ALFRED COURCHESNE

Owner / Farmer Frog Hollow Farm

In his signature overalls, “Farmer Al” Courchesne has been a beloved leader in California’s sustainable agriculture for over 40 years. Like his legendary peaches, Al is deeply rooted in California soil. Born in Louisiana and raised in Berkeley and El Cerrito, Al graduated from UC Berkeley with a degree in anthropology before moving to Hawaii, where he taught at the Punahou School and discovered his passion for farming. For two years, he grew lettuce and tomatoes on the islands before returning to the Bay Area to pursue his agricultural calling.

In 1976, he planted his first peach orchard in Brentwood. Thirteen years later, Al transitioned to organic farming, inspired by a commitment to nurture the soil, protect the water, and support the local community. 

Throughout his career, Farmer Al has been a pioneering advocate for sustainable land use, conservation, and organic regenerative practices. He lives on the farm with his wife, Becky, and their daughters, Maddie and Millie, continuing to cultivate a legacy of flavor, community, and land stewardship.

ANNA CUMMINS

Co-Founder / Executive Director 5 Gyres Institute

Marcus Eriksen and Anna Cummins founded the 5 Gyres Institute to investigate key unanswered questions about plastic pollution: How much plastic is floating in the world’s oceans? Where is it accumulating? Is it causing harm to people and the planet? And most importantly, what can we do about it?

With more than 20 years experience in environmental non-profit work—including marine conservation, coastal watershed management, community relations, and bilingual and sustainability education—Anna is an expert in the field. Her “Synthetic Sea, Synthetic Me” TEDx talk has been viewed and shared by thousands. Anna received her undergraduate degree from Stanford University, and a MA in Environmental Policy from the Middlebury Institute for International Studies.

BARBARA JELLISON

Executive Director, Nutrition Services West Contra Costa Unified School District

Barbara leads a team of over 240 food service professionals in serving 27,500 students across 54 sites in a high needs district where 67% qualify for free and reduced meals. Barbara is a motivated, results-driven food service professional who most recently took on the challenges of the pandemic to test and bring organic products into the food service program. She has since continued to procure roughly 50% of food for the district from organic supplies, prioritizing CA fresh and minimally processed foods. Barbara has led her team in achieving equipment, training, and sourcing changes that are allowing them to increase the amount of fresh, organic, scratch-cooked menu items that they make in the central kitchen for service across the district. Having served the district for 22 years, Barbara’s experience extends back to culinary school and restaurant management and she continues to work to improve the food service quality and experience for students across her district. Barbara has successfully worked with both CDFA and USDA grants to help set goals for the district, link farm to school educational opportunities to the food service programming, and achieve procurement and recipe changes that incorporate fresh, local, organic products into school meals.

DEBBIE RAPHAEL

Environmental Strategy Consulting

In May of 2014, Mayor Ed Lee appointed Debbie as the Director of the San Francisco Department of the Environment, a city agency that creates visionary policies and programs to ensure a sustainable future for San Francisco. Raphael returned to San Francisco after three years leading the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, where she enacted the groundbreaking Safer Consumer Products program that has removed toxic chemicals from consumer products sold in California and beyond.

Raphael believes that cities like San Francisco are incubators for bold action that results in meaningful change. Her approach to environmental decision-making focused on using  rigorous science and robust community participation to ensure that all voices are honored. This perspective has allowed her to succeed in addressing some of the most challenging environmental problems, including addressing climate change, circular economies, and community resilience.

During her 30 years of public service at city, county, and state levels, Raphael has crafted and implemented award-winning programs in zero waste, toxics reduction, clean energy and transportation, and green building. Debbie was named by Apolitical as one of the world’s 100 most impactful leaders on climate change and by Climate Insider as one of the 10 Climate Voices to Know in 2024. She is a strategic advisor to academic institutions, businesses large and small, non-profits, philanthropic organizations, and governments around the world.

Jennifer Sherman

Culinary Director, Alice Waters Institute

Before joining the Alice Waters Institute, Jennifer spent most of her culinary career working with Alice Waters at Chez Panisse as a cook, co-chef, and General Manager as well as supporting Alice’s global projects and programs in edible education. Jennifer spent 10 years developing food product lines at scale for Rock Field, Japan, Ltd. She has served on the board and was the Culinary Director at The Ecology Center in San Juan Capistrano, a 30 acre educational farm and culinary program, and currently serves on the board of Chez Panisse Restaurant.

JUDI SHILS

Founder / Executive Director Turning Green

Judi has spent the last 33 years of her life spearheading grassroots community projects. The dearth of answers around Marin County’s high cancer rates led Judi to found the nonprofit Search for the Cause, now Turning Green, a global student-led movement advocating for healthy food, safer products, and ethical businesses. She is also the force behind The Conscious Kitchen, a paradigm shifting model for school food service, transitioning school meals from pre-packaged, processed, heat-and-serve to chef-prepared, scratch cooked local, organic food, prepared in on-site low waste kitchens. Believing that access to healthy food is a right, not a privilege, she began this work on a campus where 95% of children live below the poverty line, qualifying for free-and-reduced government-subsidized school meals. Moving to the Bay Area in 1989 and becoming a mother to daughter Erin changed the course of Judi’s life. Prior to this, she was an Emmy Award-winning television producer for 25 years with ABC Sports, FOX and Oxygen, founded The Diary Project forum for youth at the onset of the internet, and created the first reality based television show for Fox. 

KATE WRIGHT

Executive Director Climate Mayors

Kate is the Executive Director of Climate Mayors. Kate is responsible for strategic direction of the network, including helping cities implement bold policies and programs, supporting equitable climate action by the Federal Administration and Congress, and building initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while advancing economic growth and environmental justice. Prior to joining Climate Mayors, Kate served as CEO of CivicWell (formerly the Local Government Commission), where she worked with city and county leaders for fifteen years spearheading environmental initiatives on climate resilience, clean mobility, sustainable water management, livable communities, renewable energy, and affordable housing.

LISA BRONNER

Educator, Author, Spokesperson Dr.Bronner’s Magic Soaps

Lisa is an educator, author, and spokesperson for her family’s business, Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps —the top-selling brand of iconic multi-use Castile Soaps and other fair trade and organic products. She is the granddaughter of company founder Dr. Emanuel Bronner. A teacher by training and an educator at heart, she helps people understand the products they daily put on their bodies and use in their homes, sharing myriad Green-It-Yourself (GIY) recipes for home and body, and decoding ingredient lists and label language. She also encourages people to focus on principles for a mindful and resilient life.

Since 2010, she has run the healthy living platform, “Going Green with Lisa Bronner.” Her first book, Soap & Soul: A Practical Guide to Minding Your Home, Your Body, and Your Spirit with Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps, was released October 10, 2023 from Countryman Press, an imprint of W.W. Norton.

Having graduated from Duke University with a B.A. in English and a secondary education teaching certificate, she taught high school English and journalism. She lives in rural San Diego County with her family and myriad cats and dogs. Find her at LisaBronner.com and on Facebook and YouTube.

PAUL LIGHTFOOT

General Manager Patagonia Provisions

Paul is the General Manager of Patagonia Provisions, Patagonia’s food and beverage division. Founded by Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, Patagonia Provisions brings to market foods that help fight the environmental crisis. Paul is also the chair of the board of the Regenerative Organic Alliance, which administers the Regenerative Organic Certified® standard, a revolutionary new label for food, fiber, and botanical ingredients and products. Regenerative Organic Certified® is based on three pillars that require farmers to use practices that ensure healthy soil, pasture-based animal welfare, and fairness for farmers and workers. Before joining Patagonia, Paul was the founder & CEO of BrightFarms, a company that builds and operates high-tech greenhouse farms that eliminate time, distance, and costs from the produce supply chain. Prior to BrightFarms, Paul was a technology entrepreneur and transactional attorney.