VISION
Healthy Food, Healthy Planet.
At the Canadian Centre for Food & Ecology, we're all about inspiring food decisions that nurture people & the planet.As a national charity, we help impactful ideas get the attention they deserve. By connecting supply-side partners with their ideal audience, we inspire people to take action through food.Our goal? A delicious, healthy food system that works in harmony with nature.
What We Do
Think of us as matchmakers for the food world. We team up with partners to create meaningful and achievable initiatives that boost demand for foods that are good for people and the planet.We are doing the homework to help people make food decisions they can truly feel good about. We’re out exploring and discovering the best things in our food world so everyone can enjoy the same.
Why We Do It
Years of industrial farming and production have led to unhealthy food choices that are bad for our bodies and the environment. Efforts to change either the supply side or the demand side alone haven't worked.By bringing together supply and demand, we aim to support food providers who are deeply rooted in their communities and committed to practices that nurture nature and produce healthier foods.
Interested in partnering with us? Download our Partnership Principles to see how we plant the seeds of change.
TEAM
Alan Levine
Founder and Chair
After a 30-year corporate career, including CEO roles, strategic consulting, M&A work, and a two-year term as Chair of the Canadian Marketing Association, Alan turned his focus to mentoring leaders of social enterprises with great vision and potential in 2012; providing pro bono strategic guidance and leadership coaching. Alan is a passionate advocate for the profound shifts needed for our food systems to promote human health and restore our planet - and how individuals can drive that change. Alan founded the CCFE with the firm belief that meaningful action is not inspired by fear or guilt; but from positive experiences coupled with education and support.
Sarah Heynen
Executive Director
As the inaugural Executive Director of CCFE, Sarah brings nearly 25 years of experience in balancing human and natural systems. Growing up with oil pumps in the foreground and melting glaciers on the horizon, she understood this tension from an early age. After earning a law degree, Sarah's journey led her through grassroots awareness campaigns, a global conservation organization, and executive roles at Evergreen, the national urban environmental charity behind the celebrated social enterprise, Evergreen Brick Works. The CCFE's belief in joyful engagement drew her in, as did its dedication to promoting the work of others working from soil to stomach.
Lindsey Boyle
Managing Director, Demand Side Strategy and Programs
Lindsey is a market research expert with a passion for local food, well-being, circular economies, and regenerative agriculture. As a Vice President and Partner at The Sound, she spent years advising top tech, food, and lifestyle brands. Confronted by the climate crisis, Lindsey co-founded Sandown Centre for Regenerative Agriculture, an incubator farm on Vancouver Island that educates the community about soil health's many benefits—better food, improved human health, and enhanced climate resiliency.
Zahra Gulestani
Project Coordinator
As a Food Systems Specialist, Zahra's experience spans urban agriculture, food business, and community food justice, including The Stop Community Food Centre and Mama Earth Organics. She continually applies her knowledge of holistic nutrition and regenerative food systems to programs that nurture a thriving planet.
Kate McQuade
Communications Manager
You will find Kate in a food market or in her kitchen as often as you will her at her keyboard. Early in her career, she has already gained significant experience in journalism and digital marketing. She was a key part of the launch team for "The Breach," an award-winning digital media platform. With a penchant for projects promoting environmental sustainability, wellness, and collective action, Kate is passionate about storytelling that meets people where they’re at, especially if it involves something we all can relate to: food!
ADVISORS
COLLABORATORS
CHANGE
Cultivate Change With Us
At the CCFE, we welcome everyone who shares our passion for boosting demand for healthy foods grown in ways that protect and restore nature. If you’re already supporting a conscious retailer, add them to the map developed by altgrocery.io so others can find them too.
While shifting demand to conscious retailers is an important start, it’s not enough to unlock the full regenerative potential and resilience of our agriculture and food system. If you are part of the growing segment of investors who care deeply about the wellbeing of future generations, wondering how to direct capital to make a difference, we are asking the same questions so that we can support you.
Fundamentally, we believe that those who have already embraced change can inspire others who are ready to. And once there's enough demand, even the most resistant will come around. If you are a member of a community that is motivated by the idea of food that is better for people and the planet than most of what’s being supplied currently, let's talk about how your community can help build the groundswell.
CONTACT
Our View of the World
We understand that a disconnect from nature has led to a fragile food system and planetary health risks. We know that food brings people together across cultures, religions, and regions. And we believe meaningful change begins with individuals.The CCFE is just starting this vital journey. Our aim is to elevate and amplify voices that guide the shift towards locally-connected food networks. Now is the time to recalibrate and reintegrate nature's abundance into our lives.
Got questions or ideas?
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The Canadian Centre for Food & Ecology (CCFE) is based in Toronto, Canada. Charitable registration number: 75575 9610 RR0001. Unauthorized use of the CCFE brand identity is strictly prohibited. Please direct all branding inquiries or usage requirements to our Communications Manager. Identity design and website creation by Idea Studio.