Meet the Team & Youth Ambassadors

Vanessa García Polanco

Youth Ambassador

Country: Dominican Rep./USA

Interests: Food justice, food and agricultural policy

Vanessa García Polanco works with food, agriculture, climate, and sustainability stakeholders to create and strengthen sustainable and just food systems and communities with research, policy, and programmatic interventions. She advocates for sustainable agriculture policies and racial equity in agriculture for young, BIPOC, small and diverse growers as the National Young Farmers Coalition Federal Policy Director. She supports international engagement and action towards sustainable food systems and climate action as the UNMGCY Food Systems and Agriculture North America Regional Youth Focal Point, and as a climate and agriculture advisor for Real Food Systems. She is an alumna of Michigan State University College of Agriculture and Natural Resources University of Rhode Island College of Life and Environmental Sciences. She is a James Beard Foundation Scholar and a UN Food Systems Summit Champion.