Hello!
My name is Alessia Richli, and I’m the newest addition to the Littlefoot team! In my role as an Associate I will be supporting Littlefoot’s client work and thought leadership in a variety of ways!
I graduated from The University of Maryland in 2023 with a B.S. in finance and a minor in Sustainability Studies, and will be moving to Paris in the fall to begin a Master’s degree in International Business and Sustainability at Sciences Po. Since you’re here, my guess is that you probably already know that our food systems are in desperate need of a transformation if we’re going to successfully feed every mouth while simultaneously ensuring that our planet remains healthy and vibrant. The truth of the matter is that this transformation needs to happen at a GLOBAL scale as quickly as possible. That’s why I’m incredibly excited to expand Littlefoot’s presence abroad so that we can accelerate our impact even more, and help drive the global systems changes we need!
My passion for sustainable food systems began my freshman year of college when I noticed that students cared so little about how much food they were throwing away. As a German and Swiss national, I come from two cultures that place a high value on resource efficiency and environmental stewardship, so seeing so much food go to waste and land in the bin hurt my soul deeply. On top of that, my observations in the cafeteria reminded me of the years I spent living in Kenya as a child. There, I was exposed to climate-induced food shortages, health crises from pollution, and ecologically damaging heat waves. This experience fundamentally shaped my desire to find solutions for these systemic inequalities.
Last week, I had the amazing opportunity to attend the 7th Annual ReFED Food Waste Solutions Summit in Baltimore. Not only was this the first time that our Littlefoot team of 3 got to work together IRL, but it was also a chance for me to learn more about the complexities of food waste reduction. In listening to inspiring panelists and meeting founders, investors, scientists, and government regulators, one thing that became even more evident to me was that we all need to lean into collaboration. Most other industries are solely focused on competitive advantage, but we’re not going to get anywhere if we approach our work with that mindset. There are so many players and stakeholders with different needs and strengths, and we need to focus on finding synergies that will allow us to build a complementary and sustainable ecosystem.
That said, it’s great to meet you all, and I’m looking forward to collaborating and partnering with you!
Sincerely,
