photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Many people are helping with the Douglas County Food Policy Council's Indigenous Food System Study and Action Plan, including, from left, Terra Trujillo, Robert Hicks Jr., Star Her Many Horses, Lee Meisel, Connie Fiorella Fitzpatrick and Christina Haswood, pictured on Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024.

A $50,000 grant is expected to help Douglas County’s Food Policy Council study the food-related needs of Indigenous residents — a first step that could lead to a special grocery store and learning center dedicated to Indigenous foods and culinary skills.

On Wednesday, the Douglas County Commission will vote on authorizing staff to accept the $50,000 Hunger Free Kansas Transformation Grant from the Kansas Health Foundation. The grant is intended to fund what the Food Policy Council calls an Indigenous Food System Study and Action Plan.

According to a memo in the County Commission’s meeting agenda, the yearlong study will involve gathering input on food policy from Native food leaders and entrepreneurs — “farmers, chefs, retailers, and elders.” The Food Policy Council plans to hire Indigenous experts to conduct surveys, interviews and focus groups about Native food systems that will guide food policy recommendations in Douglas County and for other food councils statewide.

Douglas County Food Systems Specialist Connie Fitzpatrick told the Journal-World in an email that if the grant is accepted, the team expects to begin work on the study and action plan this month. She added that the first steps will be establishing community engagement strategies and conducting initial consultations with stakeholders and community members.

The council also plans to work with Lee Meisel, owner of Leeway Butcher, and the Wakarusa Native Foodways, which is an educational program that aims to preserve and promote Indigenous food knowledge, Fitzpatrick said. Meisel will be developing educational programs that focus on Indigenous food products and knowledge.

The Food Policy Council has received some additional funding to get the project started. According to the memo in the agenda, Blue Cross Blue Shield is contributing $9,000 for community participant stipends, and Haskell Indian Nations University will provide $3,300 for paid internships throughout the project. The County Sustainability Office will allocate 5% of a full-time food system specialist’s time, amounting to $5,800, to oversee the project, along with $15,000 for data analysis, planning, and the launch of the study and action plan.

The study that the grant will fund is only Phase 1 of what the council hopes will be a much bigger Indigenous food project.

The second phase, which is not covered by the grant funding, would involve the creation of an Indigenous Foodways Cultural Center and Grocery pilot program. Fitzpatrick told the Journal-World that it would include a grocery store that would offer “locally sourced, culturally significant Indigenous foods,” and that it would also serve as a hub for knowledge about Indigenous food culture, offering workshops on Native foodways and “food sovereignty.”

Fitzpatrick said the goal was to eventually transfer the pilot project over to be run by community partner organizations.

“After the pilot phase, we plan to transition management of the project to our partners at Haskell Indian Nations University, USDA Extension and Leeway Enterprises to ensure long-term sustainability,” Fitzpatrick said.

The council originally requested grant funding for the cultural center pilot project as well, for a total of $250,000, but it has only been awarded the partial $50,000 amount to proceed with the study phase.

The grant acceptance is on the County Commission’s consent agenda for Wednesday, which is a group of items that can all be approved at once in a single motion.

In other business, commissioners will:

• Hear a presentation about proposed changes in the oversight of the county’s behavioral health crisis response system.

The presentation will focus on two proposed changes: reconfiguring a group called the Douglas County CIT (Crisis Intervention Team) Council to broaden its scope beyond just providing training; and creating a new oversight group called the Crisis Response Coalition.

Because the presentation is part of a work session, commissioners are not expected to take action on it on Wednesday.

• Consider establishing an Emergency Communications Center Board and approving bylaws for the board.

In February, the county entered into an agreement with the cities of Lawrence, Baldwin City and Eudora to operate and fund the county’s Emergency Communications Center. This followed a 10-month process to update an agreement from 1994, and stakeholders worked with the Public Policy and Management Center at Wichita State University to assess the county’s emergency communications processes.

One recommendation that came out of that assessment was to formalize the existing 911 Board into an Emergency Communications Center Board, creating a set of bylaws to clearly outline its function.

The proposed bylaws will also be reviewed by the City of Eudora, on Oct. 28; the City of Lawrence, on Nov. 5; and the Baldwin City Public Safety Committee, which has not yet set a date to review them.

• Consider approving the juvenile community corrections 2024 year-end report. Each year, Criminal Justice Services-Juvenile Community Corrections submits a report to the Kansas Department of Corrections. This report details the progress, challenges and any adjustments made to the agency’s goals throughout the annual grant cycle.

• Hold an executive session for the purpose of consulting with the county counselor “on matters which would be deemed privileged under the attorney-client relationship.”

The County Commission’s work session will begin at 4 p.m. Wednesday in the Douglas County Public Works training room at 3755 E. 25th St., and the business meeting will follow at 5:30 p.m. The meeting will also be available via Zoom.