FOOD FUNDED

Aldo is Managing Director and co-founder of Amazonia Impact Ventures, an impact investment company empowering indigenous and forest people to protect and regenerate the Amazon Rainforest and its biodiversity.

Aner is passionate about pioneering multi-stakeholder governance and ownership models that ensure more equitable and fair outcomes for workers and communities. He serves on the boards of Transform Finance, Complete Solar, Firebrand Artisans, Native American Natural Foods (Tanka Bar).

Before starting Candide, Aner was a Project Leader at the Boston Consulting Group, where he in the energy, water and transportation sectors.  Prior to that, he worked at Israel's leading Project Finance consulting firm. Aner holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management and a BA in Economics and History from Tel Aviv University. He is fluent in Spanish, French and Hebrew.

Bill is a financial activist. He connects people and ideas to create opportunities for transforming the capital markets. In his role as CEO of Iroquois Valley Farms - as well as through his previous endeavors as the founder of the independent advisory and consulting firms, 45North Partners and NorthFork Financial, and as a co-founder of HomeStake Venture Partners, an innovative platform to help mid-market businesses access non-extractive growth capital from like-minded investors - he is deeply committed to creating opportunities to support self-determination, thriving communities, and vibrant ecosystems.

At the American Sustainable Business Network, Colton manages the Clean Water is Good for Business and the Regenerative Agriculture and Justice initiatives that connect business leaders with issue advocacy. He obtained his M.A. in Global Environmental Policy from American University and published the peer-reviewed article "Ecological Costs of discrimination: racism, red cedar, and resilience in farm bill conservation policy in Oklahoma, in the Journal of Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems." He previously worked on sustainability, agriculture, and justice through fellowships at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, Food Tank, and the Rural Coalition. Before entering the policy world, Colton worked in sales and marketing for the natural foods industry and spent time on organic farms in Spain and Costa Rica through work exchange programs.

What do I want? Equitable access to all facets of the Natural Products and CPG industry for anyone who wants to join!

When do I want it?? Now!!

Combining 2 decades of experience assessing, creating and optimizing "systems" with a doctorate in Public Policy and Education Leadership - Cynthia tries to throw the majority of her mental effort behind actions and initiatives that solve the (arbitrary and systemic) inequities that prevent individuals from reclaiming the right to shape their lived reality.

David co-leads the Food & Beverage Practice at the law firm Hanson Bridgett, a long-time Certified B Corporation. He is an experienced business attorney, providing corporate, tax, and international licensing and distribution expertise to the firm's agribusiness and other transactional clients.

At Know Agency we specialize in providing SEO, PPC, and digital marketing expertise that gets you connected and resonating with your customers. Rely on us to give you proven SEO and search strategies based on Google data. We crunch the numbers, analyze the search terms, and audit your digital brand, giving you honest professional feedback on what you need to do to meet your goals.

Janice St. Onge is President of the Flexible Capital Fund (“Flex Fund”), a CDFI impact fund providing flexible risk capital to New England’s food, forestry and clean technology businesses.  Janice brings economic and business development as well as financial expertise to the organization, having worked in  technology, financial services, higher education, non-profit and government during her career.  Janice is a Just Economy Institute fellow and a co-founder of the Vermont/Northern New England Women’s Investors Network and Slow Money Vermont’s Committee.

JANINE FIRPO is a values-aligned investor and social innovator. In 2017 she left a successful 35-year career in technology and international development to focus on how women can create a more just and equitable society through their financial investments.

Her book, Activate Your Money, was published in May 2021. Later that year, Janine co-founded Invest For Better, a non-profit organization that helps women invest their money in ways that align with their values.

Jennifer “Jen” Astone is a financial activist and philanthropic leader. At Integrated Capital Investing, she catalyzes foundations and investors to use all their assets – grants, endowments and leadership ­­– to create equitable, regenerative and restorative economies.

She publishes The Transformative 25 and helped establish the Agroecology Fund and the Transformational Investing in Food Systems Initiative.

Kathleen Casanova has spent more than a decade working in and with nonprofits and universities across the country as a fundraiser, talent consultant and DEI program manager. In 2018, Kathleen decided to pursue her lifelong dream of working with food (she’s been throwing dinner parties since she was nine) and entered the CPG space as a recruiter for emerging brands. She soon fell in love with the industry but also saw the need for more support and resources for other professionals and entrepreneurs of color in the field.

Lolita is a passionate changemaker, committed to building strong and resilient communities, and is proud to be a champion of positive change for social, racial justice, and environmental issues.  She brings over 25 years of diversified and progressive experience from the nonprofit, financial, and for-profit sectors.

Matt turned his lifelong passion for baking and working in the food service industry into Firebrand in 2007.  Matt has a passion to create a great workplace culture of inclusion, hard work and service.  Matt believes that a company has the responsibility to it’s employees as well as the community it serves.  Being raised in a house where his mother went to jail as a teenager and having experienced homelessness himself, Matt aims to make Firebrand a place where people can create a better life for themselves, their families and their community.

Merril Gilbert is a provocative thought leader in the future of food and cannabis consumable innovations. A visionary connector enthusiastic about change, Merril believes in using available resources to lead healthier and more resilient lives. As co-founder and CEO of Curious Futures, Merril provides strategic guidance to innovators, disruptors, and refiners.

Michelle brings 17 years of experience helping natural and organic brands gain the market traction they need to succeed. She has played an integral role in year-over-year growth of Natural Products Expo East and Expo West, principally driving sales and specializing in relationship building and connections, as well as the mutual success of her clients and the natural products industry. Michelle manages New Hope’s international sales agents and business in Canada, South America, Europe, Africa and the Middle East, including the long-time partnership between New Hope and BIOFACH America.

Olivia Watkins is a social entrepreneur and impact investor. For the past seven years, she has financed, developed, and operated environmental and social projects across the US. She currently serves as a co-founder and President of Black Farmer Fund, a non-profit impact investing organization creating sustainable and equitable food systems by investing in black farmers and food businesses of NY. She also serves on the board for Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems Funders and Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT.

Olivia has an MBA from North Carolina State University in Financial Management, and a BA from Barnard College, Columbia University in Environmental Biology. She was also recognized on the 2021 Forbes 30 under 30 Social Impact list and as the 2023 James Beard Foundation Humanitarian of the Year.

Patrick Wyman has 29 years of experience in the natural foods industry, and 19 with Whole Foods Market. He started with the company in a store support role for the grocery department, moved through grocery leadership, and now oversees the Northern California region’s local purchasing program and local vendor partnerships. In this role Patrick helps guide vendors through the logistics of bringing a product to market including topics like packaging, distribution, financing, and compliance with company and governmental standards. He’s passionate about the environment; professionally he participates in Whole Foods Market’s Green Mission leadership team, and spends plenty of time off work hiking and skiing.

Perri Kramer is the Program Director at Food System 6 Accelerator. She designs and leads the programming to support entrepreneurship and provides direct strategic support to frontline innovators in the food and agriculture space. Perri has led Marketing and Operation teams, as well as product launches, in the organic food industry for over fifteen years.

Founder @ Sanchi Foods, puffed bean snacks made from 3 ancient beans, Modern Snacks inspired by ancient wisdom.

Advocate for diverse, nutrient- dense food sources and regenerative farming.

Ranjani Prabhakar provides policy and advocacy expertise on the Policy & Legislation team at Earthjustice. Her issue areas are at the intersection of climate and agriculture, and in advancing equitable climate resilience solutions. Prior to joining Earthjustice, Ranjani served on the sustainability team at the City of Chicago Mayor's Office, where she worked a community solar initiative, renewable energy challenge program, and micro-mobility pilot program.

She received her Master’s in City Planning and Civil Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, and her Bachelors from Emory University. In her free time, she moonlights as a musician and writes about sustainable food systems for her blog, Cumin Nature.

Reem Assil is a Palestinian-Syrian entrepreneur based in Oakland, CA and founder of Reem’s California, nationally acclaimed bakeries and restaurants, inspired by her passion for Arab street corner bakeries and the vibrant communities they feed.

Informed by twenty years of work in the both non-profit and food industry, Reem’s current work sits at the intersection of her three passions: Arab hospitality, community-building, and social justice.

Shayna Harris is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Supply Change Capital, a Chicago-based venture capital firm.  Supply Change invests in early-stage food tech and culture-first brands. Shayna has executive experience at venture-backed start-ups including Farmer’s Fridge and Sourcemap, and she was a pioneer of the sustainable procurement program at Mars.

Shayna earned her MBA from MIT Sloan and a dual-BA from Boston University. She is a Fulbright Scholar, a published author, and a Forbes contributing writer.

Zack Angelini formerly led global sustainability at Timberland, a VF company.  In this role, Zack developed and implemented Timberland’s product sustainability strategy, setting public-facing goals and driving internal processes for success.  With Zack’s leadership, Timberland and parent company VF Corporation built new regenerative agriculture supply chains for their top volume natural materials including leather, cotton, and natural rubber.

With that experience, Zack is now consulting for major brands while also co-launching a new business to build efficiently-scaled regenerative supply chains for the food and fashion industry.