How Hillary Bryant Of Waste Not AZ Is Helping To Address The Growing Challenge Of Food Insecurity
An Interview With Martita Mestey
Keep a folder of your successes, big or small. It’s fun and helpful to go down memory lane sometimes.
In many parts of the United States, there is a crisis of people having limited reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food. As prices rise, this problem will likely become more acute. How can this problem be solved? Who are the leaders helping to address this crisis?
In this interview series, we are talking to leaders who are helping to address the increasing problem of food insecurity who can share the initiatives they are leading to address and solve this problem.
As a part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Hillary Bryant.
As the Executive Director of Waste Not, Hillary leads their work rescuing excess prepared and perishable food and delivering it to over 85 nonprofits that feed the hungry. A fierce advocate for people and the planet, she is dedicated to creating lasting, systemic change within the social benefit sector, in which she has been involved for over 15 years. Hillary’s recent achievements include being named an Emerging Leader in Sustainability by Arizona Forward, becoming a 2023 Phoenix Business Journal 40 Under 40 honoree and graduating with her Master’s in Business Administration last fall.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?
Yes, of course! Ever since I was a young child, I have been inspired by and invested in preserving the health of our planet. In fact, I’m sure my family thought I was quite annoying when I patrolled my house, making sure no lights were left on unnecessarily and they weren’t running the water tap more than they needed when brushing their teeth. As I got older, I started volunteering in my community and saw just how much of a need there is. This led me to pursue my degree in Public Health, which required an internship. Due to a personal connection with their mission, as both of my children were born prematurely, I started my nonprofit journey as an intern at March of Dimes. Four years ago, I stumbled upon Waste Not, an organization that combined my passion for both people and the planet.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
I have been very fortunate to be able to hear several interesting and inspiring people speak. One instance that stands out the most is hearing Earvin “Magic” Johnson speak about his successes in basketball and life. From his personal and professional struggles to his activism and his current work in the community, I was riveted the entire time he was on stage. I feel so lucky to have been able to experience that.
Are you able to identify a “tipping point” in your career when you started to see success? Did you start doing anything different? Are there takeaways or lessons that others can learn from that?
The “tipping point” of my career started a little over a year after I had begun working at Waste Not, just before I became executive director. I was approached by a popular local magazine, Edible Phoenix, to be interviewed for a story about our app-based program, MealConnect. MealConnect allows food businesses to post their excess meals which volunteers then deliver to people in need. Prior to my directorship, I launched and scaled this program at Waste Not and oversaw its initial success in the community. This interview brought public and professional attention to my work in a way I had never experienced before. I had decided at that point that if something seemed intimidating and scary, as this did at first, I should take a risk and go for it. This article and the way I handled public attention directly influenced my promotion to executive director.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person to whom you are grateful who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I have been fortunate to have several people help me along in small, meaningful ways by giving me advice and cheering me on. On a personal note, my partner, David, has been my rock and encouraged me to do things I didn’t think were possible. Professionally, I cannot choose just one person. Along the road of my career, there have been key people who have been there at the right time, helped me grow in confidence and have been examples of the type of leader I want to be.
You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
Determination — There have been many people in my career who have tried to put me in a box and create boundaries around what I could and couldn’t do. The determination to see past the limiting futures others see for you has been key to my success.
Curiosity — Being curious has helped me immensely in my career thus far. I have used it to help solve issues in my work, explore creative pathways, and create relationships with peers and employees.
Integrity — I have never regretted doing the right thing regardless of the cost. To some, integrity may seem like a blockade to climbing the ladder. To me, integrity points me to the ladders I want to climb.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“Close some doors today. Not because of pride, incapacity, or arrogance, but simply because they lead you nowhere.” -Paulo Coelho
There will be many instances where something that used to serve you no longer does. I have experienced many instances in my life like this, as I’m sure you have as well. When you are open to closing doors, I have found that it leaves more opportunity to reflect on the things you truly want in your life, and the capacity to take action toward them.
Ok super. Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. Can you describe to our readers how your work is helping to address the challenge of food insecurity?
Nearly 40% of all food in the United States goes uneaten and eventually makes its way to landfills across the country. Meanwhile, millions of people are food insecure and do not know where their next meal is coming from. Waste Not is a nonprofit local to the Greater Phoenix Area that addresses both food waste and hunger by connecting excess edible food to those who need it. We have over 85 partners that utilize the food we deliver to make sure the most vulnerable in our community are fed. Waste Not provides over 2.5 million meals every year.
Can you share something about your work that makes you most proud? Is there a particular story or incident that you found most uplifting?
The number one thing that makes me proud to do what I do, is the stories I hear from the network of nonprofit agencies that receive the food we rescue. The people we serve are in such high need and any amount of food we can provide helps. Food can also be a source of immense joy and celebration. One story that comes to mind centers on that joy. We serve an organization called Maggie’s Place that provides safe housing and a nurturing community for unhoused pregnant women. These women will come together and cook meals as a community with the food Waste Not provides. These community meals are common and nurture not only their bodies, but their lives, and the lives of their children. I’ve also heard stories of these women making baby food from the produce Waste Not gives them, which truly warms my heart.
In your opinion, what should other business and civic leaders do to further address these problems? Can you please share a few things that can be done to further address the problem of food insecurity?
From a civic perspective, we need to provide more safety nets and take a holistic approach to caring for people in our communities. From advocating for a living wage to expanding access to healthcare and housing, it’s all about how we take care of people. From a business perspective, with large companies making record profits, there is no reason why groceries, in particular, should cost so much. People are struggling because they are having to choose between food, housing, and healthcare. When we make basic necessities affordable, people thrive.
Are there other leaders or organizations who have done good work to address the challenge of food scarcity? Can you tell us what they have done? What specifically impresses you about their work? Perhaps we can reach out to them to include them in this series.
Yes, absolutely! Locally, the Arizona Food Bank Network does incredible work to address food insecurity in our state by connecting food to people who need it. Nationally, organizations like ReFED are helping to address the specific issue of food waste and how we can leverage resources to address both food waste and hunger. Their Catalytic Grant Fund is essential in helping on-the-ground organizations dream big to reduce food waste and make our planet a better place to live in. There are also several businesses that grant hunger-relief organizations funding and resources to continue the amazing work they do day in and day out.
If you had the power to influence legislation, are there laws that you would like to see introduced that might help you in your work?
100%! I would love to see a national free school meal program passed for all children in this country. There are already several states that are introducing and passing this type of legislation. No child should go hungry, ever. On the environmental side, I would like to see food waste addressed on a larger scale. It just doesn’t make sense for people to go hungry when tons of amazing food get tossed by businesses every day.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why?
- If you wouldn’t take advice from someone, don’t take their criticism.
Like most, I have been on the receiving end of critique. Some was meant to be genuinely helpful, and I took it in stride. Some, however, was given in the spirit of active discouragement. Knowing the subtle differences have helped me navigate my career significantly.
2. Some people won’t like you, and that’s ok.
I know it’s hard to believe, but some people just don’t like me. Maybe some people reading this interview don’t like me. I have had to learn that it’s ok not to be liked by everybody. In fact, if you are liked by everybody, you’re probably sacrificing what makes you “you” for someone else’s comfort and that’s a hard way to live.
3. It may take you a while to find what you do want, but you will know what you don’t want almost immediately.
I still don’t know what I want my life to look like sometimes. Life is a journey, and it’s ok to not know where you want to end up. I do know, however, what I don’t want. One of the tricks to my success and happiness is to continually re-evaluate and cut out the things I don’t want as soon as I am able.
4. Even if you think you will fail, take risks and go for it anyway.
There have been many instances where I almost didn’t go for an opportunity because of fear of failure. When I’m stuck with one of these choices, I think “would I regret it if I didn’t go for this”. If the answer is yes, I do it anyway.
5. Keep a folder of your successes, big or small. It’s fun and helpful to go down memory lane sometimes.
I regularly look through things I’ve kept from my career. Whether they’re thank you notes I’ve received from speaking at a conference, the email announcement of my promotion to Executive Director, a congratulations letter from when I was chosen as a 40 Under 40, or cute notes from my kids or husband, revisiting them always makes me smile. It’s ok to celebrate yourself and be reminded of how cool you are. 😉
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
There are so many amazing movements currently happening today that I wouldn’t create my own but encourage people to join an existing one. The movements that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people center on equity, justice, and anti-racism work.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. :-)
There are so many people in this world doing incredible things that it’s difficult to choose! I would love to have lunch with advocate and actor, Jameela Jamil. What an absolute icon that stands up for what she believes in and fights for a better world.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
The number one way to follow our work is to subscribe to our newsletter, which your readers can do on our website (www.wastenotaz.org). We also talk about our work on our social channels on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, X, and YouTube. You can follow us by searching for @wastenotaz.
This was very meaningful, thank you so much, and we wish you only continued success.
Thank you for helping us to share this meaningful work!
