Post-doc in well-being benefits of local food purchasing
We seek applicants for a 2-year post-doctoral associate position to work with a multi-disciplinary team of scientists to develop metrics to capture the well-being benefits of local food purchasing. The project is funded by the University of Vermont’s Food Systems Research Institute as part of their broader effort to develop metrics of food system sustainability. This position can be extended to a third-year conditional on performance. The ideal candidate will have strong skills in quantitative social science, collaboration, and communication.
Project summary
Researchers, policy makers, and public health advocates are increasingly interested in local food systems as mechanisms to improve public health. However, little is known about how “buying local” impacts health, especially in ways beyond improving access to nutritious foods. The proposed project develops a set of validated metrics to capture the health benefits of local food purchasing, especially potential well-being benefits (e.g., life satisfaction, positive emotions, joy associated with local food purchasing, sense of purpose, the ability to live in accordance with personal values). Our transdisciplinary research team will accomplish this through three phases of work. First, a systematic literature review and secondary data analysis will identify existing indicators and evidence of association between local food purchasing, non-material well-being, food security, and diet. These results will be used to develop a curated set of health and well-being indicators relevant to local food purchasing. Second, a hypothetical scenario experiment and regional survey will test for causal relationships and evaluate and validate identified indicators at a population-level. Finally, we will utilize a multi-pronged dissemination strategy to share the research findings and resultant indicators with the academic community, community stakeholders, and media. By identifying appropriate metrics to assess health and well-being relative to local food purchasing, this project will support the FSRI’s goal to develop a replicable set of methods for investigating the human/health dimension of regional food system sustainability.
