Alissa Duncan

Hometown: Spartanburg, SC

I am working to promote a healthier Spartanburg because: I want people to be able to enjoy their lives and their loved ones for as long as possible. And it’s not simply about one’s number of years, it’s about having the best possible quality of life. I want to support existing and future opportunities for healthy eating and active living in Spartanburg to the point where these choices become the default choices of most people because they are the easy choices. Spartanburg is where most of my friends and family live, so I can’t imagine a better place to have an impact.

My favorite form of physical activity: Walking! I love to walk. Walking to me also means exploring, observing, and reflecting. My favorite thing to do in a new place is to walk around and see what I can see (I also love to explore the grocery stores in the area), and I often notice new things on a route I’ve taken 20 times. I love to observe life as it happens, people, plants, and animals on my walks, and I love to think or to listen to podcasts on my walks.

I love Spartanburg because: Most of my family and friends live here, and there is just so much opportunity to participate in Spartanburg’s development. Right now is an especially exciting time in Spartanburg because there are so many new things happening, new people moving in, and new places being built. I’ve lived here off and on for over 30 years and have never seen so much happen in such a short period of time. However, it would be incredibly beneficial for the City and County to have a framework in place for how to develop moving forward so that it doesn’t happen to us haphazardly and we get everything we need and want in the process.

Other community interests or involvement: Currently I coordinate and am developing the Spartanburg County Food System Coalition, am a Director-at-Large for the SC Chapter of the American Planning Association, and am Co-Chair of the SC Food Policy Council. I am also managing and helping to develop the Upstate Food System Assessment and Plan.

And something random: I am super interested in productivity, minimalism, personal finance, and real estate investing.