About Berklee

Food is beautiful; it forges joy and community, and it connects us across nationalities, languages, and cultures. But, it can also be ugly, –very ugly. From the rise of diet-related illnesses to the rampant use of synthetic chemicals, conventional agriculture has had devastating effects on both people and our planet.

I’ve dedicated the entirety of my budding career to the stewardship of our land: prioritizing soil and ecosystem health while building equitable and sustainable ingredient supply chains for natural food companies. In an industry my parents couldn’t have predicted would exist in their lifetimes (sustainability within the packaged food industry), the biggest climate impacts occur at the farm level of the supply chain, and changing the way ingredients are grown is no small task.

My professional experience has been spent working to redefine the role a food brand can play in changing the impact of today’s heavily commoditized and disaggregated ingredient supply chains. Largely non-existent just a decade ago, corporate sustainability has rapidly gained momentum and investment, offering me a stable career full of opportunities and purpose. Some of my most cherished moments have included ingredient processing facility exploration, operational problem-solving, and conversations with farmers. While we’re nowhere near the finish line when it comes to a sustainable and just food system, more and more jobs, funding, and commitments come online each day in support of this vision. In stark contrast, support for our oceans remains critically inadequate.

As an active PADI dive professional, I am directly confronted with the degradation of our marine ecosystems on a weekly basis. The reefs I love are struggling under the weight of poorly managed tourism, acidification-induced bleaching, and rampant plastic pollution. The world’s oceans are not only the “lungs of our planet,” generating half of the oxygen we breathe, but also our largest carbon sink. Despite their critical role in shielding us from the worst impacts of climate change, oceans receive less than 1% of philanthropic giving. Ocean-based climate solutions are ripe for creativity and innovation, but the field is in its infancy. As I embark on my next chapter, I hope to widen my focus to include the one resource vital to all life on Earth  – water. Most meaningful endeavors are challenging, and reshaping the future of our oceans is no different.