdisciplinary nature of the curriculum, and the students reflect why she became interested in the field in the first place. “It's enriching to have courses with classmates who come from all different backgrounds and areas of study. There are students that, before coming to SEAS, have a background in policy, organizing, academia, public health, field research, and so on. I appreciate that my classmates share different perspectives and topics I never would have considered.”

One key example of the interdisciplinary structure of SEAS that sticks out to Maldonado is the cross-disciplinary learning not just within the program, but also with different programs at U-M. Maldonado is a Transformative Food Systems (TFS) Fellow, a fellowship organized by the University-wide Sustainable Food Systems Initiative that supports 12 graduate students from SEAS, the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, and the School of Public Health. The TFS Fellowship is rooted in the idea that bold leaders are urgently needed who reflect the communities most affected by intertwined environmental, health and economic food systems crises. Maldonado and the other TFS Fellows are organizing with the goal of institutionalizing the fellowship, hoping to provide the opportunity for future students to learn about and engage with food systems. In addition, Maldonado serves as the course coordinator for Food Literacy for All, a community partnership course for students and community members to learn about the diverse challenges and opportunities of food systems. 

As a SEAS student, Maldonado brings a unique systems thinking approach to the cohort of TFS Fellows. “The main elements I feel like I bring to the table here are systems thinking and asking critical questions. In the Environmental Justice specialization, we are constantly looking into the root causes of issues and are constantly asking why, which is something that has contrasted my applied science background,” she explained. “We have dynamic conversations in class and start talking about issues that are often suppressed or ignored in food systems or environmental work.”

In addition to doing collaborative work in food systems outside of SEAS, Maldonado is enrolled in the “Building Just Agricultural and Food Systems” theme course for her capstone project, where all four projects focus on justice components of the food system. Maldonado is on a capstone team with two other students, and their project is focused on integrating equity and environmental stewardship into Michigan K-12 food systems education, placing special attention on place-based education techniques and theory. The clients for this project are the Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative and the Michigan State University Extension Community Food Systems team. 

“Place-based education is a pedagogical style that encourages teachers and students to engage in their local communities in order to increase learning comprehension, foster advocacy, elevate student empowerment and overall ensure learning is enjoyable for students,” said Maldonado. “Place-based education is a huge component in making learning relevant, and it aligns with food systems because everyone eats and interacts with their food systems. In Michigan, there are no requirements for food systems or agricultural education in public school systems, so our project aims to give educators the tools and confidence to advance critical food systems literacy in their own classrooms.”

This project has reinforced Maldonado’s interests and the underlying reasons she originally came to SEAS. “I knew I was interested in education before attending SEAS because I enjoy introducing people to the idea of food systems for the first time,” she reflected. “Being part of this project has reinvigorated my excitement in encouraging people to think critically about where their food comes from.”

Last summer, Maldonado was awarded the Food Policy and Advocacy Legacy Award from Les Dames d’Escoffier International (LDEI), a philanthropic organization for women in the food, beverage, hospitality and culinary sectors. As a winner of this award, Maldonado had the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C., to meet with the D.C. chapter of LDEI, which created a personalized experience to help her learn more about food policy and advocacy. 

“I gave them ideas of what I was interested in and listed equity and justice as something I want to learn more about. They used my input and curated a fascinating week for me. I met one-on-one with government directors and policy organizers of nonprofits and coalitions. I asked my burning questions about working in food policy,” noted Maldonado. “It was informative to gain an inside perspective from professionals who have worked at the capitol for decades. I learned a lot about how food policy and advocacy functions on a federal level.”

Maldonado also was a Yale Environmental Fellow over the summer. She was partnered with the Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) team at ClimateWorks Foundation to complete a summer internship. ClimateWorks Foundation is a global platform for philanthropy that aims to scale climate solutions to benefit people and the planet. Maldonado learned a lot about trust-based philanthropy in this role as well as how organizations can implement and advance equity. Her main project was supporting the Justice and Equity Collaborative Learning Pilot Fund, which focuses on funding locally led action and priorities at the intersection of climate and social justice. “It was interesting to learn how trust-based philanthropy looks in practice and how it can foster transparency and mutual learning,” she reflected. 

Back at SEAS, Maldonado is excited to finish up her second year and apply what she’s been learning in and out of the classroom to her future career. “I appreciate that as a student, every day is different, and I have the opportunity to dig deep into new topics. There are so many moments when I recognize that everything is connected. It’s rewarding to bring those connections together and pinpoint the similarities within food systems and sustainability as a whole,” she said. “Food systems is certainly not a new field, and I’ve been in it for under a decade now. It’s constantly growing and emerging with valuable approaches and ways of thinking. I am excited to see the food systems field continue to expand, especially regarding justice, equity and food sovereignty.”