Catie DeMets joined us from Lawrence University. She came as a junior studying
Geology with a minor in Environmental Studies. Her summer at CMMAP was spent
working with the Fort Collins ClimateWise program looking at barriers that
businesses have in locally sourcing their food. Her advisor was Professor
Michele Betsil.
The goal of Catie's work was to provide restaurants and other businesses with a
list of specific solutions to successfully overcome barriers to local food
sourcing. She interviewed resturant owners or managers and a food distribution
company and then made a comparison with literature to identify similarities
and differences between restaurants in Fort Collins, CO and other areas.
Catie found that allthough there appears to be a lack of personal incentive in
some cases, certain barriers and solutions to them indicate a level of success
towards local food sourcing, especially in Fort Collins.
Future work includes talking to farmers, engaging schools in discussion of local
sourcing, educating the community on the benefits and researching ways to
engate other businesses in local sourcing such as employee farm volunteer days.
Catie's summer research poster,
"Closing the Loop": Overcoming Barriers to Locally Sourcing Food in Fort
Collins, Colorado, is here.
Catie is from Verona, WI. She is interested in climate policy, land policy and
water. In her spare time, she enjoys running, backpacking, hiking, biking and
playing the trumpet.
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