SOLUTIONS FROM THE LAND - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
A.G. Kawamura is a third generation produce grower and shipper from Orange County, California. From 2003 to 2010 he served as the Secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture. He is founding co-chair of Solutions from the Land (solutionsfromtheland.org), a nationally recognized non-profit that is developing innovative and sustainable climate smart collaborations for 21st century agriculture. He serves on multiple boards and advisory committees including the Farm Foundation Board; Western Growers Board and former Chair; Roots of Peace Board; CSU Agricultural Research Institute, Board of Governors; Ag Advisory Committee for the Chicago Council; Bipartisan Policy Center, Ag & Forestry task force; Advisory Council for Honor the Harvest.
For over 40 years Mr. Kawamura has pursued a lifelong goal to work towards an end to hunger and malnutrition. Locally, he is founding chair of Solutions For Urban Ag (SFUA.org). He has worked closely with Regional Food Banks and stakeholders to create exciting urban ag projects that focus on nutrition, hunger, education and advanced food systems. As a progressive farmer, Mr. Kawamura has a lifetime of experience working within the shrinking rural and urban boundaries of Southern California. A.G. graduated with a BA from UC Berkeley and was a member of Class XX of the Calif. Ag Leadership Program.
Adrienne is a second-generation cranberry grower and grower-owner in the Ocean Spray Cooperative in Southeastern Massachusetts. She currently serves on USDA's Cranberry Marketing Committee, the Education and Outreach Committee and Education Foundation for the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers Association and served 9 years for Farm Service Agency state committee. 2010 Eisenhower Fellow reviewing sustainable agricultural practices in South America and served 3 years on their global counsel.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Amelia and Russell Kent own Kent Farms LLC, through which they raise and market cattle in most segments of the beef industry, including cow/calf, stockers, replacement heifers, direct marketing beef and feeding cattle to finish. While they represent the fifth and sixth generations of farmers in each of their families, Amelia and Russell founded and built their business from its start. Amelia currently chairs the Louisiana Beef Industry Council, Louisiana Farm Bureau's Livestock Advisory Committee, and serves as a Regional Council Representative and on the Policies and Resolutions Committee for Land O'Lakes Inc. A former member of the Cattlemen's Beef Board and the CBB Executive Committee, Amelia also previously served on the Louisiana Farm Bureau Board of Directors.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
A second-generation farmer from Leelanau County, MI, Ben grows tart and sweet cherries, which are all processed by his family-owned company, Leelanau Fruit Company. Ben has served on numerous industry committees and is currently a District Director for Michigan Farm Bureau.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Executive Director of the Ohio Forestry Association
Brad Perkins has been the Executive Director of the Ohio Forestry Association since February of 2016 and his mission is to work on behalf of OFA's more than 600 members representing wood products manufacturers, sawmills, logging companies, foresters and forestry consultants, forest landowners, equipment companies, and service firms. Prior to the Ohio Forestry Association he spent 38 years with the former Stone Container Corporation papermill in Coshocton as a forest resource professional, purchasing wood fiber in Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. During his career in the paper industry, he worked in the field of experimental hybrid poplars; he managed the mill's fiber quality testing and control processes; he lead safety steering teams for the company's forest resource groups in the northern tier of the U.S.; he spent most of 3 years from late 2009 into 2012 working on fiber procurement strategies at the company's U.S. and Canadian papermills. Brad graduated from Hocking College in SE Ohio with an Associate's Degree in Forestry; is born and raised in Coshocton County; currently lives with his wife Diane in Muskingum County.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director of the Initiative for Food and Agri
Brian Snyder is executive director of the Initiative for Food and AgriCultural Transformation (InFACT) at The Ohio State University, a position he has held since June 1, 2016. InFACT pursues holistic approaches to ensure good food for all. Its work is based on collaboration across the sciences, engineering and humanities, as well as the engagement of external partners in government and private industry. As such, he is addressing challenges along the entire value chain from field to fork, with an aim to ensure the future health of farms, the environment and consumers alike. Previously, and for over 15 years, Brian served as executive director of the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA), which is considered one of the largest and most effective sustainable ag organizations in the United States. During his tenure, PASA membership grew from about 1,000 to nearly 6,000 individuals. Before moving to Pennsylvania, Brian was executive director of The William J. Gould Associates, which operates Gould Farm, a 700-acre sustainable farm and mental health treatment facility in the Berkshire Hills of Western Massachusetts, known to be America's oldest therapeutic community of this type. Brian holds two masters' degrees, from Harvard University (Theological Studies) and the Isenberg School of Management (Business Administration) at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. In addition to writing and speaking in a number of venues on the subject of sustainable agriculture, Brian serves on several other related boards, including as the Immediate Past President of the Pennsylvania State Council of Farm Organizations. He also serves in an advisory capacity for the Resnick Program for Food Law & Policy at UCLA in Los Angeles.
Job Titles:
- Strategic Advisor
- Vice Admiral
Don Villwock, is a retiring no-till sustainable farmer from Edwardsport Indiana. Don and his wife Joyce have no-tilled for 40 years and have used cover crops for over 20 years. He produces white corn, seed soybeans, seed wheat and popcorn. Don served as president of Indiana Farm Bureau and was a founding board member of the 25×25 renewable energy group.
Bobby Moser served as Vice President and Dean of The Ohio State University's College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences from 1991 to November 2012. Born in Cyril, Oklahoma, Bobby Moser earned his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Animal Science and Nutrition at Oklahoma State University in 1965 and 1969, respectively. He earned a Ph.D. in Animal Nutrition at the University of Nebraska in1972. Moser is nationally recognized and is credited with the development of scientifically sound and sustainable programs, while incorporating ecological ethics and technological innovations. His developments in the field continue to influence and drive the future of agriculture in the United States and around the world.
Job Titles:
- the Ohio State University As an Assistant Professor
Casey Hoy joined The Ohio State University as an Assistant Professor of Entomology upon completion of his graduate work at Cornell University in 1987, and was promoted to Associate Professor in 1993, and Professor in 1998. The former Associate Chairman of the Department of Entomology, he has held the Kellogg Endowed Chair in Agricultural Ecosystems Management and provided leadership to the Agroecosystems Management Program of the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center since 2006. Prof. Hoy's past research has included systems analysis and its application to integrated pest management and applied ecology. His current work provides interdisciplinary leadership toward advancements in agroecosystem health and sustainable communities. He currently leads the Ohio State University Discovery Themes Initiative for Food and AgriCultural Transformation, InFACT, an investment of more than $100 million over the next 10 years in resilient and sustainable food security, including 30 new faculty hires across the University. Prof. Hoy teaches graduate level courses that include systems analysis and quantitative methods in environmental research. He has received the OARDC Multidisciplinary Team Research Award, OARDC Distinguished Faculty Research Award, and the ESA Award for Excellence in Integrated Pest Management. He has served on many federal grant review panels, the Ohio Food Policy Advisory Council, several boards of trustees and the executive committee for the Kellogg endowed Inter-institutional Network for Food and Agricultural Sustainability.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Howard has been involved with sustainable agricultural and agroforestry systems, plant breeding, molecular biology and genetics for over 50 years. He has worked with indigenous communities, NGO's, governmental agencies and the private sector. His academic career spans 45 years. He served as the Co-Chairperson for the 1st and 2nd World Congress of Agroforestry. He co-authored the Mid-Term Review of the CGIAR, co-authored, 21st Century Agricultural Renaissance: Solutions from the Land, he was the lead author on the biotechnology chapter for the IAASTD Global Report. Shapiro founded the African Orphan Crops Consortium (AOCC) and the African Plant Breeding Academy in 2012. The effort will sequence, assemble and annotate 101 key food cultivars, which are the backbone of African nutrition. 2021, he initiated the African Plant Breeding Academy. CRISPR aiming to deploy the latest CRISPR technologies (i.e., genome editing) to fast-track development of new sources of vital traits in food crops in Africa.
In August of 2018 he co-authored, in PLoSBiology, the landmark paper, that shows for the first time a maize landrace grown in nitrogen-depleted fields near Oaxaca, Mexico, where up to 82% of the plant nitrogen is derived from atmospheric nitrogen. This work was done under the Nagoya Protocol. In August of 2022 he co-authored, in Plant Biotech Journal, a breakthrough paper, Genetic modification of flavone biosynthesis in rice enhances biofilm formation of soil diazotrophic bacteria and biological nitrogen fixation.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
- President of Solutions
Ernie Shea is the President of Solutions from the Land (SfL), a not-for-profit organization that incubates and supports farmer-led, multi-stakeholder platforms that inspire, educate, and equip agricultural partners to innovate and lead efforts to sustain productivity, enhance climate resilience, and contribute to local and global goals for sustainable development. SfL brings agricultural thought leaders to the forefront of conversations about the food system, the environment and the future.
Shea has over 40 years of experience at the global, national, state and local level where he has designed and facilitated initiatives to enhance the effective functioning and ability of agricultural landscapes to sequester carbon, protect water quality, improve public health, and ensure a growing and resilient food system.
Early in his career, Shea worked for the State of Maryland where he held a number of senior leadership positions including Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Agricultural Development and Resource Conservation with responsibility for soil and water conservation, land preservation, domestic and international marketing and other service-oriented programs designed to strengthen the state's agricultural industry.
From 1986-2004 Shea served as Chief Executive Officer of the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD). As CEO of NACD, Shea represented and facilitated the effective functioning of the association consisting of nearly 3,000 local units of government, 17,000 public officials and 7,000 employees with combined annual budgets exceeding $1billion.
Among his current activities, Shea facilitates the 25x'25 and North American Climate Smart Agriculture Alliances and coordinates SfL's state level climate smart agriculture work program. He serves on the Board of the Harry R. Hughes Center for Agro-Ecology and is involved with the Chesapeake Bay cleanup effort focusing on agricultural, conservation and bioenergy projects. He is also the Founder and Principal of Natural Resource Solutions (NRS), LLC, a conservation and natural resource policy and program consultancy.
Ernie and his wife Karen reside in Lutherville, Maryland where he serves on the Board of the Lutherville Community Association. They enjoy sailing and spending time with their three grown children and eight grandchildren.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Fred Yoder is a 4th generation farmer who has lived and farmed near Plain City, Ohio for over 40 years. Along with his wife Debbie and his 2 children, he grows corn, soybeans, and wheat. He also has operated a retail farm seed business for over 36 years and sells seed to all kinds of farmers including those who use biotech varieties, conventional varieties, and also to those who grow organic crops.
Fred has traveled many times to the European Union to speak about co-existence of production systems, where both organic and other production systems can thrive side by side as neighbors. Fred is a founding board member and now Co-Chair of "Solutions from the Land". He also serves as Chair of the "North American Climate Smart Agriculture Alliance," representing all factions of production agriculture, and working to ensure that farmer-to-farmer education and economics will be the driving force to adapting to feeding the world while dealing with a changing climate.
A 4th generation farmer from Northern California, Anderson's family farm grows almonds and walnuts, and operates a walnut huller. She currently serves on the California Farm Bureau Board of Directors as chair of the Young Farmer and Rancher (YF&R) committee, having served as a vice chair on the national YF&R committee. Jocelyn is also a Board Member of the Glenn County Resource Conservation District, which promotes and helps farmers and ranchers with sustainability and conservation practices, including healthy soils programs, and a variety of conservation-focused grants.
He is the owner/operator at Bridgeforth Farms, a fifth-generation row-crop operation headquartered in Tanner that focuses on using modern technology and agronomics to grow high quality agricultural products. Kyle primarily works with crop traceability and efficiencies, along with new product implementation. Beyond the farm he works closely with several industry associations
Job Titles:
- Citrus Producer and General Manager of Peace River Packing Co., a Citrus Cooperative That Provides Caretaking, Harvesting and Fresh Fruit Packing
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Director of the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission
Shelby is Director of the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission, a farmer, and an active member of the agricultural community. She currently farms with her family on their 4 th-generation farm, Robin Hill Farm & Vineyards, in Brandywine, Maryland, where they grow wine grapes, run the farm winery, and host private events in their barn venue. Shelby also freelances for several regional and national agricultural publications, including the Lancaster Farming Newspaper, Pink Tractor, and American Agriculturist. Shelby recently finished serving a two-year term on the American Farm Bureau Federation's National Young Farmers & Ranchers Committee.
Job Titles:
- Owner and Manager of Harborview Farms
Trey Hill is the owner and manager of Harborview Farms in Rock Hall, Maryland. A fourth-generation grain farmer, he and his family sustainably produce corn, wheat, and soybeans for the Mid-Atlantic region.
A graduate of Perdue University with a degree in Farm Management and Economics, Hill has been committed throughout his career to innovative agriculture sustainability. At Harborview Farms, he and his team are breaking new ground with innovative and creative farming techniques-combining the wisdom of traditional practices with forward-thinking, environmentally conscious solutions that are shaping the future of the agricultural industry.
Guided by the belief that the right farming practices can improve the quality of our lives, land, and waterways, Hill sees the opportunity for change and transformation in each new season. Hill is drawing from that deep environmental ethic and his multigenerational farming legacy as Harborview Farms grows towards the future. Hill and his wife, Cheryl, have two children.
Verity is an owner/operator of a crop and livestock farm with her husband, Anthony Ulibarri, in Curry County New Mexico, primarily producing grain sorghum, winter wheat, forages, and cattle. She is a fifth-generation farmer and continues to be active in farm management, production and farm related organizations. Verity has 15 years of agricultural lending experience in the Farm Credit System and a number of years of experience as a board member of the United Sorghum Checkoff Program, U.S. Grains Council and a long-term member of National Sorghum Producers.