 | Pictured at the dedication ceremony are (from left) Leslie Rudd, whose gift made the center possible, with his wife, Susan, and daughter, Samantha; center director Kelly Brownell; and President Richard C. Levin. |
Saying the new Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity at Yale University is poised to "change the world," supporters, researchers and the principal funder of the new center officially dedicated the center's building at 309 Edwards St. on Oct. 26.
"The time is right for the ideas we are sharing," said Leslie Rudd, entrepreneur and co-founder and benefactor of the center. Since 2000, the Rudd Foundation has supported work on food policy, obesity and weight stigma. The Yale center represents a significant expansion and extension of that work. "I think it is time this is openly addressed," he said.
The mission of the Rudd Center is to improve the world's nutrition through innovative connections between science and public policy. This will be made possible by targeted research, new and honest dialogue between relevant parties, and a shared commitment to healthy eating and the prevention of obesity, especially in children, according to Kelly Brownell, director of the center and chair of the Department of Psychology.
"The center's work will by necessity involve both domestic and global initiatives," said Brownell, who was recently named to the Institute of Medicine (see story, page 1). "Diets and their determinants in the United States are inextricably linked to those in other countries through international trade policies, global media influences, agriculture subsidies, and a number of other social, economic and political mechanisms."
Brownell said a key objective is to leverage the center's resources by developing creative, collaborative relationships with institutions and individuals with expertise in the many areas relevant to food policy and obesity. He said these include, but are not limited to, economics, law, politics, medicine, public health, public policy, communications and community organizing.
The key components of the mission statement, he said, are innovation, leveraging talent and resources, and impact. "We really do wish to make a difference," Brownell said at the ribbon cutting in front of the building. He noted the center already has had an effect on policy with its weight bias studies, a media summit held in New York City recently and its effort to remove soft drinks from public schools.
"Action is taking place all around the world," Brownell said. "I'm delighted we're off together working on a common mission."
President Richard C. Levin said Rudd was clearly a risk-taker and innovator and was gratified that Rudd chose to join forces with Brownell and other researchers at the center. "The center is an especially good fit for Yale because it gives us a chance to practice what we preach," Levin said about the center's goal of taking the research into the arena of public policy.
In addition to Brownell, the core faculty and administration include Derek Yach, associate director of global policy and head of the Global Health Division at the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health; Dr. David Katz, associate director of nutrition science and associate professor of public health at the School of Medicine; Marlene Schwartz, associate director for research and co-director of the Yale Center for Eating and Weight Disorders; Rebecca Puhl, coordinator of community and weight stigma initiatives; and Stacy Ruwe, executive director of the center.
-- By Jacqueline Weaver
T H I S
University dedicates new Rudd Center
for Food Policy & Obesity
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