It was “ReFED’s mission and the people” that first drew Nicole to the nonprofit, and the opportunity to build ReFED’s team with other mission-driven individuals only made her interest in the position grow. Since stepping into her role at ReFED in May 2024, Nicole has been focused on growing and supporting a team that’s dedicated to changing the world for the better.
“I always describe us as a team of overachievers that are deeply passionate about food waste and the environment,” she explains. “Lately, I’ve been in full ‘recruiter mode.’ We hired 10 people in 2025, so I’ve been very busy!”
In 2023, the U.S. let a huge 31% of our food supply go unsold or uneaten.
And among consumers—who continue to be the biggest generators of food waste—wasted food adds up to billions of wasted dollars each year. Nicole emphasizes that helping people understand their impact is a crucial step in creating lasting change.
“I think education is the key,” she says. “Once you become aware of the problem and how easy it is to help solve it, you start to see the needle move quickly.”
Improving public knowledge means constantly building momentum, from using data to help businesses identify food waste hotspots to building a case for standardized date labels to sharing food-saving tips in the media. Increasing the impact of ReFED’s work goes hand-in-hand with growing the size and strength of ReFED’s team and culture, requiring an adept understanding of how a range of talents and expertise benefits organizations and leads to stronger solutions—a skillset that Nicole wields expertly.
For Nicole, finding and supporting people is about more than filling roles. Her work is deeply grounded in creating equitable systems, honoring individual needs, and making space for different points of view that can offer new perspectives on how we tackle food waste. On top of leading human resources and talent strategy at ReFED, Nicole also heads the organization’s internal Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) initiatives, helping to build a workplace where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.
Nicole’s ‘why’ for dedicating her career to solving food waste is deeply personal. “As a Black woman and a mother, I see firsthand how Black communities are disproportionately impacted by climate change and environmental injustice,” she explains. “Food waste isn’t just a sustainability issue, it is a social equity issue. I want to be a part of building a future where resources are used wisely, communities are cared for, and solutions are driven by justice. Most of all, I want to leave the world better for my son. A world where he can breathe cleaner air, eat nourishing food, and thrive in a more equitable world.”