Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Speakers – Annie's Project New Jersey

Speaker List Order: Keynote, non-Annie’s Team Speakers, and then Annie’s Team Speakers

Our Keynote Speaker (and marketing instructor)

Charlotte Smith founded 3CowMarketing.com and the accompanying podcast, The Profitable Mindset, helping farmers in the U.S and around the world, learn the most current online marketing techniques to grow a successful business.

As a Certified Master Coach she also works with women one-on-one to build the life and business they’ve dreamed of. Charlotte is also the author of published a book by the same name, “Farm Marketing from the Heart,” an intro to the concepts and techniques she teaches. She’s also a sought after speaker for farming conferences. Charlotte also owns a seasonal pastured poultry farm located in St. Paul, Oregon, producing eggs, and poultry. Due to her dedication to improving the soil, animals and the people who eat their products, in 2016 Charlotte was named one of the Top 25 Most Influential Women in the World in Food and Agriculture by the non-profit, Food Tank.

Charlotte and her husband, Marc Rott, live on the farm in St. Paul, Oregon – she’s got 3 kids – two adults and just one left at home.

You can visit Charlotte at 3CowMarketing.com or listen to the Profitable Mindset podcast or meet her on Instagram @CharlotteSmith3Cow

Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – 3 STEPS TO BUILD YOUR PROFITABLE FARM. (PDF)

Videos

List of Our Speakers

Richard Alomar is the Associate Director of the Office of Urban Extension and Engagement, Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture and a registered landscape architect. He has an undergraduate degree in Agronomy from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez and an MLA from Louisiana State University. Before joining the Rutgers he was an Associate at Stantec Planning and Landscape Architecture and Senior Associate at di Domenico + Partners. He has worked on public projects from the urban planning to the community garden scale and has won international competitions for landscape designs.
The Office of Urban Extension’s primary purpose is to raise the visibility of NJAES and SEBS expertise and resources available to address issues affecting urban residents and their communities. These objectives will be advanced through the Office’s efforts to coordinate and facilitate programming to address food security, individual and community health, resource stewardship, urban agriculture and food chains, environmental planning and design, and other concerns facing our state’s urban communities.

Austin Baird is a Farm Loan Officer for the USDA Farm Service Agency located in Hackettstown, NJ. Austin assists farmers with choosing loans, updating and establishing business plans and making sure farmers have a successful agricultural-based operation. Austin is a graduate from West Virginia University with a M.S. in Agricultural and Resource Economics and a B.S. in Agribusiness and Rural Development.
Video Presentation: Week 4

Farm Loan Officer | Warren-Sussex-Morris County NJ
Farm Service Agency
United States Department of Agriculture
Phone: (908) 441-7508 | FAX: (855) 305-6503

Michael Brown has been developing Pitspone Farm since 2007 as a model to explore small acreage farming. He currently grows on 1/3 acre in his backyard. The farm has been profitable since the first year and currently focuses on less-common berries such as elderberry, aronia, gooseberry, red currant, haskap and jostaberry.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Berry Growing for Urban and Suburban Farmers (PDF)
Video Presentation: Week 6

39 Eastern Drive
Kendall Park, NJ 08824
pitsponefarm@gmail.com
609 577 3182

Jamie Bruno is a local food systems advocate and the Co-Founder of Urban Agriculture Cooperative, an environment and food justice non-profit in Newark, NJ. Ms. Bruno spearheads the organization’s Development and Special Projects Initiative which focuses on creating policy that provides a pathway for community gardens to legally and safely accept and process small volumes of food waste. Ms. Bruno has worked in urban agriculture and community composting for the last five years with organizations such as Foodcorps, Greater Newark Conservancy, and Planting Seeds of Hope. Between 2014 and 2016 Ms. Bruno owned an environmental services company called P3 Organic Exchange. The company focused on vermicomposting and local food waste collection. This engagement spurred an interest in creating accessible compost policies for non-profits and community gardens in NJ. Ms. Bruno is also an interdisciplinary artist. In 2017 she helped to develop creative messaging for green infrastructure and environmental education projects as a Resident Artist with Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership and coLAB Arts in New Brunswick, NJ under a National Endowment for the Arts Grant.
Building soil in urban environments: Pathways to small volume food waste management. (PDF)

Office: 973-888-9645
contact@jamiebr.uno

Staci J. Dempsey, LUTCF, FSS is a part of her second generation, family owned insurance agency, Dempsey, Weiss & Associates. Staci started her career in 2003, focusing on insurances specifically for the agricultural community and small business owner. She is a graduate of Padua Academy, where she focused all four years of study on women’s history. Staci has earned her LUTCF and FSS designations from the American College, and is currently pursuing her FSCP designation. She has also earned a handful of industry awards over the years, but her most recent award, the Farm Family Community Service Award for her the work she has done with Meals on Wheels of Salem County. Currently Staci serves as the President on the Board of Trustees for Meals on Wheels of Salem County. She has been a board member and volunteer for over 10 years with the non-profit.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Understanding Farm Policies
Video Presentation: Week 5

418 Route 77
Elmer, NJ 08318
Phone: 856.358 3900 ext. 125
staci.dempsey@american-national.com

Keith Dickinson is a Business Consultant with Farm Credit East, ACA, based in the Bridgeton, New Jersey branch office. His territory includes all of New Jersey and the lower Hudson Valley region of New York, and works in other areas as needed to serve client needs. Keith works with farmers and other agricultural business owners to assist them with the planning and management of their businesses. Specific areas of focus for Keith’s consulting practice include business planning, profitability analysis, estate and farm succession planning, and business entity selection and management. Prior to his employment with Farm Credit East, Keith worked as an Agricultural Business Management Educator with Penn State Extension, and as a Farm Business Management Extension Agent with Virginia Cooperative Extension. Keith holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences and a Master’s Degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics, both from Virginia Tech. Keith is a Certified Financial Planner™ Professional, and has completed the Financial Planning Certificate program at Florida State University. Keith lives on the family grain and vegetable farm where he was raised in Stow Creek Township in Cumberland County, New Jersey. His wife, Yvonne and he have three young children.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Succession Planning (PDF)
Video Presentation: Week 5
Video Presentation Q&A: Week 5

Sherry Dudas and her husband Jim Kinsel are the managers and owners of Honey Brook Organic Farm, a certified organic vegetable, fruit, nut,
flower and herb farm, in operation for almost 30 years. Sherry is responsible for the farm’s marketing and promotion, special event
planning, community outreach and related farm business and land use planning activities, including the farm’s new carbon farming initiative.
Sherry has a BS in Environmental Planning and Design from Rutgers University.

Honey Brook Organic Farm is located in Chesterfield, NJ and Pennington, NJ.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Accommodating for a Changing Climate: One Farm’s Experience (PDF)

PO Box 1096, Pennington, NJ 08534
609-737-8899
sherry@honeybrookorganicfarm.com

Dawn Edmonds, Farm Credit East
Dawn Edmonds is a Senior Loan Officer at Farm Credit East. Her primary role is to work with commercial agricultural operations in Cumberland County, NJ. Dawn has worked in a similar capacity since 2006, after graduating from Delaware Valley University with an MBA in Food & Agri Business.

Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Finance 411 (PDF)
Video Presentation: Week 4
Video Presentation: Week 4 Income Statement
Video Presentation: Week 4 Other
Video Presentation: Week 4 Last Questions

Carolyn Etsch, Etsch Farms

Lauren Errickson, M.S. has an academic and professional background that includes environmental, agricultural, and nutritional science experience. After coordinating non-profit farm education programs for a number of years, Lauren co-owned/operated a horse-powered vegetable farm in rural Maine, where she co-founded a farmers market and local food cooperative. Having joined Rutgers Cooperative Extension in 2016, Lauren now oversees both the New Brunswick Community Farmers Market and Rutgers Against Hunger, a university-wide food security initiative. Through urban farmers markets, Lauren works to increase food availability and affordability within the city of New Brunswick, bringing Jersey Fresh produce from local farms to local families and also fostering urban agriculture through community garden programs. Lauren collaborates with numerous local organizations, including the New Brunswick Community Food Alliance and Feeding New Brunswick Network, to increase healthy food access for all. She is currently pursuing her doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences with a concentration in Applied Community Nutrition at Rutgers University; her professional and research goals focus on the interconnections of nutrition, health, and sustainable food systems.

Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Growing Opportunity Through Urban Farmers Markets (PDF)
Video Presentation: Week 2

New Brunswick Community Farmers Market | Rutgers Against Hunger
88 Lipman Drive, New Brunswick NJ 08901
P: 848-932-3501 C: 732-839-5453

Joni Garcia, Team Lead, Program Integrity Branch, Food and Nutrition Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Joni Garcia is a Branch Team Leader for Program Integrity in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for the Mid-Atlantic Region (MARO). In her current role, she works with the program areas of recipient integrity, claims management, Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT), and SNAP EBT at farmers’ markets. Joni previously worked with the SNAP Nutrition Education (SNAP-Ed) Program at MARO. She has been with MARO for over 14 years. Joni has a Bachelor of Science in Dietetics from Florida State University and a Master of Science in Food and Nutrition from University of Georgia. Joni is a Registered Dietitian.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) (PDF)
Video Presentation: Week 6

Program Integrity
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
Mid-Atlantic Region
Joni.Garcia@usda.gov
(609) 259-5160

Gabi Grunstein
Gabi has spent the bulk of his professional career assisting farmers and the agriculture community in New Jersey. From 2001 – 2007 Gabi served as the environmental and water policy specialist for the New Jersey Farm Bureau helping farmers as a community and individually navigate environmental policy and regulations. He served as a liaison between the farm community and various state and federal agencies as well as environmental groups on issues concerning watershed management, water quality, non-point source pollution and conservation. After a brief hiatus Gabi continued his work with New Jersey agriculture when he started with the USDA Farm Service Agency where he currently serves as the County Executive Director for Monmouth, Mercer and Middlesex Counties. In this capacity, Gabi assures the effective and efficient delivery of USDA programs to assist farmers with natural disasters, commodity and price support, conservation practices and loans. Additionally Gabi serves as the New Jersey Communication Coordinator for Farm Service Agency where he directs efforts in disseminating program information.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Farm Service Agency (PDF)
Video Presentation: Week 4

County Executive Director for Monmouth, Mercer and Middlesex Counties
New Jersey Communications Coordinator
Farm Service Agency
United States Department of Agriculture
Phone: (732) 462-0075
FAX: (855)305-6498

Ann Gould
Dr. Ann Brooks Gould is an Associate Extension Specialist in ornamental plant pathology at Rutgers University. Her research program focuses on woody and herbaceous ornamental crop pathology, with recent efforts focused on the characterization of Xylella fastidiosa, the causal agent of bacterial leaf scorch of oak, and the incidence and severity of this disease in the New Jersey urban forest. Dr. Gould teaches three undergraduate courses in plant pathology each year at the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, Rutgers University, and currently serves as the Plant Biology Undergraduate Program Director.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Common Diseases of Ornamentals: Symptoms, Signs, and Management (PDF)
Video Presentation: Week 6

Plant Biology
Foran Hall – Rm 370
Phone: (848) 932-6398
anngould@sebs.rutgers.edu

Chelsa Hernandez- Coeur et Sol Farm
Chelsa is an urban farmer and food systems entrepreneur in Northern New Jersey advocating locally grown food and ag education in Essex County. GreenGrocer Food Hub, her retail business, connects New Jersey small farmers with urban and suburban customers. Her focus is on building community through producer collaboration and storytelling to engage consumers in a more sustainable future of food.
Video of Presentation

Chelsa Salesman-Hernandez – Owner & Founder, Coeur et Sol Urban Farms & GreenGrocer Food Hub
908-878-9036
27 Carteret St.
Bloomfield, NJ 07017
chelsa@coeuretsol.farm

Constance Kramer-Walker, Team Lead, Program Support Unit, Supplemental Food Programs
Food and Nutrition Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Connie is a Branch Team Leader in the Mid-Atlantic Region and has been with FNS MARO for 30 years; beginning under Schools, then Food Distribution and finally Supplemental Food Programs (WIC – FMNP – SFMNP). In addition to her FMNP and SFMNP regional oversight, Connie also works on WIC funding, certification/eligibility, food delivery, monitoring/audits and disaster assistance. Connie currently works with 10 State agencies in their operation of the FMNP and/or SFMNP.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (PDF)
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – WIC Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (PDF)
Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (PDF)
Video Presentation: Week 6

Team Leader, Program Support Unit
Food and Nutrition Service
United States Department of Agriculture
constancekramer.walker@USDA.gov
Office: 609.259.5173
Fax: 609.259.2690

Erin Maguire
Erin Maguire has worked in the food advocacy world for the past five years. She graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in Environmental Policy and a concentration in Food Systems. She has worked for the Greater Newark Conservancy, an environmental non-profit in Newark, NJ, as their Living Lab and School Garden Coordinator; connecting students to delicious produce grown in their own school gardens. Her advocacy and education work continued with City Green, Inc. in Clifton and Paterson, NJ, where she coordinated their community garden and Dig In! Program, and worked with senior citizens doing horticultural therapy lessons. Erin is excited to continue working with her two passions: food and people at the New Jersey Department of Agriculture as the Farm to School Coordinator with the Division of Food and Nutrition.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Farm to School (PDF)
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Additional Handout (PDF)
Video Presentation: week5

Cell- 609-433-2384
Email- newjerseyf2s@ag.nj.gov
Website- www.farmtoschool@ag.nj.gov

Stephanie Murphy, Ph.D.
Stephanie Murphy, Ph.D. started her Soil Science education at the Ohio State University, completing a Bachelor of Science Degree majoring in agronomy. She went on to pursue a Masters Degree in Soil Management and Conservation at Purdue University, completing field erosion research at the USDA-ARS Soil Erosion Lab located on the Purdue campus. Following interests that developed during that work, she moved on to Michigan State University’s Department of Crop & Soil Sciences to conduct research on soil aggregation related to root activity and earn her Ph.D.
Dr. Murphy came to New Jersey and started working as a post-doctoral scientist in the soil microbiology lab at Rutgers’ Department of Environmental Sciences. She joined the teaching staff as an instructor for undergraduate soils courses (Soils and Water, Physical Properties of Soils). Responsibilities involving the Soil Testing Laboratory were added and eventually evolved for her to become the director of the Soil Testing Laboratory. As such, she has a partial Cooperative Extension appointment and now teaches a course, Soils and Society, for the Department of Plant Biology. Dr. Murphy has served as Cook College/School of Environmental and Biological Sciences Executive Dean’s representative to the NJ Department of Agriculture’s State Soil Conservation Committee through many years (and a good number of deans). She is a member of the American Society of Agronomy, the Soil Science Society of America, the Crop Science Society of America, and the Soil & Water Conservation Society.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Principles of Soil Testing, Interpretation, and Recommendations for Healthy Soil (PDF)

Director, Rutgers Soil Testing Laboratory
ASB-II 152, Cook Campus
57 US Highway 1 South
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
(848) 932-9295
http://njaes.rutgers.edu/soiltestinglab
https://www.facebook.com/RutgersSoilTestingLab/

Rosalynd Orr has 10 years of experience working with agricultural conservation and NRCS programs. She’s worked in four different field offices in Pennsylvania before moving across the River to work as a Soil Conservationist in the NRCS Frenchtown Field Office starting in 2015. Prior to Frenchtown, she worked as a NRCS soil conservationist in the Cumberland and Chester County Field Offices in Pennsylvania, and as District Conservationist for Luzerne and Carbon Counties in Pennsylvania. Her background is in soil science, with degrees from Delaware Valley College and Master’s work at the University of Maryland in Pedology and Hydric Soils. She currently works in the NRCS state office in Somerset as a Resource Conservationist. Her primary duties are to direct the NJ NRCS’ conservation planning certification program, along with providing technical training to field staff statewide. She also serves as a NRCS Urban Agriculture outreach specialist, collaborating with NRCS soil scientists and other staff to offer planning and program assistance to various cities in the state.”
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Helping You Help the Land (PDF)
Handout – Locations and Services in NJ (PDF)
Handout – Assistance for Urban Ag (PDF)
Handout – Metal Screening (PDF)
Video Presentation: Week 4

Resource Conservationist
USDA-NRCS
220 Davidson Avenue
Somerset, NJ 08873
P: 732-537-6054
F 855-305-7157
rosalynd.orr@nj.usda.gov

Debbie Post, Riamede Farm
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Riamede Farm (PDF)
Video Presentation 1: Week 5
Video Presentation 2: Week 5

Carol Przewozny owner and operator of B & B Livestock Farm, LLC. We are a small family farm dedicated to producing healthy, superior quality, all-natural beef, pork, poultry, and fresh eggs. We have been in operation in Lebanon Township, NJ since 1991. I participated in the 2011 focus group session when Rutgers launched the first Annie’s Project in New Jersey. Annie’s Project has given me the opportunity to collaborate with other female farmers. After completing the program our farm was featured on the June 8, 2011 edition of NJN News discussing female farmers, New Directions for Women; show #216 aired in 2012, and the October 2015 issue of Farming. In addition to farming, Carol works full-time as a Special Education Teacher, her husband works full-time for Readington Township, and they have one son who lives in Jersey City.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Why Do I Need A Farm Business Plan? (PDF)
Video of Presentation

908-832-9175 (landline)
carolpgreatlife@msn.com
https://carolpgreatlife.wixsite.com/bblivestockfarm

Brian Schilling, Director, Cooperative Extension
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Right To Farm Act (PDF)
Video Presentation: Week5

Martin Hall, Rm. 309
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
88 Lipman Dr.
New Brunswick, NJ 08901-8525
848-932-3591
schilling@njaes.rutgers.edu

Kelly Steimle, Farmer to Farmer Link Program, NJ Dept. of Agriculture (NJDA

Video Presentation: Week 4

Also speaking at this workshop will be these members of Annie’s Project NJ’s team:

A.J. Both
Since 2000, Dr. A.J. Both has served as Extension Specialist in Controlled Environment Engineering at Rutgers University. Prior to joining Rutgers University, he was a Post Doc and research associate at Cornell University. He received his Ph.D. degree from Cornell University in Agricultural and Biological Engineering in 1995. He received his M.S. and B.S. degrees from the Agricultural University in Wageningen, the Netherlands, majoring in Agricultural Engineering. Dr. Both’s research focuses on controlled environment agriculture and includes engineering and crop production projects in growth chambers, greenhouses and high tunnels. His research interests include greenhouse environment control, hydroponic vegetable production, supplemental lighting, and energy systems.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Hydroponics (PDF)

Professor and Extension Specialist
Rutgers University
Department of Environmental Sciences
14 College Farm Road
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
both@sebs.rutgers.edu
848-932-5730

Robin G. Brumfield
Robin Brumfield, Ph.D., has been the Farm Management Extension Specialist at Rutgers since 1988. She has been working with the award winning New Jersey Annie’s Project Team as state leader since 2011. She worked with the team to conduct focus groups to adapt this program from the mid-west to conditions in an urban state. She has arranged the workshops so that the women complete a business plan as part of the workshop. Robin took the Annie’s Project concept to Antalya, Turkey as her sabbatical project in late 2011 where she co-founded Suzanne’s Project. Since then she extended the program to Germany, Spain, and Malta through an EU funded project called Empowering Women Farmers with Agricultural Business Management Training. She also trained small-holder women farmers in Nicaragua and Guyana to better manage their businesses. She is internationally known for her work in horticultural economics and has given over 200 talks in sixteen countries. Her Greenhouse Cost Accounting Program is the standard in the greenhouse industry. She uses tools like workbooks and computerized calculators to help farmers make better management decisions. My on-line workbook, To Market; To Market was designed to help small beginning farmers decide what to produce and how to market it. Her Greenhouse Cost Accounting Program is the standard in the greenhouse industry. She wrote the marketing and business management chapters for the best-selling textbook, Greenhouse Operations and Management by Dr. Paul V. Nelson. I was named a Fellow of ASHS in 2012, the highest honor the society bestows.

Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Developing a Mission Statement for Your Agricultural Business (PDF)
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Tool to Estimate Production Costs (PDF)
Video of Workshop Introduction, with Laura Lawson
Video of Mission Statement Presentation
Video Presentation 1: Week 4 (Finance)
Video Presentation 2: Week 4 (Finance)

Dept. of Agriculture, Food and Resource Economics School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
55 Dudley Road New Brunswick, NJ 08901-8520
Phone: 848-932-9130
Fax: 732-932-8887
Email: Brumfiel@NJAES.rutgers.edu

Madeline Flahive DiNardo
Madeline Flahive DiNardo is the County Agent / Associate Professor for Rutgers Cooperative Extension in Union County. Madeline has a MBA from the Rutgers Graduate School of Management. Madeline teaches the business related lectures for the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences undergraduate “Starting a Farm Business” course. As a county agent, she has provided training on starting and maintaining community vegetable gardens for local and school organizations.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Planning Your Business Plan (PDF)
Video of Presentation

flahive@njas.rutgers.edu
office ph: (908) 654-9854

Joseph Heckman
Joseph Heckman, Ph.D., Professor of Soil Science, Rutgers University teaches Soil Fertility, Organic Crop Production, and Graduate Seminar. He conducts research on optimizing nutrition for plant, animal, and human health and authored numerous publications on soil fertility and organic farming.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Soil Quality Assesment (PDF)
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Chickens (PDF)
Video Presentation:Week 5 (Chickens)

Extension Specialist – Soil Fertility
Cook Campus, Rutgers University
Department of Plant Biology
Rutgers, The State University of NJ
59 Dudley Road – Foran Hall
New Brunswick, NJ 08901-8520
Phone: (848) 932-6333
Fax: (732) 932-9441

Laura Lawson
Laura Lawson, Ph.D. is Professor of Landscape Architecture and Dean of Academic Programs in the School for Environmental and Biological Sciences at Rutgers University, New Brunswick. She has a B.A. in Environmental Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz and an MLA and Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. Her research includes historical and contemporary community open space, with particular focus on urban agriculture and the changing roles of parks in low-income communities. She is author of City Bountiful: A Century of Community Gardening in America (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2005) and co-author of Design as Democracy: Techniques for Collective Creativity (Washington DC: Island Press, 2017), Greening Cities, Growing Communities: Urban Community Gardens in Seattle (Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2009), as well as of numerous publications in academic journals, edited books, and popular media. She is currently working filmmaker Will Atwater on a collaborative project, Cultivating Justice, to develop a multi-media website that explores African American values and experiences in rural and urban agriculture. At Rutgers, Professor Lawson teaches courses focused on social and cultural issues in design and planning.
ljlawson@sebs.rutgers.edu
Laura Lawson’s Event Intro. Presentation Slides (PDF)
Video of Workshop Introduction, with Laura Lawson

Meredith Melendez
Meredith Melendez is the agricultural agent for Rutgers Agriculture Resource Management Agents in Mercer County. She offers outreach and education to growers focusing primarily on diversified small farms. Meredith offers outreach statewide on farm food safety including preparation for third party audits, the implementation of Good Agricultural Practices, and the Food Safety Modernization Act Produce Safety Rule. Her research focuses have included on-farm food safety sampling, cover crop evaluation, and soil copper evaluation on New Jersey farms. Meredith has a B.S. in Plant Science from Ferrum College and a M.A. in Environmental Conservation Education from NYU. Prior to working in Mercer County Meredith was the Horticulture Consultant for Rutgers Cooperative Extension in Burlington County for four years. Past work experience includes teaching Agriculture at a public high school in Queens and managing rooftop production greenhouses in NYC.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Reducing Food Safety Risks
Associated with Fresh Produce (PDF)
Video Presentation: Week 6

Mercer County Cooperative Extension,
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
melendez@njaes.rutgers.edu
609-989-6830

Barbara O’Neill
Barbara O’Neill, Ph.D., is Extension Specialist in Financial Resource Management for Rutgers Cooperative Extension. She holds the rank of Distinguished Professor at Rutgers University and has written over 1,800 newspaper articles and over 160 articles for professional publications. A certified financial planner, she is the author or co-author of eight books. She also provides national leadership for the Cooperative Extension program Small Steps to Health and Wealth and directed the five-year MONEY 2000 savings and debt reduction campaign in the 1990s that resulted in over $20 million of economic impact nationwide. In addition, she has delivered over 300 national/regional conference presentations. Dr. O’Neill earned a Ph.D. from Virginia Tech and has received over three dozen national awards and over $1.2 million in grants to support her financial education programs and research.

Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Financial Planning Tips for Urban Agriculture Entrepreneurs (PDF)

Barbara O’Neill, Ph.D., CFP, CRPC, AFC, CHC, CFEd, CFCS
Extension Specialist in Financial Resource Management
Distinguished Professor
Rutgers Cooperative Extension
Cook Office Building Room 107
55 Dudley Road
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
Phone: 848-932-9126 **NOTE NEW NUMBER**
Phone: 973-903-7869 (cell)
Fax: 732-932-8887
E-mail: boneill@njaes.rutgers.edu
http://www.rce.rutgers.edu/money2000
http://www.investing.rutgers.edu
Twitter: http://twitter.com/moneytalk1

Nick Polanin
Since joining Rutgers University in 1999, Nick has been nationally recognized for his leadership and educational initiatives in training arborists and other tree care professionals, Green Industry workforce development programs, distance education for consumer and commercial audiences, and volunteer management. He currently serves as statewide coordinator for the Rutgers NJAES Master Gardener Program. Nick holds an M.S. in Horticulture/Urban Forestry (1989), and a B.S. in Natural Resource Management/Forestry (1982), both from Rutgers University. Areas of expertise include urban and community forestry, street tree management, Christmas tree and nursery production, landscape IPM, and public relations.
Video Presentation: Week 5

Ashaki Rouff
Ashaki Rouff, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Rutgers-Newark, is an Environmental Geochemist studying soil and water contaminants in natural and human-impacted systems, with the goal of environmental preservation and sustainability. Current projects include phosphorus recovery from wastewater for sustainable use of nutrient resources; evaluation of sustainably-sourced sorbents for treatment of contaminated water; and evaluation of heavy metal occurrence in Newark Community Garden soils. Dr. Rouff holds a BA in Geology from Middlebury College, VT, and a PhD in Geosciences from Stony Brook University, NY. She received postdoctoral training at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and the Paul Scherrer Institute, Switzerland.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Understanding and Controlling Metal Contamination in Urban Gardens (PDF)

ashaki.rouff@rutgers.edu
973-353-2511
Earth and Environmental Sciences
101 Warren Street,
Smith Hall Room 135
Newark, New Jersey, 07102

Amy Rowe
Amy Rowe, Ph. D. joined Rutgers in 2010 and is an Agriculture and Natural Resources County Agent for Essex and Passaic Counties. Amy earned her Ph.D. from Rutgers in Environmental Sciences. Her background is in water chemistry with a concentration on the fate and transport of contaminants. Amy has worked in stormwater management for more than 10 years and her outreach programming has focused on green infrastructure in urban environments and green jobs training programs. Amy raises chickens, turkeys, and meat rabbits as sustainably as possible on her small farm.
Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentation – Water Conservation (PDF)
Video of Presentation

County Agent II (Associate Professor)
Rutgers New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station
Cooperative Extension of Essex and Passaic Counties
621a Eagle Rock Avenue 930 Riverview Dr, Suite 250
Roseland, NJ 07068 Totowa, NJ 07512
p. 908-235-1168
f. 973-364-5261
rowe@njaes.rutgers.edu

Tobias Fox
Tobias Fox is the Founder and Managing Director of the community-driven, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization Newark Science and Sustainability, Inc. Aside from being a writer and having ten years of independent publishing experience, Fox is a Professional Organizer, Urban Farmer, Photographer, and Coordinator of an annual Sustainable Living Empowerment Conference. He conducts various community events, presentations, and workshops on sustainable living practices and has assisted numerous urban farmers and gardeners with the cultivation of their agricultural space. He also organizes the Newark Community Food System (NCFS), a collective of Newark-based agriculturalists. Fox has earned many accolades for his work, including:

In part of Newark’s 350th anniversary, selected by peers for outstanding contributions to the Newark community to be part of the 100 People of Newark. This Newark Project, a series of 100 photographs and on-camera interviews with Newarkers, was produced by the 100 People Foundation in partnership with PSE&G Foundation.
In 2016, Community Service Award presented by the Northeast Earth Coalition.
In 2014, awarded the Newark NAACP Environmental Justice Honoree.
In 2013, presented in TEDxBroadStreet, an independently organized TED event fueled by the theme “Reach, Rise, and Revive,” that took place at the Rutgers Business School in Newark, NJ. TEDxBroadStreet is Newark, NJ’s first citywide TEDx event developed in collaboration with Newark residents.
In 2012, awarded an Exemplary Service Recognition by the Greater Newark Conservancy for Community Organizing.

Urban Annie’s Project Workshop Presentations:
Active Gardens in Newark (PDF)
Farming in Newark (PDF)

Founder and Managing Director
Newark Science and Sustainability, Inc.
www.sasglocal.com
646.399.0337