Meet Naomi Maisel, the President and Founder of the Campus Kitchen at Emory University! Aside from her work with the Campus Kitchen, Naomi is the Director of Committees for Volunteer Emory, the Sustainability and Campus Life Beat Writer for the Emory Wheel, an 1836 Dinner Host, a student member of Emory’s Sustainable Food Committee, and an Orientation Leader for the past two years.
Her Campus Emory (HCE): How did you get involved with Campus Kitchen at Emory?
Naomi Maisel (NM): My freshman year I noticed all of the food being thrown out next to the conveyer belt at the DUC. That image combined with my experiences working at the Atlanta Community Food Bank and local food pantries with Volunteer Emory began my quest to start a food recovery program at Emory. I began asking around and met Dave Furhman, the recently hired senior director of dining. He had worked with The Campus Kitchens Project at John’s Hopkins and introduced me to the program. The rest is history.
HCE: What is the mission of the club?
NM: The Campus Kitchen at Emory has multiple missions. Primarily we serve three main purposes: reducing waste, combating hunger, and providing more nutritious options than what is usually available in food pantries and soup kitchens. Our mission would be to reduce food waste at Emory by 100%. That being said, I also hope to educate Emory about the issues regarding food insecurity and hope that individuals will begin to think twice before throwing food away or taking more than they can eat.
HCE: What sparked your passion and interest in sustainable food and reducing waste?
NM: As I mentioned above, the work I did with volunteer emory introduced me to the seriousness of hunger, homelessness and food insecurity. It was hard for me to reconcile how we could have so much abundance at Emory while so much scarcity is only a few minutes away. To me, hunger and food insecurity are avoidable issues. We have enough food to feed everyone and we have the know-how to produce food more sustainably. It is my belief that access to adequate and healthy food is a human right and therefore a social justice issue against which we must fight.
HCE: Are there any upcoming events?
NM: We just opened our application for membership and are soon opening our executive board application, open to all Emory undergraduate and graduate students. We are also in the process of planning educational events that will be posted on our Facebook page.
HCE: What is one of the Campus Kitchen Emory’s greatest accomplishments?
NM: I would say that besides for serving hundreds of servings of repurposed food in our first month, one of our greatest accomplishments is the affect we have had on students, staff and faculty. Countless people have come up to me telling me that because of our efforts and advocacy they feel guilty throwing out food and have become more aware of their waste.
HCE: What are some of the challenges in leading this club?
NM: As we recently launched the Emory chapter, my team and I have been working tirelessly to make sure everything runs smoothly and to flatten out any bumps int he road that have been exposed. Specifically, it is difficult to lead this kind of group because everything is time-sensitive. Because we are all serv-safe certified and temp our food all of the time to make sure it is safe, we cannot be late on any shifts and must ensure that all food is properly packaged and stored to avoid contamination. It makes one realize how much goes into food service and I have gained a new respect for those in this profession.
HCE: How can students get involved on campus?
NM: Students can apply to be a member of Campus Kitchens. This would entail becoming a part of a “shift committee” on a semester commitment, meaning they would run the same shift each week with a group of students. Students can also choose to volunteer with us if they cannot make a weekly commitment. Both of these links are located on our Facebook page which can be found at: