Job Profile

What does your job involve and what might a typical day involve?

My job involves working on WEN’s Local Food Project which currently has three strands:

• Empowering women’s food growing groups in Tower Hamlets.
• Co-ordinating a national network of urban women’s food growing groups.
• Influencing national policy on food issues.
  
  Today I’m preparing for a presentation on our work at an event on Food and Multi-ethnic Londoners. I will also liaise with the press for an article they want to do on eco-lifesyles, I hope to complete an evaluation report on a Culture Kitchen event we had in Bradford last month. I will also be sending in a response to DEFRA on their GM consultation. My general duties involve keeping the database up to date, publicity work, fundraising and writing copy for the local food pages of the website.
  
  What qualifications and experience did you have before starting the job?
  
  I had quite a few years experience in volunteering at a women’s centre and working with homeless women. I had experience of volunteering as a publicity coordinator for a development education charity called RISC. I also set up and coordinated a local WEN group in Reading and I temporarily managed a hostel for homeless women. I had volunteered on organic smallholdings in Ireland.
  
  What are the best and worst bits of your job?
  
  I think the best bits are the actual grass roots community development work where I get to meet women and help them set up and maintain their urban garden projects. Our Culture Kitchen events where the groups get to meet each other, share skills and celebrate their achievements are also great fun and we always have delicious food.
  
  The worst bit is the ever-present uncertainty over funding and putting a great deal of effort into funding applications many of which get rejected.
  
  What satisfaction do you get from your work and how does it make a difference?
  
  It gives me a great deal of satisfaction to enable disadvantaged women and their families to gain the skills and opportunities to grow fresh healthy food in the most unlikely urban spaces while at the same time bolstering their communities.
  
  Do you have any tips for someone looking for a career in this area?
  
  Get as much experience as you can in the voluntary sector, use your initiative and be flexible. If you want to work for WEN you should do your research. You could become a member, join a local group or set up a local group, keep an eye on our website for volunteering and employment opportunities.
  
  More about the Women’s Environmental Network