Official launch of ESI: The Feeding and Eating Experts

by Ellyn Satter, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Family Therapist

As I told you in April, I am 71. This particular birthday is an important milestone, because it coincides with the official launch of www.EllynSatterInstitute.org. We are shamelessly proud of the front page, particularly, and consider it beautiful, accessible, and hard-working. Take a careful look, and investigate the drop-down menus. We have packed in a lot to give you an excellent, one-stop resource on the Satter Eating Competence Model (ecSatter) and Satter Feeding Dynamics Model (fdSatter). The ESI website is intended to connect all of us, inspire you with possibilities, and provide you with support for thinking, doing, and programming in ways that are consistent with ecSatter and fdSatter.

Some years ago, I established the Ellyn Satter Institute to sustain and further my work with eating and feeding. I knew my shelf life was dwindling and that, thanks to folks like you, the work with eating and feeding had taken on a life of its own. I recruited the first ESI faculty members, many of whom remain. These are highly experienced professionals who bring particular expertise in the areas of medical nutrition therapy, WIC, Head Start, public health, education, child care, extension, and school nutrition. Initially, the ESI faculty members did presentations: keynotes, workshops, and training. Now ESI has grown into a 501c3 nonprofit virtual institute. ESI still does workshops and training, and now it is also the primary source of my materials, distributes my books and other materials, and does webinars, consulting, coaching, and research.  

I will still be around as senior faculty member, and other faculty members are in leadership roles. The mission, as before, is about quality of life: Helping children and adults be joyful and competent with eating. You have been a colleague in accomplishing that mission, and I hope you will continue to be a colleague with ESI. Now more than ever, ESI can help you, and we depend on you to help us. You are the folks on the front lines, doing the eating and feeding, and supporting others who eat and feed. We provide you with what you need to do your work: we have wisdom, experience, research, information, and resources, we share them with you, and we hope you will share yours with us.

We want to include you. You can become a member of ESI; for that, you will receive an electronic copy of my newest offering. Your name will also be on our Friends of ESI list, identifying you as working toward quality of life with eating and feeding based on ecSatter and fdSatter. We are also setting up Affiliate and Associate programs, and look forward to your exploring this route to professional development and certification.  

The Ellyn Satter Institute is now the primary distributor of my books, videos, handout packages, and training materials. I have contributed the free stuff that you found on my business website to www.EllynSatterInstitute.org,  I still update my materials, and they are still free: the self-tutorials on eating and feeding, eating and feeding articles and research, educational materials, newsletters, and  success stories. You will also find information on ESI programming: webinars, speaking and training, coaching, and research. And more really nifty stuff:

• Eating competence and feeding dynamics in a nutshell. (Well, two nutshells.)
• fdSatter and ecSatter consistent materials that have earned the ESI Seal of Approval. How you can earn the ESI Seal of Approval for your materials
• fdSatter-consistent intervention guidelines for pediatric feeding disorders
• fdSatter-consistent intervention guidelines for child overweight and obesity
• Permission to use the Satter Eating Competence Inventory in your research
• Position statements about fdSatter and ecSatter consistent ways of addressing common nutritional problems
• Educational materials – lots of them – including excerpts from my books and handout packages
• Translated handouts for free, including Vietnamese handouts

Let me hear from you on Facebook. Tell me how we have been colleagues, tell me your feeding/eating story, tell me what you need to carry out your mission with feeding and eating. Tell me hello.

Also, please help by dropping us an email with suggestions about improving the ESI website, or to tell us about glitches. We are working on getting all the pieces to fit together, but some of the hyperlinks may still go back to the ESA website or to no place at all. Some articles may have two copyright statements. The formatting in some newsletters may be wonky.

Thanks for your help! I will look forward to hearing from you!