Report: The Prevalence & Adverse Effects of Food Insecurity Faced by Students at Ryerson University

For Dr. Michael Lapointe's CMN 313 Organizational Report Writing course at Ryerson University, I focused my primary and secondary research on tackling the issue of food insecurity for post-secondary students, notably conducting interviews with students from Ryerson's Good Food Centre.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF MY RESEARCH REPORT:

The problem is many low-income post-secondary students have inadequate access to fresh produce and experience food insecurity. There is a lack of awareness and accessibility to connect these students with equity resources on campus.

This report will propose multiple feasible recommendations towards solving the problem of food insecurity amongst post-secondary students at Ryerson University. The purpose is to inform the primary audience of low-income post-secondary students about resources available to them and the importance of healthy eating. It will investigate inadequate access to affordable fruits and vegetables, students’ lack of knowledge regarding nutrition and cooking, and the academic, mental and physical consequences of food insecurity.

The report will discuss on-campus support programs to educate underprivileged students on nutrition and meal preparation using cost-efficient ingredients, as well locations at Ryerson to access food equity services. The report will utilize both primary and secondary research methodologies to support the proposed recommendations. To respect the privacy of the interviewees, this report will refer to the three interview subjects as Anna, Bill, and Cameron to keep their true identities anonymous.

The first solution explored is starting a diverse student-run committee focusing on awareness and accessibility for students experiencing food insecurity on campus.

The second solution proposes expanding Good Food Centre to host and promote free collaborative nutrition and cooking events, equipping students with the skills to eat healthily on a budget.

The final solution suggests obtaining more produce from Ryerson Urban Farm to increase the Good Food Centre’s inventory.

The primary recommendation is implementing solution one, because the committee would address issues surrounding the root causes of food insecurity, therefore creating a sustainable solution. The secondary solution in the recommendation section is solution two, to expand Good Food Centre. The reasoning is because this solution is sustainable, since it provides students with long-term cooking and nutrition skills using low-budget recipes they can recreate at home.

Access the full final report here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gK7srAkTEg-8UjCa2cKh6klL7wLvkkAS/view?usp=sharing