WASHINGTON, March 28, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Nancy E. Roman, President and CEO of the Capital Area Food Bank, today announced Dr. Peter Ackerman's appointment to the board of directors for an initial three-year term. Dr. Ackerman is managing director of Rockport Capital, Inc., a private investment firm, and the founding investor of FreshDirect, the largest online grocer in the nation. FreshDirect's operations are focused in the New York metropolitan area; they have recently expanded to Philadelphia, and are slated to enter the D.C. market soon.

Dr. Ackerman is currently on the board of the Council on Foreign Relations. He is also a member of the U.S. Advisory Council of the United States Institute of Peace, and sits on the advisory board for America Abroad Media. He served for 15 years as chairman of the Board of Overseers of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, and was chairman of the board of Freedom House. 

Dr. Ackerman is also the founding chair of the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict, and was content advisor on the Emmy-nominated PBS television series of the 2000 film A Force More Powerful: A Century of Nonviolent Conflict.  In 2002, Dr. Ackerman co-produced the Peabody Award-winning documentary Bringing Down A Dictator, which chronicled the fall of Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic through nonviolent resistance.  These films have been translated into over 20 languages and seen by tens of millions of viewers in over 80 countries.

Roman said, "Peter will be a great addition to the Capital Area Food Bank's board of directors.  I have known and worked with him over the years and can attest to his philanthropic commitment.  His vast knowledge of global issues is impressive, as well as his work at the local level with FreshDirect.  We are proud to welcome Peter to our board."

Dr. Ackerman said, "I am grateful for the opportunity to address hunger in my home of Washington, D.C.  My goal will be to help the organization use food resources smarter and more efficiently."

A native New Yorker, Dr. Ackerman graduated from Colgate University and earned a Ph.D. in International Relations at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.

The Capital Area Food Bank, a member of Feeding America, was founded on January 15, Martin Luther King's birthday, in 1980 and takes a comprehensive approach to addressing hunger by increasing access to nutritious food, initiating change through skill-building and advocacy, and creating sustainability with outreach and training for those at risk of hunger. The CAFB is the Washington metro area's largest public, nonprofit food and nutrition education resource. For more information visit http://www.capitalareafoodbank.org