Administrative Team
Sarah Hackney, Coalition Director
Sarah (she/her) oversees NSAC’s overall organizational strategic direction, administration, management, and capacity-building. Previously, she served as NSAC’s Grassroots Director for nearly 8 years, working with NSAC’s member organizations and allies to empower and mobilize grassroots food and farm voices nationwide. Raised in rural Florida, her prior work has included community-led efforts to improve small farm viability, increase fresh food access, and build leadership in rural communities in the Pacific Northwest. She holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies from Dartmouth College.
Carena Miles, Operations Manager
Carena (she/they) manages administrative operations for NSAC. They grew up plucking worms from the soil and wandering through cornfields on their grandparents’ rural farmland in central Virginia, where their curiosity for plants and the environment led them to earn a B.S. in Biology from Hampton University. Soon after they interned as an AmeriCorps volunteer with the U.S. Forest Service where they did everything from repairing bridges along the Appalachian Trail to teaching environmental education lessons within national parks. For nearly a decade Carena worked within the NYC metro area food system, managing farmers markets, running community gardens, launching healthy food access initiatives with the City of Jersey City, and advocating for some of the strongest environmental justice protection laws in the nation with Ironbound Community Corporation. During this period they received their M.A. in Food Studies from New York University where they concentrated on Black Agrarianism and Cooperative Economics. Carena lends their passion and motivation for sustaining and building equitable food systems to the survival, joy, and resistance of Black and migrant farmers and workers.
Laura Zaks, Associate Director of Communications and Development
Laura (she/her) holds a Master of International Affairs degree with a focus on agricultural policy and economic development from Columbia University and a B.A. from the College of Letters at Wesleyan University. She has worked at the intersection of agriculture, climate, economic development, nutrition, and public health for more than 18 years. She has experience advancing the goals of mission-driven organizations through nonprofit management, fundraising, and strategic communications for the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture, the Azuero Eco Foundation, and the International Planned Parenthood Federation, among others.
Grassroots Team
Eowyn Corral, Grassroots Co-Director
Eowyn (they/she), when not obsessing over where community organizing and building holistic systems meet, can be found with a handwork project, cooking, eating, or growing food. Most recently director of development and programs at Dakota Rural Action and a past NSAC Organizational Council (OC) member, Eowyn has focused on local & regional food systems and sustainable agriculture policy for the last 15 years. Based in the Dakotas, the occupied lands of the Oceti Sakowin Oyate (the Dakota, Nakota, and Lakota peoples), Eowyn comes to this work via a love for fiber animals, seasonal foods, and textile arts. As a dedicated grassroots community organizer rooted in justice and equity, Eowyn has been invited to serve in many leadership roles in movement spaces, honing a skill to facilitate what challenges us. Originally from southern California and of Michoacán descent, Eowyn plans to find their way back to the West Coast eventually to raise animals on pasture on a multigenerational farm with their family. At NSAC she works to connect and empower grassroots food and farm groups in NSAC’s membership and the broader movement, supports the coalition’s grassroots campaigns, and stewards the Racial Justice Committee.
Jonathan Dabel, Emerson Fellow
Born in Boston, Jonathan spent his formative years in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, before returning to the U.S. in 2016. He earned a B.A. in Economics and Public Policy from the University of Mississippi, where he served as a student body senator and actively advocated for student needs. During his freshman year, Jonathan interned at the Congressional Hunger Center, later served as a Legacy Leader, and is now an Emerson Fellow. His internships and projects have taken him to Washington D.C., Jackson, MS, Miami, FL, and Pittsburgh, PA, where he contributed to initiatives focused on community, food security, and economic development. He has presented his research on how food insecurity negatively impacts the upward mobility of undergraduate students at the University of Maryland and the University of Washington. Jonathan is passionate about creating transformative socioeconomic changes that contribute to making the world a more equitable place.
Stef Funk, Grassroots Co-Director
Stef Funk (she/her) is an experienced educator, event planner, and community organizer. As a proud jack of all trades, she’s held several different roles in fostering local food system resiliency, from farming to distribution to advocacy. She is passionate about cultivating spaces where people feel welcome, cared for, and well fed, and has relished the responsibility of leading the planning of the Annual Chicago Food Justice Summit for several years. Previously, Stef worked with the Chicago Food Policy Action Council, Food and Water Watch, and Plant Chicago. At NSAC, she works with grassroots staff and NSAC’s member organizations to uplift farmer’s stories and lend their on-the-ground expertise to shape stronger policies that advance sustainable and regenerative agriculture in the United States. Stef holds a degree in Environmental Science from Clark University, is an eager crafter, a slow but frequent runner, and cares for 13 backyard chickens on the southwest side of Chicago.
Tyler Edwards, Grassroots Advocacy Coordinator
Tyler (she/her) is a passionate advocate from North Carolina who holds a B.S. in Biology and a Science and Society Certificate from Duke University. Tyler’s interest in agriculture deepened during the pandemic as she researched racial disparities in land ownership and the impacts of industrial agriculture. While working at Tierra Negra Farm in Durham, North Carolina, she cultivated relationships with farmers and community members who practice cooperative land stewardship. After relocating to DC, she sought out new opportunities to study regenerative agriculture at several farms in the area. These experiences, her commitment to racial equity, and her love for storytelling drive her approach to grassroots advocacy.
Neza Xiuhtecutli, Senior Grassroots Advocacy Coordinator
Nezahualcoyotl “Neza” (he/him) joins the NSAC team with almost 20 years of experience working in rural communities in Mexico and Central America and in the US South. His training in anthropology sparked his interest in a time-depth perspective of agricultural practices and their social implications across cultural and geographic realms. In his previous work, he served as an advocate for farmworkers in Florida and for a more sustainable food and economic system.
Policy Team
Billy Hackett, Policy Specialist
Billy (he/him) holds B.A.s in Political Science and International Studies as well as a minor in International Development and Humanitarian Assistance from the University of Florida. He unearthed a passion for equitable food systems organizing in solidarity with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, spearheading a national student campaign to advance the Fair Food Program. Before joining NSAC, Billy returned to Immokalee as a health promoter when the rural town became an epicenter for the Covid-19 pandemic. These experiences, in addition to serving as international president of a community service nonprofit in college, have informed his commitment to amplify the voices of directly impacted, underserved communities in the policymaking process. Billy staffs the NSAC Farming Opportunities and Fair Competition Committee, which focuses on key crop insurance, commodity, and competition issues.
Connor Kippe, Policy Specialist
Connor (he/him) grew up working in Michigan in agriculture and the food system – from picking weeds in fields to driving the occasional tractor, working as a butcher, managing green roof installations, co-creating an educational farm, and helping advocate for and design a university food bank. He has spent time in North Carolina leading advocacy around food and energy systems’ impact on climate along with working with and centering harmed communities like farmworkers and residents living near CAFOs to develop equitable coalitions, campaigns, and policy. He has a B.A. from the University of Michigan in political science and environmental science, with a specialization in food policy. Connor staffs the NSAC Food System Integrity Committee, which focuses on key food safety, labeling, and livestock processing issues.
Sophia Kruszewski, Deputy Policy Director
Sophia (she/her) leads NSAC’s cross-team policy coordination and strategy efforts. She returned to NSAC after 4 years leading the Food and Agriculture Clinic at Vermont Law School, where she directed a team providing law and policy services to farmers, food entrepreneurs, and food system organizations. During that time, Sophia led the launch of the Vermont Legal Food Hub, a program that connects farmers and local food businesses with free legal assistance. Sophia previously served as a Senior Policy Specialist at NSAC; her DC experience also includes the Center for Food Safety, the White House Council on Environmental Quality, and the federal district court. She holds a BS in Environmental Science from the University of Michigan and a JD from Vermont Law School.
Michael Lavender, Policy Director
Mike (he/him) leads NSAC’s overall policy strategy and advocacy efforts. Prior to NSAC he was the Senior Manager of Government Affairs for the Union of Concerned Scientists’ Food & Environment program, an NSAC member, and served for 3 years on the Organizational Council of NSAC. At UCS, Mike advocated for a science-based, equitable, healthy, and sustainable food and farm system. Previously, Mike served as a policy analyst at the Environmental Working Group and spent six years in the office of former Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI), where he worked on agriculture appropriations, dairy policy, and other farm and food policy issues. He has a B.A. in American history and French language from Marquette University.
Richa Patel, Policy Specialist
Richa grew up in North Carolina, where she cultivated her enthusiasm for spending as much time outdoors as possible, and holds a B.S. in engineering and a B.S. in political science from North Carolina State University. She joins NSAC from the U.S. House of Representatives, where she previously led agriculture policy for Rep. Yadira Caraveo, M.D. (D-CO) and Rep. Alma Adams, Ph.D. (D-NC). She worked closely with grassroots organizations in the West and South on a wide range of food and farm issues. As a Hill staffer, her efforts have also included supporting farmers’ water and land conservation efforts, responding to historical discrimination in USDA farm lending programs, and elevating resources for rural and farming communities’ transition to clean energy.
Hannah Quigley, Policy Specialist
Hannah (she/her) holds an M.P.H. from the University of North Carolina and a B.A. from NC State University. North Carolina is where she found her place in food and agriculture and more specifically in the synergies between promoting public health through a regional food economy. Her programmatic work has included designing and managing sliding-scale CSAs and business development resources for food and farm entrepreneurs, while her policy design and advocacy experience rests in farm-to-school, healthy food finance initiatives, capital access, and urban agriculture. Her approach in the work seeks to disrupt power imbalances in policy design and decision-making by centering community voices, particularly those that have been historically displaced or marginalized. She joins NSAC from Richmond, Virginia to staff the Marketing, Food Systems, and Rural Development committee, which focuses on local and regional food systems, farm-to-school, healthy food access, and economic development.
Nicholas Rossi, Policy Specialist
Nick (he/him) holds a B.S. in Environment and Natural Resources with a minor in English from the Ohio State University. His experience spans from working on environmental education and food insecurity in Iowa to traversing the Rocky Mountains as a Wilderness Ranger with the US Forest Service in Colorado. Before joining NSAC, Nick worked on a small organic vegetable farm in central Ohio growing food and advocating for sustainable local food systems in urban environments. These combined experiences inform Nick’s approach to sustainable agriculture especially as it relates to climate change and his commitment to building resilient food systems that appropriately address the needs of first-generation farmers and historically underserved farming communities. Nick supports the coalition’s policy campaigns across several issue committees.
Becky Schewe, Research & Policy Analyst
Becky Schewe (she/her) has spent nearly twenty years researching agriculture, rural communities, and the environment. She holds an M.S. in Rural Sociology and a PhD in Sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is a passionate advocate for a sustainable agricultural and food system and evidence-based policy. She comes to NSAC from the Maxwell School for Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University where she has researched agricultural and food system policy impacts, conservation behaviors, and their connection with social systems like labor equity. She looks forward to helping NSAC use data to answer important questions about agricultural and food sustainability!
Jesse Womack, Policy Specialist
Jesse (he/him) grew up working as a laborer on various farms and holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies from Gustavus Adolphus College and a Masters in Food and Agricultural Law and Policy from Vermont Law School. After undergrad, Jesse served as an Americorps VISTA developing programming for local food farms and businesses in southern Minnesota. Jesse transitioned from that role to leading a nine-county agricultural resilience study while coordinating programming for the Feast! Local Foods Network. Most recently, Jesse worked with the Nature Conservancy in Ohio to improve water quality and carbon outcomes by promoting conservation practices to farmers.
Our Founding Policy Director, Ferd Hoefner
Ferd is a founding staff member of NSAC and has been a leader in the sustainable agriculture community for over 30 years. He led NSAC’s federal policy work as Policy Director from 1988 through 2016 and served as Senior Strategic Advisor from 2017-2020. He continues to mentor the coalition as an informal advisor.