The Foodscapes team is growing!
If you are interested in part-time work or internship opportunities, please visit
www.mainefoodscapes.org/employment.
Our Leadership Committee is an organized group
of socially and environmentally conscious entrepreneurs, gardeners, educators,
designers, retirees, and passionate citizens who are dedicated to bridging the gap
between people and where their food comes from.
We meet on fourth Tuesdays of each month from 6:30-8:00pm
at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension located at 75 Clearwater Drive in Falmouth, Maine.
All are welcome to attend. Be sure to check our public calendar on our home page
to ensure the time and location remains accurate for this month and e-mail ali@mainefoodscapes.org to RSVP.
First Meeting of 2020:
Third Tuesday
Tuesday, January 21st 6:30-8:00PM
75 Clearwater Drive
Falmouth, ME
Meet the Foodscapes Garden Project (FGP) Leadership Team:
- Sarah Ramirez, Portland Gear Hub (Portland, ME)
- Deb Van Hoewyk, Bayside Neighborhood Community Garden, Portland Food Council (Portland, ME)
- Phoebe Lyttle, Garbage to Garden, Food Recovery Coalition (Windham, ME)
- Billy Linhart, Concerned Citizen (Portland, ME)
- Michelle Birkel, Concerned Citizen (Falmouth, ME)
- Margaret Jean, IDEXX, PDC Certified, UVM Graduate Student - Masters in Leadership for Sustainability (Portland, ME)
- Sara Reddick, Buena Vista Gardens (Portland, ME)
- Eric Kind, GB Handyman Services (Saco, ME)
- Jillianne Valerianni, 2018 FGP Garden Recipient, Maine Families (Gray, ME)
- Ali Mediate, Maine Foodscapes, Cumberland County Food Security Council (Portland, ME)
Meet the team at Maine Foodscapes:
Ali Mediate, Founder and Director
Photographer: David Erde
Ali received a degree in Community Agriculture and Food Science from The Evergreen State College (Olympia, WA). She holds a Master Gardener and Master Preserver Certification through the University of Maine Cooperative Extension in Cumberland County and enjoys volunteering her time to share her skills with others. She has eight years experience working with local food systems initiatives and non-profits, including service years with AmeriCorps and FoodCorps. She has held a variety of roles from Community Gardens and Events Coordinator at The Evergreen State College, to Kitchen Garden Project Coordinator and Workshops Coordinator at Garden-Raised Bounty (GRuB), from Board Member for Slow Food Greater Olympia, to her service year in the Ellsworth School District through Healthy Acadia.
Formerly a freelance Research and Administrative Consultant with the Cumberland County Food Security Council, Ali has been working to raise awareness of the many benefits of strong local food systems infrastructure and the potential for building greater food security in Maine for three years now. Previously working in the community as the Portland Farmers Market Information Booth Attendant, she supported access for low income EBT/SNAP users in gaining information and access to nutrition incentive programs like Farm Fresh Rewards and Maine Harvest Bucks - stretching benefit food dollars and expanding access to Maine's agricultural abundance to all community members. She volunteers as much as she can for the Howard C. Reiche Community School's Green Team in Portland's West End and works there after school as a Garden Educator in the fall and spring.
She spends her time trying to excite everyone she meets about growing their own food and reconnecting with the land that feeds us. She can be found reading a book, riding her bicycle, or in the garden, preferably with bare feet and dirty fingernails!
Formerly a freelance Research and Administrative Consultant with the Cumberland County Food Security Council, Ali has been working to raise awareness of the many benefits of strong local food systems infrastructure and the potential for building greater food security in Maine for three years now. Previously working in the community as the Portland Farmers Market Information Booth Attendant, she supported access for low income EBT/SNAP users in gaining information and access to nutrition incentive programs like Farm Fresh Rewards and Maine Harvest Bucks - stretching benefit food dollars and expanding access to Maine's agricultural abundance to all community members. She volunteers as much as she can for the Howard C. Reiche Community School's Green Team in Portland's West End and works there after school as a Garden Educator in the fall and spring.
She spends her time trying to excite everyone she meets about growing their own food and reconnecting with the land that feeds us. She can be found reading a book, riding her bicycle, or in the garden, preferably with bare feet and dirty fingernails!
Sara Reddick, Winter Foodscapes Administrative Assistant
Sara has been living in Maine now for three years. She graduated from Warren Wilson College in Asheville, North Carolina in 2010 with a B.A. in Global Studies. After college, she returned to her hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio where she worked as an Early Childhood Garden Educator to bring healthy food and nature into the classrooms. Since moving to Maine, she has studied herbalism and has been an active volunteer for Maine Foodscapes to support families experiencing food insecurity to grow food in their own back yards. Sara believes in creating healthy spaces where people are able to reconnect with and learn from the natural world. She is excited to be working outside as a seasonal employee for Buena Vista Gardens and learning from a crew that has such diverse knowledge to share. This Winter, she joins Maine Foodscapes as an Administrative Assistant during the gardening off season in Maine.