United States Breastfeeding Committee

See schedule o for complete description.outreach & collaborationthe u.s. Breastfeeding Committee (usbc) is a coalition bringing together 139 organizations including federal agencies, national, state, tribal, and territorial organizations, as well as for-profit businesses that support the usbc mission to create a landscape of Breastfeeding support across the United States. By supporting continuous communication and collaboration between and among these diverse, multi-sectoral partners, the usbc helps strengthen the public health infrastructure, increase the efficiency and impact of the field, and integrate equity at the core of all collaborative work. The usbc hosts annual membership meetings, a virtual collaboration platform, a weekly newsletter featuring news, resources, and updates from the field, and a variety of peer networking events to expand, diversify, and strengthen relationships within the usbc membership and beyond. These ongoing connections allow the field to quickly come together and respond to rapidly changing situations like the covid-19 pandemic and the infant formula recall and resulting shortage.

See schedule o for complete description.pse changethe u.s. Breastfeeding Committee (usbc) represents the most unified voice advocating for Breastfeeding policy and practice change in the u.s., coordinating national, equity-centered collaborative efforts that contribute to population-level advancements that address longstanding barriers to human milk feeding and reduce disparities in Breastfeeding outcomes. Usbc convenes constellations, action-focused work teams comprised of organizations focused on specific priority areas. Constellations share a learning journey, develop a common agenda, identify priority strategies, and implement activities through an equity lens to change the policy landscape. Usbc provides backbone support (online workspace, meeting design, and facilitation) to support these high-impact collaborative efforts in various areas, including workplace support, infant and young child feeding in emergencies, lactation support providers, and pasteurized donor human milk. In addition, the usbc embarks on an extensive process ahead of each congressional session, working with members and partners to identify the most pressing policy priorities for lactating families and the field to guide our collective efforts. Usbc monitors policy and legislative trends, opportunities, and risks, providing regular updates to the area. When collective action is needed, usbc mobilizes timely and strategic outreach to policymakers and the public to support policies and legislation supporting Breastfeeding families. Connecting with multi-sectoral stakeholders, including federal agencies, members, partners, Breastfeeding coalitions, congressional champions, and individuals across the nation, we can identify the solutions that families need and bring the voices of Breastfeeding families to the halls of congress. These efforts have resulted in various landmark legislative achievements, including federal investments in Breastfeeding and the recent passage of the providing urgent maternal protections (pump) for nursing mothers act.

See schedule o for complete description.capacity buildingthe u.s. Breastfeeding Committee (usbc) works to increase the capacity of organizations across the field in order to ignite and sustain a fair and equitable landscape of Breastfeeding support for families and communities across the United States. The annual national Breastfeeding conference & convening works to develop and strengthen the leadership capacity of the public health workforce, including representatives from direct service organizations, Breastfeeding coalitions, hospitals and healthcare facilities, health departments, research institutions, and federal agencies to effectively protect, promote, and support Breastfeeding at the national, state, and community levels. Through virtual convenings, webinars, peer networking sessions, and technical assistance, the usbc helps organizations from the grassroots to the treetops move forward in their learning journeys, operationalize equity, and increase the collective impact of the lactation field.