{"683383":{"#nid":"683383","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Community Spotlight - Nicole Kennard","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ENicole Kennard\u2019s passion for sustainability and food justice took root as a Georgia Tech undergraduate in materials science and engineering. It then blossomed across the Atlantic in the U.K., where she studied sustainable food systems as a Fulbright Scholar and later as a doctoral student.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EToday, she\u2019s back at Georgia Tech as assistant director for Community-Engaged Research in the Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems (BBISS). Kennard supports faculty in building meaningful and co-creative research partnerships with local communities to address pressing sustainability and societal challenges.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI find food very interesting because it\u2019s interdisciplinary by necessity. Food is the great connector,\u201d says Kennard.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EShe calls her journey back to Georgia Tech \u201ca full-circle moment,\u201d particularly since, as an undergrad, she worked on a community-engaged sustainability project for the Center for Serve-Learn-Sustain, now the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/scre.research.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ECenter for Sustainable Communities Research and Education (SCoRE)\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhile a Tech student, Kennard served for three years as president of the student chapter of Engineers for a Sustainable World, which started her interest in urban agriculture. She recalled a day when a nonprofit contacted her with a strange donation offer: hydroponic equipment they had received from the set of \u003Cem\u003EThe Hunger Games\u003C\/em\u003E. Hydroponics is a method of growing plants without soil.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI googled it and thought, why not?\u201d recalls Kennard, who started a campus hydroponics project. \u201cWe were just a group of students across different disciplines who took over the greenhouse on top of the biology building that hadn\u2019t been used for a long time,\u201d she said. \u201cWe got good at experimenting \u2014 we were growing food for the Atlanta Community Food Bank.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe students\u2019 expertise led them to build systems for other nonprofits and classrooms in the Atlanta area. From there, Kennard met Atlantans working in food justice and sustainable agriculture. It sparked a thirst for furthering her education, and Kennard was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to pursue a master\u2019s in sustainable agriculture and food security at Newcastle University in the U.K. She stayed through the Covid pandemic, earning her Ph.D. in chemistry and biosciences from the University of Sheffield in 2023.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ENow, she\u2019s excited to be home and connecting faculty with community partners. She hopes to build co-creative research partnerships that are \u201cmeaningful, sustainable, and long-lasting.\u201d\u0026nbsp; Her vision is to make Tech\u2019s research more locally beneficial by working directly with surrounding communities.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cSustainability is so broad that I feel it can touch anyone. At Georgia Tech, we have so much expertise that is perfect for this field.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EKennard is also passionate about training and connecting graduate students doing community-engaged research. She recently received a seed grant to build a cross-university network with Georgia State University, Emory University, and Spelman College.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EKennard\u2019s research projects include mapping Atlanta\u0027s local food system and addressing challenges for local urban growers. She notes that accessing food can be an issue for many in Atlanta, complicated by financial and transportation barriers. At the same time, Atlanta is one of the leading U.S. cities in urban agriculture and has a rich agricultural history and food culture. The city has a wealth of urban farms, community gardens, and local nonprofits working together to increase access to fresh, healthy foods and build community through food.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAn outdoor enthusiast, the Acworth, Georgia, native enjoys hiking, camping, traveling, foraging, and gardening in her free time.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u2014 written by Anne Wainscott-Sargent\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"Homegrown Sustainability"}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ENicole Kennard\u2019s passion for sustainability and food justice took root as a Georgia Tech undergraduate in materials science and engineering. It then blossomed across the Atlantic in the U.K., where she studied sustainable food systems as a Fulbright Scholar and later as a doctoral student.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EToday, she\u2019s back at Georgia Tech as assistant director for Community-Engaged Research in the Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems (BBISS). Kennard supports faculty in building meaningful and co-creative research partnerships with local communities to address pressing sustainability and societal challenges.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Kennard supports faculty in building meaningful and co-creative research partnerships with local communities."}],"uid":"27338","created_gmt":"2025-07-30 15:18:35","changed_gmt":"2025-07-30 15:45:29","author":"Brent Verrill","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2025-07-30T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2025-07-30T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"677530":{"id":"677530","type":"image","title":"Nicole_Kennard_w_chick_cropped.jpg","body":"\u003Cp\u003ENicole Kennard holds a young chicken.\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1753888728","gmt_created":"2025-07-30 15:18:48","changed":"1753888728","gmt_changed":"2025-07-30 15:18:48","alt":"Nicole Kennard holds a young chicken.","file":{"fid":"261438","name":"Nicole_Kennard_w_chick_cropped.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/07\/30\/Nicole_Kennard_w_chick_cropped.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/07\/30\/Nicole_Kennard_w_chick_cropped.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1041985,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2025\/07\/30\/Nicole_Kennard_w_chick_cropped.jpg?itok=P_wAN4jP"}}},"media_ids":["677530"],"groups":[{"id":"244191","name":"Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems"}],"categories":[{"id":"154","name":"Environment"},{"id":"132","name":"Institute Leadership"}],"keywords":[{"id":"188360","name":"go-bbiss"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"194566","name":"Sustainable Systems"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:brent.verrill@research.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EBrent Verrill\u003C\/a\u003E, Research Communications Program Manager, BBISS\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["brent.verrill@research.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}