Board of Trustees

Tara Agrawal – (Roslindale, MA) Tara is currently Senior Project Manager in Boston Children’s Hospital’s Office of Community Health (OCH) where she leads a multifaceted grantmaking initiative focused on improving the health and well-being of children and families. Tara has been working at the intersection of community nutrition practice and research both domestically and internationally for over 15 years. Prior to joining OCH, Tara served as an agricultural advisor with Global Exchange and ENLACE Civil, a Mexican NGO, advising indigenous farmers in Southern Mexico about sustainable agricultural development. Tara returned to the U.S. to pursue her Master’s Degree in Food Policy and Applied Nutrition from the Tufts Friedman School. It was during this time that she first connected with The Food Project—serving as the urban grower’s assistant & farmers’ market manager. Tara has since earned her PhD in Nutritional Sciences from Cornell University. As a community nutrition researcher, Tara is interested in the social and behavioral aspects of food and eating to inform policy and practice. She has conducted research on a variety of food, agriculture, and health related topics for organizations including UNICEF, the World Bank, the Jesuit Refugee Service, and The Food Chain Workers Alliance.

Amy Ballin – (Gloucester, MA) Amy’s career as an educator spans over 30 years from teaching science education at elementary and middle schools to working as a school counselor for children with language-based learning disabilities to her current position at Simmons University as an assistant professor in the special education department. Amy received her Bachelor in Science from Cornell University as an environmental education major. She earned a Masters in Science Teaching from Antioch University New England and worked as a science educator for ten years before returning to college to obtain a Masters in Social Work from Boston University. Dr. Ballin received her CAG.S. in education administration and her PhD in education from Lesley University where she explored theories of school culture, the ethics of special education, and student motivation. Amy is the mother of two children who were fortunate to participate in The Food Project as youth and then later as staff. Their experiences at The Food Project were life altering. As young adults, they use the skills and insights from The Food Project to advance social justice. Amy is also an avid gardener committed to growing her own food.

Cassandria Campbell – (Dorchester, MA) Cassandria is a 1999 alumna of The Food Project and co-founder of Fresh Food Generation, a Boston-based food truck and catering company. After participating in The Food Project’s youth crews, Cassandria studied Economics and Public Policy at Swarthmore College and later returned to The Food Project as a youth coordinator. With an interest in building communities, Cassandria pursued a Master’s Degree in Urban Planning from MIT and spent time working in affordable housing development. Campbell co-founded Fresh Food Generation in 2014 with Jackson Renshaw, fellow Food Project alumnus, with a shared goal of bringing healthy, locally-sourced food to communities where these options are hard to come by. In 2014, Cassandria was included in Zagat’s 30-Under-30 list—honoring Boston’s young entrepreneurs who are redefining the dining industry. She is also the 2018 winner of The Food Project’s Leadership Award.

Valerie Cardoso – (Dorchester, MA) Valerie is a Climate Change Policy Analyst for the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA). Prior to her time at EEA, she worked as the Deputy Director of Constituent Services for the Office of Governor Charles Baker. Valerie graduated with a B.A. in Sociology from Boston College in 2014, and upon graduation, served as a City Year Americorps member at an elementary school in the Bronx, NY. After completing her first year of Americorps service, she returned to Boston where she spent the year crossing the country leading volunteers in high impact service projects at both schools and nonprofit organizations.Valerie became involved with The Food Project’s Seed Crew at the age of 15. She spent three years in various youth roles throughout the organization and was given opportunities to represent The Food Project outside of Boston. Valerie frequently states that her passion for service and social justice started at The Food Project, and that the organization has played the most important role in shaping her life and career trajectory.

Peter Demuth – (Newton, MA) is an executive manager and business attorney with substantial experience with boards of directors, professional and financial services management, and business transactions. Peter is a member (“partner”) of the corporate and securities practice at Mintz Levin, a Boston based international law firm. He provides strategic counsel on a broad range of corporate, fiduciary, operational and transactional issues, including mergers and acquisitions, investments and financings, sustainability, fiduciary and governance matters.  Prior to his current tenure at Mintz Levin, Peter was a member of Sun Life Financial’s United States executive management team where he served as Chief Strategy and Business Development Officer and as Chief Counsel. Peter has served as a member of Mintz Levin’s Policy Committee as well as on several nonprofit and Sun Life boards. Peter has counseled numerous boards on fiduciary, operational and transformational transaction matters, and lectured on corporate law and risk management. Peter currently serves as a member of LexArt and The Food Project’s Board of Directors. Peter’s education includes the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program and a JD cum laude from Boston University School of Law. When not working or helping a nonprofit, Peter can be found gardening, fishing, or woodworking.

Michelle Dyer – (Essex, MA) Michelle is Vice President Risk, Compliance & ESG at American Express Global Business Travel (GBT), leading enterprise risk management and regulatory compliance (privacy, anti-corruption, sanctions, anti-money laundering, incident management response, etc.) in Europe and Africa, as well as mergers and acquisitions compliance and sustainability initiatives globally. Ms. Dyer previously led shareholder governance, stand-up, and separation activities at the formation of the GBT joint venture, and has held various other mergers and acquisitions and transformation roles throughout her career. Ms. Dyer has a B.A. (Art and Culture Studies) from Simon Fraser University in Canada; an M.Sc. (Sustainability) from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden; and an M.B.A. (Finance) from Northeastern University in the United States.

Charlene Fibbe – (Hamilton, MA) Charlene started with The Food Project in the summer of 2018—after seeing her older sister’s growth at The Food Project sparked her interest. She has worked in Seed Crew, Dirt Crew, and is currently a member of Root Crew. When she is not working at The Food Project, Charlene can be found at Environmental Club, Science Club, Math Team; or playing basketball, volleyball, or lacrosse. Charlene is currently a junior at Hamilton Wenham Regional High School.

Sarah Gould – (Hamilton, MA) Sarah grew up in the north of England and graduated from Cambridge University with a degree in Land Economy. After an early career as a chartered surveyor in London, she joined the British merchant banking firm Kleinwort Benson Limited. She served postings in Chicago and New York as a Vice President in commercial real estate and leveraged lending. Sarah left the workforce just prior to having the first of three daughters and has been an active mother and volunteer over the past twenty plus years. She is a past trustee of Brookwood School and has volunteered in different capacities (and on several occasions) in Tanzania, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, and West Virginia. She currently volunteers on a regular basis as a literacy tutor in Lawrence and at a food pantry in Beverly, where she has seen first-hand the enthusiasm when fresh produce has been made available. Sarah has been a keen volunteer and supporter of The Food Project for over ten years and loves taking care of her own tiny vegetable garden on the coast of Maine. The rest of the year, she lives in Hamilton with her husband, daughters, and dogs.

Norris Guscott – (Somerville, MA) Norris is a clinical and social sciences researcher currently enrolled in Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government’s UE Executive Education Program (Using Evidence to Assess Effectiveness). Additionally, Norris collaborates with Harvard Medical School’s The Family Van and HMS MedScience with their impact analysis and research publications. Norris has a deep history with The Food Project. At the age of 16, he was introduced to the organization by former executive director, J. Harrison, while working in a community garden in Lynn, MA. Norris later became one of The Food Project’s first FoodCorps service members, and eventually went on to publish a research piece on the benefits of community gardens in collaboration with The Food Project. He is currently completing his academic studies while working at Dana Farber Cancer Institute and consulting regularly with several Boston area non-profit organizations. In his spare time, Norris is an avid gardener and competitive cricket player.

Geneliz Herrera – (Lynn, MA) Geneliz, currently a Root Crew Peer Leader on the North Shore, has been at The Food Project since the summer of 2017. She has worked in Seed Crew, Dirt Crew, and Root Crew, in addition to serving as a Summer Root Crew Peer Leader in both the summer and academic seasons. She also serves as a member of La Vida Scholars—a program that helps high-achieving, low-income Lynn students attend great colleges and universities with minimal debt. A resident of Lynn, Massachusetts, Geneliz is a junior at Lynn English High School and a member of the Lynn All City Orchestra. She recently started a club at her school called The Godiva Club, which focuses on women empowerment—creating a safe, comforting, women-supporting-women environment at her high school. In her free time, Geneliz can be found with her nose stuck in a book or testing new baking recipes.

Carole Kasper – (Lincoln, MA)  Originally raised in New England with a deep appreciation of the region’s farming culture, Carole has lived in various parts of the United States. Prior to founding and leading an organization development consulting company based initially in Denver and then in Greater Boston, Carole was partner and senior consultant in a Washington-D.C.-based consulting firm, account manager in an Atlanta-based change-management firm, and a professional administrator at two major New England universities. She has considerable background with public organizations at every level of federal, state, county, regional, and local government, with experience consulting, training, and facilitating in the private and non-profit sectors as well. Carole was named the founding Kidder Scholar during her years at The University of Vermont, before graduating summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Communication Science and receiving the university-wide Mary Jean Simpson Award. Carole holds a Master of Education (M.Ed.) from the University of Massachusetts / Amherst, with a specialized focus in Multicultural Organization Development. At UMASS, she taught the College of Education’s Social Diversity course, while also facilitating classes with the Social Issues Training Project. Carole completed an additional year of graduate course work within Boston University’s College of Education, and has also earned various post-graduate professional certifications. She offers 20+ years of volunteer experience as a board member, community leader, local contributor, and publicly-elected official in two municipalities. Carole, her husband, and their two sons enjoy growing their own vegetables, have been proud supporters of The Food Project since first moving to Lincoln in 2009, and appreciate their home’s close proximity to The Food Project’s Baker Bridge Farm.  

Anmol Mehra – (Boston, MA)  Anmol is a recent graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. He is currently an affordable housing investor and developer. Previously he worked for 15 years as an equity research analyst and portfolio manager for Fidelity Investments in Boston. Prior to joining Fidelity, Anmol was a pension consulting actuary at Towers Perrin, a human resources consulting firm in Houston, TX. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics and actuarial studies from the University of Texas at Austin and an MBA from McCombs School of Business, also from the University of Texas. Anmol is an Associate of the Society of Actuaries. He is on the Board of Directors with Urbanity Dance, a Boston-based contemporary dance company, and a Board member with Music For All, a national music education and advocacy nonprofit in Indianapolis. Anmol is also a partner with Social Venture Partners, and he is on the Advisory board for the University of Texas MBA Investment Fund.

Daniel Peirce – (Carlisle, MA)  Dan is the Vice President of Marketing for T.J.Maxx, the largest brand of the TJX Companies, Inc., a leading off-price retailer in the U.S. and internationally. In his role he is responsible for the end-to-end customer experience including brand strategy, multi-channel content creation, integrated marketing communications, creative, and agency leadership. Prior to TJX, Dan held a variety of brand leadership roles at PepsiCo, Starbucks Coffee Company, Welch’s and Adidas Group. Diversity and inclusion are a passion point for Dan and he’s held a range of leadership roles in Asian-American, Multi-Cultural, and Pride affinity groups in each of his corporate roles. Dan received a B.S. in Natural Resources from Cornell University and attended The Graduate School at Cornell for Landscape Architecture. After a brief career in the non-profit sector, he returned to school, graduating with distinction from The Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. Dan’s wife is an organic farmer and they cook farm-to-table meals regularly with their 13-year-old son. In his spare time, he runs, does Crossfit, and participates in GORUCK overnight endurance events.  

Diane Remin – (Watertown, MA) Diane is the President of MajorDonors.com, a consulting and training company that helps small-to-mid-sized nonprofits raise more money with an eye toward major gifts. Prior to founding MajorDonors.com, Diane was a Senior Associate at Wellesley, MA-based Biondolillo Associates, Inc., a marketing and development firm that creates innovative, branded fundraising programs for nonprofit organizations. As a nonprofit board member, Diane has made “asks” for both capital campaigns and operating support. A top-rated speaker and trainer, Diane’s technique-driven workshops hit the mark with individual nonprofit boards and large conferences. In 2016, she was named one of the “Top 25 Most Effective Fundraising Consultants” by Philanthropy Media. She is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. Diane holds a BA from Carnegie-Mellon University and an MBA from Boston University. Her twitter handle is @DianeRemin. She likes to point out that “Giving is good for your health!”

Marta Rivera – (Boston, MA) Born and raised in Boston, Marta has over 25 years of experience working in communities throughout the city. She is currently the Chief of Staff to the Health & Human Services (HHS) cabinet in Boston. HHS is the city’s largest cabinet, consisting of ten departments including the Office for Immigrant Advancement, Office of Veteran Services, Boston Centers for Youth & Families and Office of Fair Housing & Equity. In this role, Marta works closely with the cabinet Chief to promote the health and well-being of the City’s residents, particularly those with the greatest needs. Of Puerto Rican descent, she is deeply committed to issues affecting urban families, youth, and marginalized communities. Leveraging every opportunity to address and impact some of the most critical issues in Boston, she has held leadership positions at City Year, Boston Centers for Youth & Families, and The Boston Foundation. For the past thirteen years, Ms. Rivera has been a Parenting Educator with Families First Parenting Programs. In this role, she has facilitated hundreds of workshops on a variety of topics including, positive discipline strategies, bullying, and the impact of violence on children. Marta has additionally been involved with numerous civic groups and organizations. Currently, she is the Board President of Sociedad Latina, a non-profit organization that addresses pressing issues facing Latino youth today through a vast array of programs. She also serves on the Advisory Board of My Brother’s Keeper Boston, an initiative that aims to eliminate opportunity gaps faced by young men of color.

Katie Ryan – (Brookline, MA) Katie is an active volunteer for MassArt, Brookline Farmers Market, and The Brookline PTO. Prior to becoming a stay-at-home parent, she worked for several years at the U.S. National Park Service (NPS), identifying archeological resources within the national park system. While at the NPS she wrote her graduate thesis,  Agricultural Transformation in Kazakhstan, which reviewed Kazakhstan’s emerging transformation from a wheat producer to controlling all steps of farming from production to market. Katie’s graduate work examined food systems small and large, and ways to keep traditions alive and improve modern practices. After the NPS, she ran the Geography Information Systems (GIS) Center at the U.S. Library of Congress, creating a Congressional mapping analysis tool to enable the assessment of legislation. Katie holds a BA from Trinity Washington University (Washington, D.C.), and an MA from Catholic University (Washington, D.C.).  Katie, her husband, and children enjoy playing tennis, reading, cooking, boating, and travel.

Diane Stansbury – (Arlington, MA) Diane works in development as the Assistant Director of Alumni/ae and Parent Engagement at the Cambridge School of Weston. Diane enjoys her work at CSW building community and connecting alumni, parents, and other constituents to each other and the school. Community engagement benefits the fiscal health and growth of any organization. Diane’s professional experience began in corporate wellness programming:  teaching classes in fitness, health, and nutrition.  Diane is passionate about teaching the importance of a healthy diet and exercise as well as finding ways to make healthy choices available for all communities. Diane holds a BS in Health Education from George Mason University. She lives in Arlington with her husband Will and two grown children, Randall and Jayson. She enjoys spending time with her family on the Cape, reading, entertaining, and walking her dog Rosco.

Matthew Tetreau (Treasurer) – (Andover, MA) Matt is a Portfolio Manager for Hancock Natural Resource Group, focused on portfolio construction and investment strategy for the firm’s farmland investment platform. Prior to that, he served as the Head of Agriculture Investing for JPMorgan Asset Management’s GFICC group where he was responsible for portfolio management, research, and investment strategy in the global grain, oilseed, tropical, and livestock markets. Matt earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Massachusetts Lowell and an International MBA from Florida International University’s Chapman Graduate School of Business. He has also completed a graduate certificate in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems through Tufts University. Matt is a food and agriculture enthusiast with a passion for environmental sustainability and community health. He lives with his wife and Great Pyrenees mix on their farm in Greater Boston.

Carolyn Zern (Board Chair) – (Cambridge, MA) Carolyn is Vice President of Development in Equity Residential’s Boston office, where she focuses on the land acquisition and development execution of multi-family apartment communities throughout the greater Boston area. Prior to Equity, she worked in a similar capacity at Berkeley Investments and Wood Partners, and as an urban planner and budget analyst for the City of New York before that. She is a graduate of Dartmouth College, NYU’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, and Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business. Carolyn has volunteered as a fundraiser for Dartmouth in various roles for more than a decade. She was grew up in Larchmont, NY, currently lives in Cambridge, MA, and tries to spend as much time in mid-coast Maine as possible.

Our Board of Trustees meets six times per year.

The Food Project is always looking for talented people to join our Board of Trustees. In particular, we seek individuals with backgrounds/experience in finance, fundraising, legal, communications/media, social enterprise, or agriculture. If interested, please contact Board of Trustees Chair Carolyn Zern by sending a message to [email protected]