0:00:00.888,0:00:03.214
In June of 2017,

0:00:03.238,0:00:06.837
I volunteered with a group[br]at a local food pantry

0:00:06.861,0:00:09.486
on the south side of my home city

0:00:09.510,0:00:10.949
in Atlanta, Georgia.

0:00:11.394,0:00:12.933
It was a Friday afternoon,

0:00:12.957,0:00:15.185
the day of their weekly food giveaway.

0:00:15.209,0:00:16.368
And as I drove up,

0:00:16.392,0:00:18.366
I saw people beginning to arrive,

0:00:18.390,0:00:20.312
many with their rolling carts in tow,

0:00:20.336,0:00:23.094
prepared to receive[br]their food supply for the week.

0:00:23.118,0:00:26.134
As I was walking in the door,[br]there were about 40 people outside

0:00:26.158,0:00:27.347
waiting in line.

0:00:27.371,0:00:28.821
And I was so excited,

0:00:28.845,0:00:32.219
because there are very few things[br]I enjoy more than giving back.

0:00:32.538,0:00:36.805
But then, as I entered the room where[br]the volunteer meeting was taking place,

0:00:36.829,0:00:38.501
I immediately realized:

0:00:38.525,0:00:41.014
we weren't about to give[br]these people any real meals.

0:00:41.038,0:00:43.284
We were essentially just giving them food.

0:00:43.634,0:00:46.438
I took my place on the assembly line,[br]where -- get this --

0:00:46.462,0:00:49.589
I was in charge of making sure[br]that the Weight Watchers Ding Dongs

0:00:49.613,0:00:51.640
made it into every family's bag.

0:00:52.202,0:00:54.484
As the bags started to come around,

0:00:54.508,0:00:56.054
I'm thinking to myself:

0:00:56.078,0:00:57.718
What on earth are we doing here?

0:00:58.234,0:01:01.899
Each bag contained[br]two 20-ounce diet Snapples,

0:01:01.923,0:01:04.212
a gallon of barbecue sauce,

0:01:04.236,0:01:06.730
a bag of kettle potato chips,

0:01:06.754,0:01:11.339
a box of superhero-shaped[br]vegetable-enriched macaroni noodles,

0:01:11.363,0:01:14.058
a box of belVita breakfast bars,

0:01:14.082,0:01:16.092
a can of refried beans,

0:01:16.116,0:01:17.857
a can of sweet peas,

0:01:17.881,0:01:19.732
a miniature can of corn,

0:01:19.756,0:01:21.814
I can't forget about those Ding Dongs

0:01:21.838,0:01:23.552
and french fried green onions,

0:01:23.576,0:01:26.613
you know, the kind that go[br]on top of a green bean casserole.

0:01:26.637,0:01:27.838
And that was it.

0:01:28.303,0:01:30.953
We made over a hundred[br]of those bags that day,

0:01:30.977,0:01:33.579
and people indeed[br]stood in line to receive one.

0:01:33.971,0:01:35.802
But a feeling came over me;

0:01:35.826,0:01:38.363
I felt bad and a little angry.

0:01:38.387,0:01:41.751
It was like, how could I even feel good[br]about the work that I was doing

0:01:41.775,0:01:44.279
when I knew for a fact[br]that not one meal was to come

0:01:44.303,0:01:47.456
from the food we had just given[br]to over 100 families?

0:01:47.480,0:01:50.792
I mean, who wants to have[br]a meal with barbecue sauce and Ding Dongs?

0:01:50.816,0:01:51.843
(Laughter)

0:01:51.867,0:01:53.346
And the reality is,

0:01:53.370,0:01:55.781
I've been part[br]of this process all my life.

0:01:55.805,0:01:57.788
I've participated in food drives,

0:01:57.812,0:02:00.078
I've collected cans since I was a kid,

0:02:00.102,0:02:03.207
I've donated in the grocery store[br]more times than I can count,

0:02:03.231,0:02:06.482
I've volunteered at shelters,[br]I've worked in food pantries,

0:02:06.506,0:02:09.035
and I'm sure, like me,[br]so many of you have, too.

0:02:09.444,0:02:13.252
In 2013, I even created[br]a pop-up restaurant,

0:02:13.276,0:02:14.696
called Sunday Soul.

0:02:14.720,0:02:16.979
And I rented tables and chairs and linens

0:02:17.003,0:02:18.517
and I printed out menus

0:02:18.541,0:02:21.042
and I took these experiences to alleyways,

0:02:21.066,0:02:23.137
underneath bridges and in parks

0:02:23.161,0:02:25.893
to allow people that were[br]experiencing homelessness

0:02:25.917,0:02:27.373
to dine with dignity.

0:02:27.848,0:02:30.595
So I've invested in this fight[br]for quite some time.

0:02:31.360,0:02:33.875
In almost every major US city,

0:02:33.899,0:02:37.693
the food bank is viewed[br]as a beloved community institution.

0:02:37.717,0:02:41.457
Corporations send volunteers down[br]on a weekly basis

0:02:41.481,0:02:44.892
to sort through food items[br]and make boxes of food for the needy.

0:02:45.298,0:02:46.471
And can drives --

0:02:46.495,0:02:50.273
they warm the hearts of schools[br]and office buildings that participate

0:02:50.297,0:02:54.134
and fill the shelves of food banks[br]and food pantries across the nation.

0:02:54.158,0:02:55.988
This is how we work to end hunger.

0:02:56.542,0:02:58.267
And what I've come to realize

0:02:58.291,0:02:59.969
is that we are doing hunger wrong.

0:03:00.385,0:03:02.085
We are doing the same things

0:03:02.109,0:03:05.148
over and over and over again

0:03:05.172,0:03:07.210
and expecting a different end result.

0:03:07.545,0:03:09.179
We've created a cycle

0:03:09.203,0:03:13.313
that keeps people dependent on food banks[br]and pantries on a monthly basis

0:03:13.337,0:03:15.559
for food that is often not well-balanced

0:03:15.583,0:03:18.343
and certainly doesn't provide them[br]with a healthy meal.

0:03:18.848,0:03:21.277
In the US, our approach to doing good,

0:03:21.301,0:03:22.991
or what we call "charity,"

0:03:23.015,0:03:25.806
has actually hindered us[br]from making real progress.

0:03:25.830,0:03:29.362
We're educating the world[br]on how many people are food insecure.

0:03:29.386,0:03:31.172
There are television commercials,

0:03:31.196,0:03:32.362
billboards,

0:03:32.386,0:03:33.669
massive donations,

0:03:33.693,0:03:36.719
the engagement of some[br]of our biggest celebrities in the fight.

0:03:36.743,0:03:39.018
But the ever-present reality is that,

0:03:39.042,0:03:40.659
even with all of this work,

0:03:40.683,0:03:42.881
millions of people are still going hungry.

0:03:42.905,0:03:44.226
And we can do better.

0:03:44.623,0:03:47.653
Globally, 821 million people are hungry.

0:03:48.086,0:03:50.503
That's one in nine people on this planet.

0:03:51.120,0:03:52.569
And here in the United States,

0:03:52.593,0:03:55.927
nearly 40 million people[br]experience hunger every single year,

0:03:55.951,0:03:58.439
including more than 11 million children

0:03:58.463,0:04:00.472
that go to bed hungry every night.

0:04:00.960,0:04:03.604
Yet, we're wasting more food[br]than ever before --

0:04:03.628,0:04:05.565
more than 80 billion pounds a year,

0:04:05.589,0:04:06.921
to be exact.

0:04:07.492,0:04:10.472
The EPA estimates that food waste[br]has more than doubled

0:04:10.496,0:04:13.895
between 1970 and 2017,

0:04:13.919,0:04:17.604
and now accounts for 27 percent[br]of everything in our landfills.

0:04:17.628,0:04:20.185
And as this food sits,[br]it gradually rots

0:04:20.209,0:04:22.110
and produces harmful methane gas,

0:04:22.134,0:04:24.617
a leading contributor[br]to global climate change.

0:04:25.051,0:04:26.999
We have the waste of the food itself,

0:04:27.023,0:04:31.327
the waste of all the money associated[br]with producing this now-wasted food

0:04:31.351,0:04:34.062
and the waste of labor[br]with all of the above.

0:04:34.086,0:04:36.003
And then there's the social inequity

0:04:36.027,0:04:39.402
between people who really[br]need food and can't get it

0:04:39.426,0:04:42.290
and people who have too much[br]and simply throw it away.

0:04:42.885,0:04:46.956
All of this made me realize[br]that hunger was not an issue of scarcity

0:04:46.980,0:04:49.182
but rather a matter of logistics.

0:04:49.531,0:04:53.585
So in 2017, I set out[br]to end hunger using technology.

0:04:53.984,0:04:57.949
After all, food delivery apps[br]had begun to explode on the scene,

0:04:57.973,0:05:01.460
and I thought surely we can[br]reverse-engineer this technology

0:05:01.484,0:05:04.846
and get food from businesses[br]like restaurants and grocery stores

0:05:04.870,0:05:07.200
and into the hands of people in need.

0:05:07.224,0:05:09.438
I believe that technology and innovation

0:05:09.462,0:05:11.595
have the power to solve real problems,

0:05:11.619,0:05:12.931
especially hunger.

0:05:13.334,0:05:16.660
So in 2017, I created an app

0:05:16.684,0:05:19.267
that would inventory everything[br]that a business sells

0:05:19.291,0:05:22.073
and make it super easy for them[br]to donate this excess food

0:05:22.097,0:05:24.782
that would typically go to waste[br]at the end of the night.

0:05:24.806,0:05:27.301
All the user has to do now[br]is click on an item,

0:05:27.325,0:05:29.215
tell us how many they have to donate,

0:05:29.239,0:05:31.872
and our platform calculates[br]the weight and the tax value

0:05:31.896,0:05:33.730
of those items at time of donation.

0:05:33.754,0:05:36.458
We then connect with local drivers[br]in the shared economy

0:05:36.482,0:05:39.397
to get this food picked up[br]and delivered directly to the doors

0:05:39.421,0:05:42.024
of nonprofit organizations[br]and people in need.

0:05:42.048,0:05:44.271
I provided the data and the analytics

0:05:44.295,0:05:46.908
to help businesses reduce[br]food waste at the source

0:05:46.932,0:05:50.129
by letting them know the items[br]that they waste repeatedly

0:05:50.153,0:05:51.753
on a regular basis,

0:05:51.777,0:05:53.790
and they even saved millions of dollars.

0:05:53.814,0:05:55.373
Our mission was simple:

0:05:55.397,0:05:57.487
feed more, waste less.

0:05:57.511,0:06:01.152
And by 2018, our clients included[br]the world's busiest airport,

0:06:01.176,0:06:03.136
Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson,

0:06:03.160,0:06:05.819
and we were working[br]with brands and corporations

0:06:05.843,0:06:08.563
like Hormel, Chick-fil-A and Papa John's.

0:06:08.587,0:06:12.820
We even had the opportunity[br]to work with the NFL for Super Bowl LIII.

0:06:12.844,0:06:16.093
And over the last two years,[br]we've worked with over 200 business

0:06:16.117,0:06:19.807
to divert more than two million pounds[br]of edible food from landfills

0:06:19.831,0:06:22.111
into the hands of people[br]that needed it most.

0:06:22.135,0:06:23.842
(Applause)

0:06:23.866,0:06:25.042
Thank you.

0:06:25.066,0:06:28.629
(Applause)

0:06:31.574,0:06:34.485
This has accounted[br]for about 1.7 million meals

0:06:34.509,0:06:37.671
and allowed us to start to expand[br]our efforts to other cities,

0:06:37.695,0:06:41.726
like Washington, DC, Chicago,[br]Miami, Philadelphia and more.

0:06:41.750,0:06:44.707
That's just one approach[br]that actually tackles the problem.

0:06:44.731,0:06:47.498
Another was the launch[br]of our pop-up grocery stores.

0:06:47.522,0:06:49.898
We recover excess food from businesses

0:06:49.922,0:06:53.636
and set up free community grocery stores[br]right in the middle of food deserts.

0:06:53.660,0:06:54.946
We bring out a chef,

0:06:54.970,0:06:59.151
and we do on-site taste-testings and allow[br]families to leave with recipe cards.

0:06:59.175,0:07:02.802
We give every family reusable grocery bags[br]and allow them to simply shop

0:07:02.826,0:07:04.464
minus the price tag.

0:07:04.488,0:07:07.572
We wanted to give people access to meals

0:07:07.596,0:07:09.018
and not just food.

0:07:09.042,0:07:13.036
We wanted to change the way that we think[br]and work to solve hunger in this country,

0:07:13.060,0:07:15.265
get people to believe[br]that we can solve hunger,

0:07:15.289,0:07:16.606
not as a nonprofit,

0:07:16.630,0:07:17.884
not as a food bank

0:07:17.908,0:07:19.510
but as a social enterprise,

0:07:19.534,0:07:22.402
with the goal of reducing waste[br]and ending hunger.

0:07:22.426,0:07:24.354
But it hasn't been as easy as I thought

0:07:24.378,0:07:26.625
to change the narrative[br]and the thought process

0:07:26.649,0:07:28.910
on how we think that hunger can be solved.

0:07:29.487,0:07:32.544
In 2016, France became the first country

0:07:32.568,0:07:35.973
to ban supermarkets[br]from throwing away unused food.

0:07:35.997,0:07:37.696
Instead, they must donate it,

0:07:37.720,0:07:39.657
and they're fined if they don't.

0:07:39.681,0:07:40.837
Yes.

0:07:40.861,0:07:44.139
(Applause)

0:07:44.163,0:07:46.883
In 2017, Italy followed suit,

0:07:46.907,0:07:48.852
becoming the second European nation

0:07:48.876,0:07:51.160
to pass an anti-food-waste ban.

0:07:51.184,0:07:54.456
And they stated it so simply[br]as it was passed through legislation:

0:07:54.480,0:07:57.767
"We have millions of pounds[br]of good food going to waste,

0:07:57.791,0:08:00.044
and we have poor people[br]that are going hungry."

0:08:00.068,0:08:01.333
That simple.

0:08:01.357,0:08:04.521
Denmark now has a mandated[br]food waste grocery store.

0:08:04.545,0:08:06.216
Its name: Wefood.

0:08:06.240,0:08:08.993
They recover excess food[br]from local grocery stores

0:08:09.017,0:08:11.838
and sell it at up to[br]a 50 percent off discount.

0:08:11.862,0:08:16.041
They then use all the proceeds[br]and donate it to emergency aid programs

0:08:16.065,0:08:19.131
and social need issues[br]for the people in need.

0:08:19.155,0:08:22.608
It has been hailed as[br]"the Goodwill of grocery."

0:08:22.948,0:08:27.137
And last year, the world got its first[br]pay-what-you-can grocery store,

0:08:27.161,0:08:29.500
when Feed it Forward opened in Toronto.

0:08:29.524,0:08:33.772
Their shelves remain stocked[br]by recovering excess food

0:08:33.796,0:08:35.008
from major supermarkets

0:08:35.032,0:08:37.766
and allowing families[br]to simply pay what they can

0:08:37.790,0:08:39.477
at their grocery store.

0:08:39.501,0:08:41.167
This is amazing.

0:08:41.191,0:08:44.149
This innovation we need more of.

0:08:44.967,0:08:48.168
Everyone can take on the roles[br]of changing the attitudes

0:08:48.192,0:08:50.001
about how we solve hunger.

0:08:50.025,0:08:52.863
When we think of how we've allowed[br]innovation and technology

0:08:52.887,0:08:54.063
to change our lives,

0:08:54.087,0:08:55.974
from how we communicate with each other

0:08:55.998,0:08:57.775
to how we view our entertainment

0:08:57.799,0:08:59.436
to how we even receive food,

0:08:59.460,0:09:02.321
it's amazing that we haven't[br]solved hunger yet.

0:09:02.345,0:09:05.019
We literally have cars[br]that can drive themselves

0:09:05.043,0:09:07.634
and millions of people[br]that cannot feed themselves.

0:09:08.142,0:09:11.459
With millions of dollars being donated[br]to end food insecurity,

0:09:11.483,0:09:13.607
we should've solved hunger years ago.

0:09:13.631,0:09:15.124
And I asked myself --

0:09:15.148,0:09:17.977
(Applause)

0:09:19.746,0:09:22.832
I asked myself, why can't we[br]escape this vicious cycle?

0:09:22.856,0:09:24.776
Why haven't we solved this problem?

0:09:24.800,0:09:27.438
I remember meeting with investors[br]and pitching the idea,

0:09:27.462,0:09:29.416
trying to raise funds for my business,

0:09:29.440,0:09:31.975
and one of them said to me,[br]in true seriousness,

0:09:31.999,0:09:33.981
"Hunger is already being solved,"

0:09:34.005,0:09:37.576
as if millions of people weren't going[br]to go to bed hungry that very night,

0:09:37.600,0:09:39.518
and as if there was nothing else to do.

0:09:39.542,0:09:40.697
And the reality is,

0:09:40.721,0:09:42.821
one would think[br]that hunger is being solved,

0:09:42.845,0:09:45.010
but the truth is, it's being worked on.

0:09:45.034,0:09:46.661
If we really want to solve hunger,

0:09:46.685,0:09:49.122
then we have to change[br]the way we've been doing it.

0:09:49.146,0:09:52.386
The same actions will always[br]garner the same results.

0:09:52.410,0:09:55.352
There are hundreds of social[br]entrepreneurs all over the world.

0:09:55.376,0:09:59.390
They have a focus to solve[br]really big problems, like hunger,

0:09:59.414,0:10:01.243
but they'll never get the same support

0:10:01.267,0:10:04.432
that we give national hunger-fighting[br]organizations and food banks.

0:10:04.456,0:10:06.241
But, if given the opportunity,

0:10:06.265,0:10:08.675
they have the ability to foster insight

0:10:08.699,0:10:10.599
and perhaps be forward-thinking enough

0:10:10.623,0:10:12.041
to solve this problem.

0:10:12.065,0:10:13.693
That's why I'm traveling the world

0:10:13.717,0:10:16.693
and I'm really talking about[br]what hunger looks like in America

0:10:16.717,0:10:19.912
and explaining the difference between[br]giving people access to food

0:10:19.936,0:10:21.363
and access to meals.

0:10:21.387,0:10:23.421
I've been meeting[br]with city council members

0:10:23.445,0:10:25.583
and city organizers across the US

0:10:25.607,0:10:28.929
and telling them that technology[br]indeed does have the power

0:10:28.953,0:10:31.129
to connect businesses with surplus food

0:10:31.153,0:10:32.408
to people in need,

0:10:32.432,0:10:35.866
and explaining to them[br]what a meal can actually mean to a family.

0:10:35.890,0:10:38.595
I've been meeting with school boards[br]and school districts

0:10:38.619,0:10:40.665
to talk about how we feed hungry children,

0:10:40.689,0:10:42.155
and health care organizations,

0:10:42.179,0:10:44.167
sharing the message that food is health,

0:10:44.191,0:10:45.561
and food is life,

0:10:45.585,0:10:49.008
and that, by solving hunger,[br]we can solve so many more problems.

0:10:49.564,0:10:50.980
So if we want to know

0:10:51.004,0:10:52.845
that we don't live in a nation

0:10:52.869,0:10:54.999
where perfectly good food goes to waste

0:10:55.023,0:10:57.283
when our neighbors don't have food to eat,

0:10:57.307,0:10:59.352
then we need to change the laws.

0:10:59.376,0:11:01.369
We need to introduce new policies,

0:11:01.393,0:11:04.817
and, most importantly, we need to change[br]our minds and our actions.

0:11:04.841,0:11:06.301
Food drives are fine.

0:11:06.325,0:11:08.420
Food banks serve a huge purpose.

0:11:08.444,0:11:11.174
And yes, sometimes I like Ding Dongs, too.

0:11:11.198,0:11:14.821
But the reality is that food drives[br]do not solve hunger.

0:11:14.845,0:11:17.050
And if we are smart[br]about connecting the dots

0:11:17.074,0:11:18.881
that are right in front of our noses,

0:11:18.905,0:11:20.891
we can do far more than give a family

0:11:20.915,0:11:25.169
a box of superhero-shaped[br]vegetable-enriched macaroni noodles

0:11:25.193,0:11:26.687
and a gallon of barbecue sauce

0:11:26.711,0:11:28.162
to feed themselves.

0:11:28.186,0:11:30.298
Instead, we can[br]give them back their dignity.

0:11:30.322,0:11:33.716
Perhaps we can increase[br]school attendance in schools.

0:11:33.740,0:11:36.459
We can improve the health[br]outcomes for millions.

0:11:36.483,0:11:39.907
And, most importantly, we can reduce[br]food waste in our landfills,

0:11:39.931,0:11:42.529
creating a better[br]environment for all of us.

0:11:42.553,0:11:46.537
The thing I love most is that[br]we can feel good about it in the process.

0:11:46.561,0:11:47.723
If we solve hunger,

0:11:47.747,0:11:50.565
we have nothing to lose[br]and everything to gain.

0:11:50.589,0:11:51.761
So let's do it.

0:11:51.785,0:11:53.004
Thank you.

0:11:53.028,0:11:55.456
(Applause)

0:11:55.480,0:11:56.653
Thank you.