Nutrition Education Program, Special Projects, University of Kentucky

Rosie is a veteran member of the Food Policy Council and a Steering Committee member for the Kentucky Food Action Network. She has worked in northern and central Kentucky urban and rural communities for over 30 years. She now uses her expertise and experience in the Special Projects of the Nutrition Education Program at the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension. In addition to her content knowledge, Rosie brings talents in administration and organization to our work together.

Founder and CSO, Inland Shrimp Company

Gary is a lifelong foodie with years of experience in the culinary and farm industries. While selling farms and farmland, he witnessed firsthand many issues present to local growers. Gary founded Inland Shrimp Company and presently serves as its Chief Shrimping Officer. He plans to become the region’s largest domestic seafood producer and aims to use his passion for sustainability, local food production, and alternative energy to help and serve the community. 

Food Writer

Polly wrote articles storytelling elements of the local food system for years at Cincinnati Enquirer. She sees the fundamental importance of a cohesive, area-wide approach that supports and connects the people and projects working to build a food system that is an alternative to the mainstream industrial agriculture approach. She advocates for a food system that produces locally-raised food that is healthy.

Founder/CEO, Isaiah 55, Inc.

Shannon has worked in the food service field for over 20 years, and she is the Founder and CEO of Isaiah 55, Inc., based in Cincinnati, OH. She calls herself an interior decorator of repurposed gardens and is passionate about educating youth in gardening, nutrition, food services, and the importance of eating balanced meals.

Founding Director, Your Store of the Queen City

Reba is an Equitable Community Food Systems Facilitator known best for Your Store of the Queen City's work supporting the neighborhood of Lower Price Hill with community-based development of Meiser's Fresh Grocery & Deli. Her long term vision is for neighborhoods to be in control of their food in a manner promotes dignity, health, economic and social connectedness while improving society's impact on the planet.

VP, Voter Services, League of Women Voters

Kimberly Jacobs helped found the East Walnut Hills Farmers’ Market, established in 2022 in a Cincinnati neighborhood with limited food access. She worked with the Ohio Council on Aging to qualify the market to accept Senior Farmers Market Nutrition coupons to obtain locally grown, fresh produce. Kimberly has attended multiple UN COP environmental conferences as a League of Women Voters delegate, focusing on food systems and their role as both a cause and effect of climate crisis.

Assistant Professor, University of Cincinnati, and Founder & CEO, WiseWoman Health Collective

Fran has collaborated with community activists and agencies focused on developing a just food ecosystem. In addition, she worked as a dietitian, developing nutrition education programs for over two decades in Cincinnati. She believes in an accessible, equitable, and sustainable food system for all families.

Program Coordinator, Bearcats Pantry and Resource Center, University of Cincinnati

Joy connects Bearcats in need to essential resources like food. Her food systems interests include sustainable agriculture, farm to institution, and food security work. 

Manager of Health Advocacy and Strategy, The Health Gap, and Adjunct Professor at The Christ College of Nursing

Akesa is deeply committed to the Food Policy Council's mission of driving positive change through advocacy and coordinated action. Akesa's role within The Health Gap centers on eliminating racial and ethnic health disparities, and this commitment to equity and inclusivity extends to their work with the Food Policy Council. 

Akesa’s goals for the Council closely align with its mission. She is passionate about promoting equitable food access and education in Greater Cincinnati.

Community Food Advocate, Butler County

Michelle is a Community Food Advocate and serves as Board Chair for Hamilton Urban Garden Systems (HUGS), which operates a community garden that grows produce organically and donates to local food pantries, community meal centers and residents. Michelle is a huge proponent of equity and access to fresh produce in underserved communities. She also aspires to educate youth on the benefits of healthy eating and sustainability.

Co-Owner/Operator, Intersect Agriculture

Mark’s goals for the FPC involve access for farmers to clean water and better food waste management systems. He is a food producer and environmental scientist who believes a resilient regional food system demonstrates efficiency in production, transportation, and waste usage within the food system.

Agriculture Career Tech Pathway Educator, Aiken High School

Mr. Parker is the Agriculture Career Tech Pathway Educator at Aiken High School. He established the Agriculture Career Tech Pathway at Aiken High School by developing an after-school Garden Club that has evolved into a robust program. To Aaron, a resilient food system is culturally responsive and focused on environmental security.

Co-Owner, Rich Life Farm & Fungi

Emalee's farm is expanding its business by opening up a storefront offering its farm products, other local farm products, light bites and drinks, and wholesale distribution. She believes a resilient food system is accessible and focuses strongly on local production.

Value Chain Coordinator, Food & Growers Association

Pam is a Value Chain Coordinator (VCC) in the Southeast Region of Indiana. As a VCC she works with small to midsize farmers and ranchers helping them to find market channels, resources, grant opportunities, and provides one on one support to help them scale up to become a financially viable business.

Food Waste Diversion Program Specialist, Hamilton County ReSource

Tony is passionate about limiting food waste by supporting food rescue and compost organizations. He is a founding member of the Greater Cincinnati Regional Food Policy Council. To Tony, a resilient regional food system will help everyone thrive.

Associate Professor, The Christ College of Nursing and
Health Sciences, and School and Community Forest Garden Liaison, University of Cincinnati

In addition to his work as a professor, Alan is the inaugural Public Entrepreneurship Fellow for UC’s Office of Innovation and Community Partnerships and teaches Fruit and Nut Production at Cincinnati State. Alan works with schools and communities to create maps of their food related assets and plant edible forest gardens. His current project, Cincinnati’s Foodshed: An Art Atlas – Past, Present, & Future, tells the story of the innovations that have changed the global foodshed.

Manager, Food Security, Jewish Family Services

Tracy’s career has progressed from ensuring people had something to eat, to caring about the nutritional quality of what they were eating, to later seeking policy and system changes within schools and early learning centers. In one Washington school, Tracy learned how food was rescued and salvaged and in another how it was grown on both a large and small scale. Currently, she oversees the Heldman Family Food Pantry for Jewish Family Service.