Becca Gredone JD’22 currently serves as legal analyst for Nourish Colorado, a nonprofit working on food access and policy advocacy based in Denver.
Taking advantage of the 3+2 dual-degree program, a collaboration between Vermont Law and Graduate School (VLGS) and the University of Vermont, Gredone was able to complete her bachelor’s degree in three years and a JD in two, graduating in 2022.
“I knew from quite young that I was passionate about environmental stewardship and that I wanted to help create more equitable food systems through law and policy,” said Gredone. The 3+2 program provided an opportunity that isn’t traditionally found in other academic settings.
But her academic achievements aren’t the only place where Gredone accelerated her progress. She also found a way to transition seamlessly into her current position—through an externship while at VLGS.
Today, Gredone serves as legal analyst for Nourish Colorado, a nonprofit working on food access and policy advocacy based in Denver. However, she started her relationship with the organization by working with the JD Externship Program at VLGS to create her own legal externship during her law school tenure.
“I was set on finding an externship where I could use my knowledge and skills to help create equitable, sustainable change in the food system,” Gredone explained. “I came across Nourish Colorado and reached out to see if I could serve as a legal extern.”
Despite never having a legal extern before, Nourish Colorado accepted Gredone’s offer, tasking her with creating a law and policy roadmap to add to their strategic planning.
“Becca was able to take advantage of important features of VLGS’s JD Externship Program,” said Beth Locker, associate dean for experiential learning. “Not only can our externship opportunities be full time, they can also be located anywhere in the country. This flexibility let us help Becca find an externship placement tailored to her interests and supported by an educational program that ensures an immersive learning experience.”
“I absolutely loved this externship and all the legal analysis and policy work I had the chance to be a part of while there,” said Gredone. “After I finished my last VLGS semester in this position, Nourish Colorado invited me to stay on the team once I had studied for the bar over the summer. I joined Nourish as a full-time employee on the policy team as their very first legal analyst.”
In her current position, Gredone has put her legal knowledge to use engaging with farm bill and state-level advocacy and providing support to grassroots partners looking to learn more about federal food policy.
Food access and regenerative agriculture are two of Gredone’s biggest interests in the law and policy arena—topics that she has found to be deeply interconnected.
Gredone cites the need for a “holistic solution” to solve nutrition insecurity and environmental issues related to agriculture. She attributes her understanding of the interrelated nature of policy solutions to her time with the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems (CAFS) at VLGS.
“CAFS helped me come to this conclusion by consistently lifting up the need for shared community power and local food access,” said Gredone. “CAFS values connecting small, local farmers with opportunity in the market and with families seeking fresh, nutritious food. While this structure can be strengthened with local action, CAFS recognizes that state and federal policy has a huge impact on its potential for a more healthy and sustainable food system.”
To graduating students, Gredone recommends taking initiative.
“There are so many more opportunities in the food and agriculture legal space than I first understood,” she said. “Just about every state in the country is doing some sort of work to further equitable food access. Many states also have groups working on development of inclusive, regenerative agriculture practices.”
“I would recommend reaching out to local, state, or federal agencies that administer programs related to [food access, regenerative agriculture, and policy], to nonprofit organizations . . . and grassroots or grasstops advocacy organizations that help create change around these policies,” Gredone stated. “Even just having a Zoom conversation or a chat over coffee can really help develop a relationship that may spur further ideas or networking for your future.”
