USBC Membership Meeting Mission Moment with Dr. Scott Hartman

The U.S. Breastfeeding Committee hosted a Membership Meeting on Thursday, November 16. The biannual event brings together the nearly 140 member organizations that comprise the USBC and work collaboratively to drive policy and practice changes that create a landscape of breastfeeding support. 
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At the opening of the meeting, Dr. Scott Hartman, on his final day as a member of the USBC Board of Directors, delivered the "Mission Moment." This is a meeting-opening practice that serves to connect our work to the people we serve and the positive and impactful change we seek. Thank you, Scott, for grounding us, giving us hope about what is possible, and guiding us in what we can do right now! Read the transcript below. 

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Dr. Scott Hartman
Former USBC Board Member

Hello everyone, I’m Scott Hartman, and I use he/him pronouns. I am on my last day of serving on the board of USBC. We talk about taking space and making space – and it’s my time to make space for others to step up and step in to have their voices heard. That said, I am forever grateful that I was given the opportunity to serve on the board of this amazing organization, this coalition of coalitions. 

​September was National Preparedness Month. We are on the tail end of a global pandemic – it’s not truly over, but we finally have ways to protect people and families. ​

In the early months of the pandemic, we didn’t know if it was safe to keep breastfeeding dyads together when there was a concern for possible COVID exposure or disease, and medical guidelines reflected a separation-oriented approach. As the evidence emerged around the effectiveness of masking and vaccines, USBC — through its Collective Impact model — created a story tool by which we were able to rapidly document the impact of the pandemic, as well as medical guidelines, on families and communities.
 
Thankfully, USBC’s longstanding relationships with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other influential agencies allowed for continual feedback and conversation as guidelines were revised in response to evolving evidence. Together, the USBC membership and partners were able to contribute important stories that informed and advocated for practices supportive of parental and infant bonding and human milk feeding in the midst of this awful pandemic. And we continue to maintain our emergency response working group – known as the Infant and Young Child Feeding in Emergencies Constellation - that will continue to use the USBC Collective Impact model in efforts to support families in future national emergencies.
 
As the USBC, we are a network that respects the voices of all stakeholders, and especially aims to center those of the most marginalized. We’ve spent the last few years in a state of transformation into new ways of thinking that center equity, and NOW - USBC is moving into a phase of renewal and rebirth. 
 
So, with the assurance of things hoped for and evidence of things not yet seen … We continue to advance equity in the infant and young child feeding arena — and beyond. 
 
In this NEW phase of the USBC we will envision and work for a world that embodies justice and liberation for all – without exception!

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​How you can have your voice heard: The USBC is funded to develop a National Blueprint outlining a 5-year plan for advancing infant nutrition security and eliminating breastfeeding disparities. The Listening Sessions will provide an opportunity for stakeholders to contribute to the plan’s development, outlining a vision for comprehensive societal promotion, protection, and support for breastfeeding and infant nutrition security and the steps that are needed to achieve it, with a particular focus on identified priority populations, including LGBTQIA and BIPOC people. 
 
If you are interested in participating, register to share your perspectives and insights during one of the six upcoming listening sessions, and be sure you are subscribed to USBC email alerts to be notified about other opportunities. Take it a step further by joining the USBC membership. Organizations that are led by and serving BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) or other identified priority populations are eligible for complimentary membership through the Creating Space Scholarship.