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Jessica Wegener

Jessica Wegener

Interim Associate Director, Dietetics and Associate Professor
EducationRD, PhD, MSc
OfficeDCC-609, Daphne Cockwell Health Sciences Complex
Phone416-979-5000, ext. 557544
Areas of ExpertisePublic health/public health nutrition; Sustainable food systems; Dietetic education; Communication; Population health, including environmental and policy interventions; Qualitative research methods.

Jessica Wegener is an Associate Professor in the School of Nutrition, an applied researcher, and a member of the College of Dietitians of Ontario. Jessica holds an MSc in Applied Human Nutrition from the University of Guelph’s Department of Family Relations and Human Nutrition and a PhD from the University of Waterloo’s School of Public Health Sciences (formerly Health Studies). She completed a one-year postdoctoral fellowship in the School of Public Health at the University of Alberta, focusing on community-level interventions to address food insecurity.

Her research is focused on sustainable food systems, education and policy. Currently, Jessica is working with national and international partners to explore the integration of sustainable food systems (SFS) content in dietetic education and training. Through CFDR-funded work, Jessica and collaborators are exploring how dietetic educators in Canada teach SFS, including what needs and supports they require to practice confidently in this area. As part of an SSHRC-funded study, Jessica and collaborators are examining the ways in which dietitians support transitions to sustainable dietary patterns and practices in Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. Through this research, the team is working to identify “stand out” leaders in SFS, across practice areas, with the goal of identifying and developing tools and supports for more dietitians to engage in impactful SFS practice activity.

Undergraduate courses:

  • FNN 202, Public Health Nutrition 
  • FNP 350, Interpersonal Communication/Counselling Nutrition 
  • FNR 400/FNR 401, Independent Research Study I/Independent Research Study II 

Graduate courses:

  • NC8201, Food and Nutrition Policy
  • NC8205, Directed Studies (for Major Research Paper/Project students)

  • Dietetic education and training
  • Population-level health interventions in nutrition
  • Community-level initiatives to address food-related issues
  • Adoption of sustainable food systems practices

Selected publications

  • Higgins, M., Strother, H., Burkhart, S., Carlsson, L., Meyer, N. L., Spiker, M., & Wegener, J. (2023). Sustainable food systems and diets in dietetic training standards: an international content analysis. Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, 36(3), 957-966. https://doi.org/10.1111/jhn.13122
  • Dubelt-Moroz, A., Warner, M., Heal, B., Khalesi, S., Wegener, J., Lee, J. J., Polecrone, T., El-Sarraj, J., Holmgren, E., & Bellissimo, N. (2022). Food insecurity, dietary intakes, and eating behaviors in a convenience sample of Toronto youth. Children, 9(8). https://doi.org/10.3390/children9081119
  • Iwasa-Madge, K., & Wegener, J. (2020). Knowledge and perceptions of plant-based diets among competitive and recreational athletes. Canadian Journal of Dietetic Practice and Research, 81(4), 204-209. https://doi.org/10.3148/cjdpr-2020-016
  • Gucciardi, E., Yang, A., Cohen-Olivenstein, K., Parmentier, B., Wegener, J., & Pais, V. (2019). Emerging practices supporting diabetes self-management among food insecure adults and families: A scoping review. PLoS ONE, 14(11). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0223998
  • Wegener, J. (2018). Equipping future generations of registered dietitian nutritionists and public health nutritionists: a commentary on education and training needs to promote sustainable food systems and practices in the 21st century. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 118(3), 393-398. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2017.10.024
  • Wegener, J., Fong, D., & Rocha, C. (2018). Education, practical training and professional development for public health practitioners: A scoping review of the literature and insights for sustainable food system capacity-building. Public Health Nutrition, 21(9), 1771-1780. https://doi:10.1017/S1368980017004207
  • Wegener, J. & Petitclerc, M. (2018). Opportunities and challenges for practical training in public health: insights from practicum coordinators in Ontario. Canadian Journal of Dietetic Practice and Research, 79(4), 176-180. https://doi.org/10.3148/cjdpr-2018-014
  • Wegener, J., Seasons, M., & Raine, K. D. (2013). Shifting from vision to reality: perspectives in regional food policies and food system planning barriers at the local level. Canadian Journal of Urban Research, 22(1), 93-112.
  • Wegener, J., Raine, K. D., & Hanning, R. M. (2012). Insights into the government’s role in food system policy making: improving access to healthy, local food alongside other priorities. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 9(11), 4103-4121. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph9114103
  • Wegener, J., Hanning, R.M., & Raine, K.D. (2012). Generating change: multisectoral perspectives of key facilitators and barriers to food system policy making. Journal of Hunger & Environmental Nutrition, 7(2-3), 137-148. https://doi.org/10.1080/19320248.2012.707115
  • Wegener, J. & Hanning, R.M. (2010). Concepts and measures of ‘alternative’ retail food outlets: considerations for facilitating access to healthy, local food. Journal of Hunger & Environmental Nutrition, 5(2): 158-173.  https://doi.org/10.1080/19320248.2010.487023
  • Wegener, J. (2009). ‘Alternative’ food outlets and their relevance to policy and planning. Plan Canada, Food Security: A Growing Concern (Special Issue), 49(2): 46-48.