A yearlong initiative exploring why a strong and healthy food culture is so important to our educational mission, Nourishing Body and Mind: Bates Contemplates Food has been inspired by the opening of the new dining Commons and a major gift supporting the use of organic, natural and farm-fresh foods. The initiative's wide-ranging programs will explore and enrich Bates' long commitment to a thoughtful, sustainable and nourishing approach to food on campus. "With food as the thread that connects us, to each other and to our larger community, we will spend the next year celebrating and contemplating more deeply the ways that gathering together around food enhances and supports the College's mission." — President Elaine Tuttle Hansen, May 2008