Building On Our Momentum in 2024
Greetings Partners and Allies,
Over the past year, great strides have been made in building resilient and inclusive food systems, nourishing our children and communities, reshaping the financial system, and advancing community-led economic development that prioritizes equity and sustainability. We could not have been a part of such meaningful impact without our beloved community of partners and allies.
We believe that society has the power to drive systems change when individuals, communities, and organizations come together with a shared purpose. By raising awareness, championing policy shifts, and supporting innovative solutions, we can transform antiquated and inequitable systems to ones that better serve the common good. Collective action, rooted in collaboration and inclusivity, sparks lasting change, one intentional step at a time.
When we align our values with our actions, we create a future that reflects the needs and aspirations of all, ensuring that progress is sustainable and equitable for everyone.
Read more about our collaborative efforts in 2024
below…
Celebrating Prop 2 and 4 Victories!
California will benefit from two landmark victories in 2024 — the success of Prop 2 and Prop 4. These bonds will make historic investments to protect our kids, modernize schools, enhance access to clean water and increase fire prevention practices to support California’s rural economy and environment. Prop 4 marks the first time in the state’s history that a bond will directly invest in California farmers and ranchers to fund climate-smart and sustainable agriculture practices. Additionally, the bond emphasizes equity by earmarking at least 40 percent of the funds for projects that benefit under-resourced communities.
Our campaign trail was packed with activities designed to keep communities informed. Through direct mail, radio, TV, and digital ads, we educated communities across the Central Valley about important community issues. Special thanks to renowned American civil rights activist Dolores Huerta and the Dolores Huerta Foundation, Central Valley Community Foundation CEO Ashley Swearengin, and Latino Community Foundation CEO Julian Castro for their ongoing leadership and lending their voices to amplify these issues in The Fresno Bee, La Opinion, and Calo News.
Meals that Matter: Nourishing California’s Children
Kat Taylor and Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel at lunch with culinary students at the Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies.
California continues to lead the nation in universal school meal access, with the School Meals for All program; showing remarkable success in its second year. In the first two years of SMFA implementation, students participation increased by nearly 8%, providing 64 million more meals to our children. This program has been particularly impactful for families who previously fell through the cracks – 44% of food-insecure California families didn’t qualify for federal assistance before this initiative.
Working alongside the School Meals For All Coalition, which consists of more than 208+ organizations representing education, health, agriculture, labor, environment, and philanthropy, we’re building capacity and deepening the movement statewide to nourish every child. This work was highlighted during a May visit to Sotomayor Academies in Los Angeles, where Kat joined First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to witness firsthand the positive impact of California’s universal meals program and the Farm to School initiative. In December, Kat joined Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel on a visit to Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies in the Los Angeles Unified School District to hear from students, teachers, and school nutrition team members about how fresh, locally-sourced meals positively impact learning and the campus environment.
Growing Together: APC Takes Root in the Central Valley
In 2024, we made major advancements towards developing the Agricultural Platform Collective (APC) as a sustainable, community-driven initiative in California’s San Joaquin Central Valley. Our commitment to authentic partnership building led to meaningful engagement with 60 small-scale family farmers and ranchers (predominantly from Hmong, Latino and African American communities), helping us better understand and respond to their unique needs.
A key success has been our locally-rooted team building approach – recruiting from within the communities we serve, ensuring our work truly reflects and responds to local agricultural priorities. As we look toward 2025, we’re excited to explore programs that create direct pipelines between small-scale producers and institutional markets, with a particular focus on school food procurement. This initiative is holistically committed to strengthening our local food systems, our farming communities, and the people who steward this land.
Technology. Finance. Access!
From left to right: Kat Taylor, Seanicaa Edwards Herron, Sarah Ortner, Kaitlin Archambault, and José Corona.
This year, Kat had the pleasure of convening representatives from the Milken Institute, the Open Future Coalition, the Agricultural Platform Collective, and the Freedmen Heirs Foundation
at the Sun Valley Forum to discuss the role that digital technology platforms play in transforming our food systems, catalyzing communities, and sparking climate action.
These discussions showcased practical strategies for unlocking capital and supporting community-led development. Visit this
link to view the discussion, and learn more about how community partners are driving transformative investments in our food systems to ensure environmental well-being and the resilience of our local economies.
SOCAP 2024: Innovative Finance for Family Farmers and Ranchers
Kat Taylor and USDA FSA Administrator, Zach Ducheneaux
2024 was a year of cultivating common causes with asset allocators, financial institutions, and philanthropic representatives to provide small-business farmers and ranchers with the financial products that they need. At the 2024 SOCAP conference, we hosted an illuminating discussion with USDA Farm Service Agency Administrator Zach Ducheneaux, about the power of restructuring financial products to encourage innovation, long-term investment, and resilience for small producers. Administrator Ducheneaux has worked tirelessly to rectify America’s agricultural crises through finance.
Many don’t yet understand these issues or recognize how extractive financial practices are acutely harming the agricultural economy and soil health. Heading into 2025, we aim to promote and expand financial models that support farmers’ needs and secure a regenerative farming system, rather than prioritize profit at their expense.
Quality Beef for California’s Institutions
From left to right: Cliff Pollard, Kathy Webster, Marilyn Biscotti, and Patrick Huber at the Regional Regenerative Meat Summit
In 2024, the Beef2Institution initiative made significant progress in providing locally sourced, regenerative, grass-fed beef to schools and hospitals across California. Launched in 2018 by TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation, along with the Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF), and Healthcare Without Harm, the program focuses on advancing climate goals and sourcing local beef for students and patients. Today, it serves over 30 schools and 6 hospitals, including UC Davis Medical Center, UC San Diego Health, the Vacaville Unified School District, and the Santa Clara Unified School District.
This year, new partnerships with Cream Co., Roots of Change, Sonoma County Meat Company,Wolfe’s Neck, and other regenerative ranches have helped grow the initiative. The program is also working with the University of California system to supply local, regenerative beef and other proteins to its 10 campuses and 5 hospitals. Collaborations with culinary leaders like UC Davis Executive Chef Santana Diaz are creating new opportunities for expansion to ensure nutrient-rich meat gets to more schools and hospitals.
Beneficial State Bank’s 2023 Impact: $1.3 Billion in Loans Driving Positive Change for People and the Planet
Beneficial State Bank was built on the belief that financial services should serve the community, protect the planet, and foster economic justice. Its mission is to provide accessible banking that fuels sustainable growth while avoiding extractive industries like fossil fuels.
In its 2023 Impact Report, the bank highlights the impact of this approach, issuing a record $1.3 billion in loans. The bank directed over $219 million to affordable housing, $106 million to residential solar projects, and $89 million to small businesses while maintaining its commitment to never funding harmful industries. With the support of 18,500+ depositors, the bank continues to turn deposits into lasting, positive change in communities and for the environment – proving that banking can be a powerful force for good.
Celebrating Progress Toward Equitable Banking in 2024
A moment from Beneficial State Foundation’s first-ever “Pause Week” in September, reflecting our commitment to rest, resilience, and readiness for the year ahead.
In 2024, Beneficial State Foundation (BSF) continued to lead the industry in making banking more equitable for all. Beneficial State Foundation drove industry transformation by focusing on advancing race-conscious underwriting practices, advocating for crucial updates to the Community Reinvestment Act, and guiding discussions on ethical AI in banking.
Beneficial State Foundation amplifies impact in three main bodies of work (Industry Relations, Underwriting for Racial Justice, and Equitable Bank Standards) with robust research and strategic communications. Read BSF’s end-of-year blog post to explore the five moves we’re celebrating most in our movement, and see how we’re helping shape a financial system that serves all communities.
Cheaper Faster Better: Winning the Climate War
In 2024, Kat’s husband Tom Steyer, released his first book, “ Cheaper Faster Better: Winning the Climate War.” In his book, Tom makes a compelling case for immediate action on climate change, not just as a moral imperative but as a smart investment in the future of our economy. Read Kat’s full review here.
TomKat MeDiA News
TomKat MeDiA’s story and impact development continues on a slate of several independent films. Highlights include Return to Quincy, a journalism series published by the Yakima Herald-Republic in collaboration with development of our narrative feature film FATEFUL HARVEST.
In 2024, TomKat MeDiA also activated a key element of an impact campaign for VALLEY OF THE HEART, a film about holding on to love and hope in the period of the WWII incarceration of Japanese American citizens, based on the play by Luis Valdez. TomKat MeDiA is developing the film with Luis Valdez and Edward James Olmos. With support from the California State Library, TomKat MeDiA and the groundbreaking Chicano theater organization, El Teatro Campesino are creating a new public school curriculum about the incarceration of Japanese and Japanese Americans during WWII.
Here’s to another year of resilience, progress, and shared victories. We look forward to deepening our collaboration with you in 2025 through our policy priorities, programs, and initiatives that achieve prosperity for all. Thank you for your partnership!
In community,
Kat Taylor