2019 was a year of inspiring work reducing wasted food and composting food scraps in Illinois. IFSC members shared this work online and in social media communities. Read on and accept our gratitude for your individual part in the IFSC narrative. If you can, please inspire others to get involved with us in 2020. Share our website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages to help us continue adding pages to our story. Numbers from 2019 tell a story that moves us to act. We will do everything in our power to remain robust amidst these challenging times.
We emphasized value in our communications. The IFSC engaged audiences and boosted awareness in 2019 
about the work we continue to feel so passionate about. We posted about composting and the local food sector and reached 45,856 people, thanks to our 1,011 Facebook followers. Our Twitter engagement soared in 2019 to 556 Twitter followers and our website analytics reported 13,753 unique page views. Our posts continue to engage readers to reduce wasted food, increase use of compostable products, learn the science of anaerobic digestion, acquire tips for composting at home, and more.
We convened with intention during our meetings. The IFSC ensured that our community was continually aligned with the scope and focus of our mission. We (114 individual members and 59 member organizations/businesses) convened 80 times in 2019. Board meetings, monthly calls, and strategic planning kept the diversion and composting of organics top of mind in the IFSC community, and we continue to create leadership and direction towards collective action. We are thankful to have been able to shed light on the work of our members as well as hold meaningful discussions about building composting infrastructure in Illinois.
We provided education and remained relevant in Illinois. The IFSC tabled at 17 events which ranged from 
the Good Food Expo to native plant sales to the ReFed Summit. Our story describes a collective impact approach with contributions from the Chicago Sustainability Task Force, Illinois Counties Solid Waste Management Association, Illinois Recycling Association, Illinois Restaurant Association, Metropolitan Mayors Caucus, One Earth Film Festival, and Wasted Food Action Alliance. Our infographic is ready for further distribution to help elevate the important conversations we need to have in 2020.
With your help, we will improve and develop legislative policy, maintain and increase our recognition programs, and develop demand for a food scrap end market in Illinois. COVID-19 may result in service changes for haulers and compost processors and IFSC stands ready to communicate about these changes and provide guidance and recommendations as we all weather this storm together. Please follow us, tag us, write about us, and bring new people to the conversation in 2020 with #ILComposts.
Thank you to Food:Land:Opportunity, a collaboration between Kinship Foundation and The Chicago Community Trust and funded through the Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust.