2021 Sustainability Goals for Rhode Island
Our Special Guests
Thank you for your guidance, inspiration, and support.
Chef Steven Shipley
Steve has been an executive chef for over 35 years, currently serving as Director of Culinary Relations at Johnson and Wales University where he received his undergraduate and graduate degrees.
Ella Rodriguez
Ella became a Food for Life instructor in the hopes of sharing the benefits of a plant-based diet with anyone who wants to listen. Her path toward plant based nutrition started in her early 30’s. As a mother of two young toddlers, Ella was faced with a cancer health scare. After all the doctors’ visits and tests left her with many unanswered questions, Ella decided to do her own research and read anything she could get her hands on. After listening to many lectures on YouTube and reading lots of books, all her findings were heading in the same direction: a plant-based diet.
Betsy Skoda
Betsy is committed to creating sustainable food systems to improve community health and build local economies. She is currently a community food systems coordinator working for "Healthcare Without Harm," helping to bring local food to hospitals, and she is a board member of The Rhode Island Food Policy Council. Her experience includes research, policy and advocacy, nonprofit management, and cooking in restaurants on both coasts. Betsy lives in Providence with her husband and children. Outside of work, she can be found running, cooking, and spending as much time outdoors as possible.
John Santos
John was born on the island of Guam, grew up in New England and now lives in Providence. He has owned two restaurants, and first gained experience in natural and organic retail through his time as a manager at Bread and Circus. John has managed and opened Whole Foods Market stores in multiple locations and is currently the general manager of Urban Greens. John’s expertise and his knowledge of foods from around the world ensure that Urban Greens has the produce, spices and delicacies that customers from Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, Asia and around the United States love.
Kristina MacDonald
Kristina is the manager of Gotham Greens, Providence, after coming to Rhode Island from New York City, and first serving as the Marketing and Sales Coordinator for the New England region. She is passionate about Gotham Greens' herbicide, pesticide, and bacteria-free greenhouse. Gotham Greens is a global pioneer in urban greenhouse agriculture and a leading consumer brand of premium-quality local produce and fresh food products. Gotham Greens' produce is always locally grown using ecologically sustainable methods in technology controlled environments.
Christy Kingham
As Director of Leadership and School Design at Springpoint, Christy is dedicated to doing school differently. She works closely with Springpoint's partners to support the design and implementation of new, student-centered school models. Her classroom experience, instructional coaching, and competency-based system design guide her work. Prior to joining Springpoint, Christy worked with The Young Women’s’ Leadership School in Astoria, Queens, as an Instructional Coach and Curriculum Developer in addition to teaching English. She graduated from Georgetown with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature, Columbia University Teachers’ College with a Master of Arts in the Teaching of English, and Hunter College with a Masters in Educational Leadership. Christy created the Citizen Food project which Nowell Academy piloted in the late winter of 2020.
Kimberly Hare
Kim is a librarian and media specialist with the Woods Hole Library in Falmouth, MA. She specializes in researching, selecting, and acquiring library materials and has worked in both public libraries and public schools helping patrons and students obtain, review, and evaluate resource material. Kim is graduate of Wesleyan University and Brooklyn Law School.
Julius Kolawole
Julius is a dedicated advocate of sustainable community farming and a co-founder of the African Alliance, which works with many members of the African community in Rhode Island, helping them to grow, develop, and market new food products, to feed their families and sell at Farmers markets. Julius promotes fresh produce for health and well-being. He is also a member of Food Solution New England, a regional group focusing on sustainability, hoping to produce 50% of what these 6 regional states eat by 2060. Additionally, Julius was part of the design group for the Rhode Island Food Policy Council. He is deeply passionate about racial equity around food security and food access.
