Taylor Scott
Community Organizer, Founder of RVA Community Fridges
Taylor Scott, is an African American woman of Cherokee and Seminole descent who was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. She moved to Virginia in 2016 to attend school at Virginia Commonwealth University. Though her degree was in Criminal Justice, she found herself drawn towards grassroot organizations and mutual aid work, upon completion.
In 2019 and 2020, Taylor began growing her own fruit and vegetables inside her home via hydroponics. Through this experience, she learned about food chain systems and she realized that small economic differences could be made through what she ate. Additionally, her hydroponic system yielded such an abundant harvest that she decided to share this bounty with her community.
On January 28, 2021, Taylor worked with friends to help set up the first community fridge in the Church Hill neighborhood of Richmond, a community affected by food apartheid. In response to the positive and loving feedback she received, Taylor decided to continue efforts in providing fresh local produce to communities with a specific focus in communities that have been systematically redlined and historically subject to food apartheid.
Taylor’s efforts have helped deter food waste and insecurity throughout Virginia. Specifically, since putting up the first community fridge in 2021, Taylor and her team have successfully established 14 community fridges and pantries within Richmond. Additionally, Taylor’s organization has provided assistance in establishing multiple other community fridges outside Richmond and in other states. Currently, Taylor and her RVA Community Fridges team are partnering with Food Not Bombs, Richmond Chapter, to continue providing fresh food to the community out of their brick-and-mortar location. Through this partnership, Taylor and her team have been able to teach classes on cooking and life skills, as well as offer other educational courses.