Systems change expert guiding and implementing strategies

with organizations navigating the complexities of global food systems… so that they identify impact opportunities, design effective programs, and track and share their impact internally and externally.

FIND OUT HOW

The Challenge
with Food Systems

Moving towards a multidimensional approach can be overwhelming.

Teams working towards driving change in the food systems hold a depth of knowledge in one area but feel stuck about how to evolve their work into a systems approach.

Food is very personal.

Teams are eager to engage stakeholders to inform their interventions, recognizing that diversity of experience is critical to their program success, but meaningful community engagement can be hard to navigate.

The food landscape can feel divisive.

Teams are interested in learning more about potential opportunities to design programs that will move the needle but find themselves in a divisive ecosystem, unaware of the challenge or how to navigate it. 

Food challenges are often urgent.

Teams dealing with time-sensitive challenges, such as student hunger and homelessness, focus on program delivery. This limits their capacity to plan and implement a long-term strategy designed to track outcomes and make decisions proactively. 

THE PAIN POINTS

When thinking about the future of food systems, changemakers recognize that a systems approach is required to build equitable, regenerative, and nourishing systems but are unsure where to start.

The Challenge
with Food Systems

When thinking about the future of food systems, changemakers recognize that a systems approach is required to build equitable, regenerative, and nourishing systems but are unsure where to start.

THE PAIN POINTS

Moving towards a multidimensional approach can be overwhelming.

Teams working towards driving change in the food systems hold a depth of knowledge in one area but feel stuck about how to evolve their work into a systems approach.

Food is very personal.

Teams are eager to engage stakeholders to inform their interventions, recognizing that diversity of experience is critical to their program success, but meaningful community engagement can be hard to navigate.

The food landscape can feel divisive.

Teams are interested in learning more about potential opportunities to design programs that will move the needle but find themselves in a divisive ecosystem, unaware of the challenge or how to navigate it. 

Food challenges are often urgent.

Teams dealing with time-sensitive challenges, such as student hunger and homelessness, focus on program delivery. This limits their capacity to plan and implement a long-term strategy designed to track outcomes and make decisions proactively. 

Collaboration Offerings

Strategic Advisory

Uncover strategic priorities, foster collaboration, and identify high-impact opportunities within the food system you seek to influence.

Strategic advisory support to uncover critical challenges, navigate decision-making, and identify avenues for driving change within the food systems context.

Program Design

Design better food system programs through collaborative processes that bring diverse perspectives and drive social and environmental impact.

Bolster your program design with systems mapping, engagement of subject matter experts, and a set of assessment tools to maximize the potential for change.

Program Delivery

Drive systems transformation through custom resources designed to boost team collaboration, build capacity for navigating complexity, and foster a culture of continuous learning.

Deliver your program with comprehensive support, including facilitation of convenings, tailored resource development, and processes that promote ongoing learning and adaptation.

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I collaborate with teams by offering

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Strategic Advisory

Uncover strategic priorities, foster collaboration, and identify high-impact opportunities within the food system you seek to influence.

Strategic advisory support to uncover critical challenges, navigate decision-making, and identify avenues for driving change within the food systems context.

—

Program Design

Design better food system programs through collaborative processes that bring diverse perspectives and drive social and environmental impact.

Bolster your program design with systems mapping, engagement of subject matter experts, and a set of assessment tools to maximize the potential for change.

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Program Execution

Drive systems transformation through custom resources designed to boost team collaboration, build capacity for navigating complexity, and foster a culture of continuous learning.

Deliver your program with comprehensive support, including facilitation of convenings, tailored resource development, and processes that promote ongoing learning and adaptation.

Expertise & Focus Areas

Areas of Expertise

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Systems Thinking & Systems Mapping

Program Design & Impact Strategy

Food & Agricultural Systems

Basic Needs Challenges in Higher Education

Industry Focus

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Foundations

Universities

Hi! I’m Maria

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As a system practice expert, I work closely with organizations to navigate food systems, foster collaboration, and identify impactful opportunities. I advise teams in their process of co-designing and executing their food systems strategy… so that they identify where they are best positioned to make the most impact, design effective programs, and are better able to track and share their impact internally and externally.

Want to see some examples of my work?

Past collaborations

  • “Maria is an absolute pleasure to collaborate with. She worked with the Food System 6 team to map the US food system - supporting us with a holistic approach to measuring the complexity of systems impact in food and agriculture. Along every step of the way, she showed up as hardworking, caring, responsive, flexible, and attentive to detail - she exudes a rare blend of humility and brilliance.”

    Caesare Assad, former CEO, Food System 6

  • “Maria is professional, personable, and two steps ahead. She is a rare blend of being a content expert mixed with a strategic thinker and gets things done with grace and joyful collaboration. Maria’s greatest value is her blend of seeing the big picture, informed by content expertise, contextual knowledge, and clarity on the optimal outcomes with the ability to get there through action.”

    Kristin Coates, Global Head of Food and Nature-Based Solutions, SecondMuse

  • “It has been an honor working with Maria, I am always amazed by her enthusiasm, brilliance, talent, and the contributions she brings to our conversations & our team. She has made invaluable contributions to the Plant Futures curriculum and the design of our course, and I am always impressed by her depth of knowledge around systems thinking and vision for a better future and food system!”

    Samantha Derrick, Founder & Executive Director, Plant Futures Initiative

  • “I am particularly supported by Maria’s impeccable program management capabilities whilst being able to connect on the level of the community, the system, and the impact. In my opinion, someone that can hold both of these spaces is incredibly rare and a treasured gift to any project or organization wanting to create empathic, systems-aware, equity-centred sustainable change, which everyone feels excited to be a part of.”

    Melina Chan, Sr. Global Program Specialist, SecondMuse

  • “Maria is an absolute pleasure to collaborate with. She worked with the Food System 6 team to map the US food system - supporting us with a holistic approach to measuring the complexity of systems impact in food and agriculture. Along every step of the way, she showed up as hardworking, caring, responsive, flexible, and attentive to detail - she exudes a rare blend of humility and brilliance.”

    Caesare Assad, former CEO, Food System 6

  • “Maria is professional, personable, and two steps ahead. She is a rare blend of being a content expert mixed with a strategic thinker and gets things done with grace and joyful collaboration. Maria’s greatest value is her blend of seeing the big picture, informed by content expertise, contextual knowledge, and clarity on the optimal outcomes with the ability to get there through action.”

    Kristin Coates, Global Head of Food and Nature-Based Solutions, SecondMuse

  • “It has been an honor working with Maria, I am always amazed by her enthusiasm, brilliance, talent, and the contributions she brings to our conversations & our team. She has made invaluable contributions to the Plant Futures curriculum and the design of our course, and I am always impressed by her depth of knowledge around systems thinking and vision for a better future and food system”

    Samantha Derrick, Founder & Executive Director, Plant Futures Initiative

  • “I am particularly supported by Maria’s impeccable program management capabilities whilst being able to connect on the level of the community, the system, and the impact. In my opinion, someone that can hold both of these spaces is incredibly rare and a treasured gift to any project or organization wanting to create empathic, systems-aware, equity-centred sustainable change, which everyone feels excited to be a part of.”

    Melina Chan, Sr. Global Program Specialist, SecondMuse

Nourishing and regenerative food systems are key to tackling the human and planetary health challenges we are facing today. The time to connect the dots and drive food systems transformation is now. I’m an expert who helps guide impact-driven teams dedicated to building inclusive, sustainable, and resilient food systems.

Maria Balcazar Tellez, Systems Change Specialist