LEAD Initiative

Interest in food—from seed to supermarket to sauté pan—is growing. That’s why we’re working together with and learning from external leaders involved in conversations about food and nutrition, including culinary specialists, dietitians, food and nutrition science academics and their organizations and societies.

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LEAD Initiative

Interest in food—from seed to supermarket to sauté pan—is growing. That’s why we’re working together with and learning from external leaders involved in conversations about food and nutrition, including culinary specialists, dietitians, food and nutrition science academics and their organizations and societies. 

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We’re openly sharing information and insights with these food community leaders. That is the impetus behind Monsanto’s Leaders Engaged in Advancing Dialogue (L.E.A.D.) Initiative.

The Network

Monsanto has formed a group of 15 communication leaders in the food and nutrition space to communicate with consumers who have questions about food and agriculture, especially how food is grown. Members of the Network receive funding from Monsanto.

U.S.-based L.E.A.D. Network participants:

  • Keith Ayoob, EdD, RDN, FADA
  • Leslie Bonci, MPH, RDN
  • Mary Lee Chin, MS, RDN
  • Neva Cochran, MS, RDN, FAND
  • Connie Diekman, MEd, RDN, FADA
  • Robyn Flipse, MS, MA, RDN
  • Leia Flure, MS, RD, LDN
  • Lisa Katic, RD
  • Sylvia Klinger, DBA, MS, RDN
  • Allison Kuhn, MS, RD
  • Annette Maggi, MS, RDN, FAND
  • Amy Myrdal Miller, MS, RDN, FAND
  • Amber Pankonin, MS, RDN, CSP, LMNT
  • Carol Berg Sloan, RDN, FAND
  • Kathleen Zelman, MPH, RDN

The Network participants engage with the food and nutrition community through various outreach initiatives, including:

Dig-In Dialogues

Since the first Dig-In Dialogue, more than 400 food and nutrition stakeholders from across the United States have participated in customized events to build understanding and awareness of modern agriculture and specifically Monsanto’s role in modern agriculture. L.E.A.D. Network participants serve as moderators of the small, one-day events, which are modeled to be an open conversation, and allow attendees to ask questions of Monsanto staff.

Immersion Events

Leaders and communicators in food and nutrition are invited to these multi-day events, which take place at Monsanto sites throughout the United States. Immersion events are designed to focus on a particular topic or strategy and culminate with participants taking action in the community by communicating what they’ve learned.

 

Newsletter & Communication Resources

Would you like to learn more about food, agriculture, and nutrition? Sign up for the monthly L.E.A.D. News and Notes newsletter here. We also created a communication resource, The Ag Communication Toolkit, to help you answer questions from clients and customers about modern farming.