Transforming Food Waste into Community Value
Dawn Brown is a passionate environmental advocate transforming urban spaces through innovative urban agriculture, zero waste education, and sustainable practices in sports and entertainment. Committed to leading by example, she empowers communities to embrace sustainability in everyday life. Dawn’s mission is to inspire lasting change by integrating eco-conscious solutions into cities, culture, and daily experiences for a greener future.
Kashi Sehgal is Founder and CEO of Retaaza, a social impact food solutions company rethinking the local supply chain. She is also Managing Partner at Forethica, CEO of Gigabark and Advisory Board Member of Purpose Group.
Across her work, Kashi centers education, sustainability, ethics and technology. She advises startups and nonprofits, mentors entrepreneurs, and has led strategies for Fortune 100s, emphasizing compassionate, impactful solutions.
David Paull is co-founder and Chief Impact Officer at CompostNow Inc., a residential and commercial food scraps collection service that collaborates with local composting operations (including community gardens, urban farms and a regional composter).
David was named to Atlanta Business Chronicle’s 40 Under 40 and was part of LEAD Atlanta ‘23, a Leadership Atlanta initiative for emerging leaders.
Savannah Seydel is Vice President of Sustainability at Better Earth, an Atlanta-based B Corp providing compostable foodservice packaging. She is passionate about building regenerative circular systems through advocacy, innovation, and community engagement. Savannah furthers this mission at the industry- and local-level through board roles with BPI, the Georgia Compost Council, and Southface, and as founder of Atlanta Women in Sustainability.
Grayson Stuart is a Georgia Tech alum and TRUE Certified Advisor who helps organizations achieve holistic application of sustainability across their operations as well as assisting clients in realizing their sustainability goals in a measurable, practical way.
Leaders across the sustainability landscape—Dawn Brown of Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Kashi Sehgal of Retaaza, David Paull of CompostNow, Savannah Seydel of Better Earth and Grayson Stuart of Goodr—explored the multi-layered challenges and solutions involved in creating circular food systems. From composting to procurement to shifting public perception, the conversation emphasized that meaningful change requires integrated action across sectors, institutions and communities.
Collaboration is the Engine of Circular Systems
The panelists unanimously agreed that addressing food waste is impossible without cross-sector cooperation. Food is lost or wasted at every point in its journey—from farm to fork to landfill—meaning that composters, distributors, packagers, and institutions must work together to close the loop. One speaker described how a stadium integrates compostable packaging and staff training into its operations, while another highlighted how a company’s compostable products complement collection efforts by organizations. Another panelist emphasized the importance of connecting excess food supply to community needs through agile logistics and partnerships. Each example illustrated that collaboration reduces friction in food recovery, donation and waste diversion, building the scaffolding for circular ecosystems.
Systemic Barriers Undermine Local and Sustainable Solutions
Despite strong grassroots innovations, structural obstacles in procurement and distribution slow progress. Panelists noted that most procurement systems prioritize scale, predictability, and bulk pricing—standards that local farms and food rescue efforts often can’t meet. Farm to Food Bank and Farm to School programs hold promise but are often bogged down by complex paperwork and narrow eligibility requirements. Without rethinking procurement rules and creating economic incentives for local sourcing, many community-based solutions remain locked out of the larger food economy. Another speaker added that even composting services are limited by zoning restrictions and outdated policies that make it hard to scale operations efficiently.
Mindset Shifts and Education are Central to Culture Change
The conversation also highlighted the cultural and psychological hurdles that impede progress. One speaker pointed out that language and perception matter—describing surplus food as “excess abundance” rather than “waste” shifts the narrative. Another emphasized how internal culture change, including onboarding staff into zero waste practices, builds lasting habits.
A composting organization’s “Compost Academy” trains every employee on how composting fits into larger environmental goals, fostering a shared sense of purpose.
The panel agreed that public education and storytelling must demystify food recovery and composting while reducing stigma around surplus or imperfect food. These efforts can normalize sustainable behavior both inside and outside organizations.
Data and Policy Must Align with Grassroots Momentum
Data-driven insights emerged as another critical pillar for scaling food recovery and waste reduction. Panelists emphasized that without accurate, localized data on food waste, surplus, and community needs, even the most innovative efforts lack direction. However, many farmers and small nonprofits don’t have access to user-friendly data tools, leaving large gaps in the picture. The panelists pointed to emerging technologies like mobile tracking apps and machine learning as potential solutions to democratize this capacity. Meanwhile, policy innovation must match the momentum of local efforts. The panel called for reforms such as composting mandates, food donation incentives and zoning updates to support composting infrastructure. A state’s organics diversion laws were cited as a blueprint worth emulating, though tailored for local context.
No Comments