Will is a fourth-generation cattleman, tending the same land that his great-grandfather settled in 1866. Born and raised at White Oak Pastures, he attended the University of Georgia’s School of Agriculture. After graduating in 1976, he returned to Bluffton, where he and his father raised cattle using pesticides, herbicides, hormones and antibiotics, until Will transitioned the farm to regenerative practices.  He is the immediate past President of the Board of Directors of Georgia Organics. He is the Beef Director of the American Grassfed Association and was selected 2011 Business Person of the year for Georgia by the Small Business Administration.  His book, A Bold Return to Giving A Damn: One Farm, Six Generations and the Future of Food, has been described as "more than a memoir—a full exploration of the history of food production in this country, with all its beautiful and ugly aspects. It’s the education we all need to embrace.”

Mary was raised by their parents, Wendell and Tanya Berry, at Lanes Landing Farm in Henry County, Kentucky. She farmed in Henry County starting out in dairy farming, growing Burley tobacco, and later diversifying to organic vegetables, pastured poultry and grass fed beef. Mary currently serves on the Boards of Directors of United Citizens Bank in New Castle, Kentucky, the Schumacher Center for a New Economics in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, and Sterling College in Vermont.

Jack Algiere has thirty years as a diversified organic farmer, professional trainer and thought leader. The founding farmer for Stone Barns Center for Food & Agriculture in 2003, Jack is currently the Chief Agroecology Officer of the not for profit, leading transformational change in Hudson Valley regional food systems agroecology. He works with individuals, foundations and organizations at home and around the world to support practical strategies for resilient and healthy agroecosystems and communities. 

Roberto Meza (he/him) is a first-generation farmer, food systems entrepreneur, advocate, and educator. Born in Mexico, Roberto co-founded Emerald Gardens, a pioneering year-round greenhouse operation in Bennett, CO, and serves as the CEO of East Denver Food Hub, a leading local food supplier in Denver. Roberto champions a values-based ecosystem that prioritizes sustainability and community impact. He serves as the Board President of the National Young Farmers Coalition and is a Governor-appointed member of the Colorado Agricultural Commission. 

Andraly, a board member of Southside Community Trust, farms a two acre CSA in Cumberland, Rhode Island with his daughter Sienna. He loves to spend as much time as possible observing and being still in the natural world. Andraly's love of nature is what informs him in his guided meditations and farming practices. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Health Science and is an organic farmer. This connection to the land led him to become a Mindful Outdoor Guide through the Kripalu Center. He currently leads Nature Liberations and hosts retreats at Open fArms Retreat.

Maine Grains--a gristmill housed in a repurposed jailhouse—has spurred the revival of grain production in Maine.  The enterprise received a substantial portion of its start-up funding through Slow Money Maine.  Amber is a founding director of the Maine Grain Alliance, a nonprofit formed to preserve regional grain traditions from earth to table. She is recognized nationally as a leader in fostering regional economic vitality by revitalizing grain cultivation and processing. Amber currently serves on the boards of Maine Community Foundation, the State of Maine Board of Agriculture, the Boston Federal Reserve Maine Working Communities Grant Challenge Advisory Board, and the Town Selectboard.

Angel is Executive Director of Red Tomato, a non-profit regional food hub working with farmers, distributors and grocers in the Northeast.  Angel has worn many hats during his 21-year tenure at Red Tomato as a warehouse manager, logistics manager, purchasing & sales, and director of operations, and today he is Red Tomato’s proud Executive Director; he often jokes about how long he has been at Red Tomato, saying “I got lost in the sauce.”

Rebecca Busansky is Executive Director of Berkshire Agricultural Ventures in Great Barrington, MA.  Since 2017, BAV has made 52 loans totaling $3.6 million to local farmers and food entrepreneurs.  Rebecca was formerly a Program Director at the Franklin County Community Development Corporation and was on the founding team at PVGrows Investment Fund, an innovative community investment vehicle providing financing and technical assistance to farm and local food entrepreneurs in western MA.  She also managed the Mass Food Trust Program.  She has an undergraduate degree from Brown University and has worked in the community economic development field for more than 30 years.

Woody Tasch is founder and chairman of the Slow Money Institute. His first book, Inquiries into the Nature of Slow Money: Investing as if Food, Farms and Fertility Mattered (2009) sparked a movement, inspiring tens of thousands of individuals to invest in local, organic farms and food enterprises. He is also author of SOIL: Notes Toward the Theory and Practice of Nurture Capital  (2017) and AHA!: Fake Trillions, Real Billions, Beetcoin and the Great American Do-Over (2021). For decades, Woody has been innovating at the nexus of venture capital, social investing and philanthropy. He was chairman and CEO of Investors’ Circle, one of the oldest angel networks in the U.S., facilitating the flow of more than $275 million to hundreds of sustainability-minded early-stage companies. In the 1990s, he was treasurer of the Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation, where he pioneered mission-related investing, and founding chairman of the Community Development Venture Capital Alliance. In the 1980s, he was a principal at Prince Ventures, a healthcare venture capital fund. Utne Reader named him one of  “25 Visionaries Who Are Changing Your World.”

Pat’s Pastured raises 100% grass-fed beef, pasture-raised chickens, ducks, turkeys and pigs organically and regeneratively on 150 Rhode Island acres.  He and his wife Kelly aim “to allow our livestock to express their natural instincts fully in a pasture environment; to provide the highest quality products to the community; to improve all land we farm using carefully-managed organic methods; to share our skills and resources through educational programs and community events; and, to operate our business with openness and transparency.”

Sienna is a budding farmer who has enthusiastically joined her father (Andraly) as a part of Open fArms Retreat. She thrives on the connection made with the land obtained from planting, harvesting, and cooking one’s own food. Sienna has a Bachelors Degree in Psychology and a Masters Degree in Applied Behavior Analysis with a concentration in Autism. She is also a certified yoga teacher and archery instructor. She is currently the Programs Coordinator at OFR.

Since 2021, Brian has run the Colorado Department of Agriculture’s $30 million Agricultural Loan Program, a revolving loan fund for beginning and underserved farmers and ranchers. Since he structured and launched the fund as its first Program Manager, it has distributed $27 million—71% to beginning producers and 26% to underserved producers.  He is former Executive Director of Boulder County Farmers’ Markets—four growers-only, growers-controlled markets with an aggregate of $9 million in annual revenue and cited by USA Today as the “#1 Farmers Market.”  Brian is the only non-profit Executive Director to be named CEO of the Year by ColoradoBiz.  He is a member of the board of the Slow Money Institute.