Irene Gao

Title: Operations Assistant

Employer: Fresh Truck

Degree & graduation year: Master of Public Policy, 2021

What I do: I work with my team on a mobile market to provide food access to over 20 different food-insecure neighborhoods in Boston.

How I ended up working there: During my summer internship with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, through the Civic Action Project fellowship, I heard a presentation from About Fresh (parent organization) and was intrigued by their work. So when I was job searching I remembered this organization and checked if they were hiring.

The best part of my job: Being able to travel around various areas in Boston and interact with a culturally diverse group of people from each neighborhood.

A recent exciting work experience: Working on developing/shaping our nonprofit's policy and advocacy work while also engaging with communities. Language learning is another portion of this job that I find exciting (most of our clients speak Spanish, Portuguese, Vietnamese, and Cantonese).

How the School of Public Policy prepared me for my career: SPP taught me about the systemic factors behind food insecurity and the values of collective action to make greater change. Thus, when I work I like to be able to zoom in and out to see specific issues and the overall picture.

Advice to students considering a degree in public policy: Find several specific areas of the policy you are interested in and explore them via volunteer work, activism, or job shadowing.

Future plans: Interact and explore the different nonprofits in Boston tackling food justice issues. I plan to go for another Master's or PhD in Food Policy and/or Urban planning after working for a few years.

December 2022