Expert Resource Directory

Center. Prior to La Semilla, Aaron was the Projects Coordinator for the Colonias Development Council during which time he developed the Cultivando Tradición Community Garden Program to promote community gardens, greenhouses, and youth leadership projects in Anthony, Chaparral, and Vado, New Mexico. Aaron has conducted food-related research in Michoacán, Mexico and assisted with grant writing and linguistic research for the Mescalero Apache Tribe. He holds a B.A. in Anthropology, Sociology, and Latin American Studies from the University of Minnesota, Morris and a M.A. in Anthropology from New Mexico State University.

the McKnight Foundation with a breadth of experience in the environment field, with particular expertise in federal environmental policy, advocacy, coalition-building, and efforts to build the capacity of community- and state-based organizations. From January 2009 until May 2010, Witteman served as executive director of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition in Washington D.C., where she also served as director of organizing and outreach for two years. Previously, she held positions at Oxfam America and the Northwest Service Academy and was a W.K. Kellogg Foundation Food and Society Policy Fellow from January 2007 until December 2008.

at the Michigan Department of Community Health. In this role, she is responsible for administering the more than 50 state programs and policies that support the health of women and children in the state through Michigan's public health infrastructure. She has been in state government for the past 20 years in various public health administrative capacities. Carr was also a member of the 2009-2010 class of IATP Food and Society Fellows.

Juice, which explores the hidden history of orange juice. Hamilton holds a Ph.D. from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and a J.D. from the University of Toronto Law School. She has been a Graham Research Fellow in International Human Rights at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law. She was a member of the 2008-2009 class of IATP Food and Society Policy Fellows.

specializing in food, nutrition, and health. Manning, former associate administrator of the Food and Consumer Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, managed the largest school food service training and technical assistance effort ever undertaken by the USDA. The $24 million program was designed to support USDA School Meals Initiative for Healthy Children. She was also a member of the 2003-2005 class of Food and Society Policy Fellows.

relationship between food and culture and the emergence of the contemporary food system. Presently her research concerns the increasing importance of the taste of place for farmers, chefs, vintners, cheesemakers and others both in Europe and the United States. She is also looking at how people's cooking knowledge and skill in the United States plays a role in individual health. She was also a member of the 2002-2004 class of Food and Society Fellows.

Health, from Warner Wellness. Collier has been writing and speaking about health and health policy issues for the past 20 years. Her work has appeared in the Washington Post, the New York Times, The Lansing State Journal and the Post-Tribune. Her work appears regularly in Essence, More, Ladies Home Journal, Woman’s Day, O, the Oprah Magazine, Real Health, Healthy Living, the National Medical Association Magazine, Better Homes and Gardens, AARP Magazine,Heart Healthy Living, More, and others. She was also a member of the 2008-2009 class of IATP Food and Society Policy Fellows. Andrea has been married to Darnay Collier since 1985 (she was a child bride). She is the mother of two children, Nicole and Christopher, who are now older than she is. They live in Lansing, Michigan. Andrea is a native of Gary, Indiana.

MA, founded twenty years ago to create personal and social change through sustainable agriculture. It currently employs over 100 Boston-area teenagers from diverse backgrounds who annually grow, sell, and donate over 250,000 pounds of organic produce. Nationally, the Food Project is helping to build a strong youth movement for just and sustainable food systems. Since 2003, Anim has provided leadership training for over 700 young people and forged a network of 5,000+ young activists and farmers. In 2008, he co-founded the Real Food Challenge, a campaign to re-direct $1 billion of college food purchases away from industrial agriculture towards local, fair, sustainable, and humane sources. Born in Ghana and growing up in West Africa and Washington, DC, Anim holds a Master’s in Public Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School and a B.A. in Astrophysics and History from Williams College.

for better food for all children. A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Hyde Park, NY, Ann has been a chef for more than 30 years including positions with Holland America Cruises, Radisson Hotels, Telluride Ski Resort as well as serving as Executive Chef at the renowned Putney Inn in Vermont. She has been featured in The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Chicago Tribune, Newsweek , and Time Magazine and has appeared on NPR’s ‘Living on Earth,’ ABC’s Nightline, CNN, PBS’ To The Contrary and the CBS Morning Show and many other media outlets. Ann has shared her knowledge and experience by speaking at the Smithsonian Institute, the National Restaurant Association, the Heifer Foundation, Chefs Collaborative, the International Association of Culinary Professionals and numerous conferences. In 2009, Ann founded Food Family Farming Foundation (F3) as a nonprofit focusing on solutions to the school food crisis. F3's pivotal project is The Lunch Box - a web portal that provides free and accessible tools, recipes and community connections to support school food reform. She is currently serving as the Director of Nutrition Services at Boulder Valley School. She was also a member of the 2003-2005 class of Food and Society Policy Fellows.

She works with grassroots leaders to create healthier communities by integrating organizational learning and systems thinking principles. Mansfield has 30 years of experience in healthcare and facilitation utilizing process improvement, multidisciplinary teams, and systems thinking to achieve desired outcomes. Mansfield has a B.A. in nursing from Luther College and an M.S.N. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.