SLCgreen Welcomes Brian Emerson!

Earlier this year, SLCgreen said goodbye to Food & Equity Program Manager, Supreet Gill. Supreet helped shape the Food & Equity program, shepherding forward the first cohort of our innovative Resident Food Equity Advisors program.

Now, it’s time for a new program manger to pick up the torch.

SLCgreen is thrilled to welcome Brian Emerson to the role! Let us introduce you . . .

Brian Emerson has over 15 years of experience working on food and sustainability issues. He is passionate about the role cities can play in building more just and sustainable food systems, and is eager to support programs that connect social justice and community resiliency.  

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Brian’s career began at Wasatch Community Gardens, helping educate our communities and transform unused spaces into vibrant gardens. Since then, he has worked with Local Futures, researching different approaches to addressing food, energy, and economic needs. Brian also worked with Utahns Against Hunger, where he advocated for critical food justice and anti-poverty policies. In his role at Utahns Against Hunger, Brian witnessed the connections between equity and food access, and helped support efforts to alleviate these disparities.  

Brian says that he is “looking forward to working on community-driven strategies for creating a more just, resilient, and environmentally sustainable food system for all SLC residents.” He is especially interested in supporting initiatives that shift greater decision-making power to historically-excluded or underserved residents. 

This year, Brian completed a master’s in Political Ecology, Degrowth & Environmental Justice. SLCgreen is excited to have Brian join our team to help bring his knowledge and experience to support Salt Lake City’s equity, climate, and food access goals.  

The Future of SLCgreen’s Food & Equity Programs  

As Brian sets to work, he will be continuing to support and implement the recommendations being developed by the Resident Food Equity Advisors. He also looks forward to working with the International Rescue Committee, Comunidades Unidas, United Way of Salt Lake City, and other partners on vital food programs.  

Brian is eager to support all aspects of Salt Lake City’s food system. He explained that he is excited to help expand the city’s growing power, and that he hopes to “work with other departments to make more idle public land available for urban farming and community gardening on an equitable and long-term basis.” He is also looking forward to “identifying community-based economic development opportunities to support SLC’s local food entrepreneurs and create dignified, well-paid employment opportunities for food retail workers.”

As Food & Equity Program Manager, Brian will help SLCgreen continue to develop strategies for building a more resilient local food supply chain, taking lessons from the challenges of the past year. He will also work closely with the Food Policy Council to oversee a participatory process to update our Community Food Assessment that will help the city target future policy and programming.

Welcome Brian! We’re looking forward to working together to cultivate a thriving and more equitable food system for all our residents!