Davi Cohen (they/them) is a land steward, farmer, and community co-creator.  A queer, Ashkenazi Jewish resident of Lenape land, Davi is the third generation in their family to have been born in New York City after their ancestors immigrated to the US from Poland, Russia, and Hungary.  In their role as farmer and educator with The Battery Conservancy, Davi tends to a small farm and a native plant forest in a 25 acre park overlooking the New York Harbor.  Eating a pawpaw grown in lower Manhattan and two lambing seasons at Frisky Lamb Farm outside Binghamton are among the countless joys of this urban-rural farm life.  Davi has also performed in venues big and small throughout the US and in Europe, and co-facilitated interdisciplinary collaborations in apartment lobbies, bathtubs, woodlands, farmers markets, and on streetcorners.  A committed collaborator for collective liberation and lifelong dancer and athlete, Davi practices and facilitates meditation and action with a variety of youth and social justice centered communities and coaches QueerTransStrengthNYC, a strength training collective.

Peggy Eppig is Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation's Director of Middle School and Natural Resources Education. At MAEF Peggy develops integrated agriculture curriculum for grades 6-12 through undergrad. She develops formal and non-formal Ag/environmental science and social studies opportunities for teachers and students. Peggy collaborates with several other institutions, organizations and non-profits to support Farm Based Education, the Leopold Education Project training, the Maryland Farm-to-School program with the Maryland Department of Agriculture, and Project Green Classrooms. Peggy facilitates many innovative professional development Ag and natural resources workshops throughout the state for schools systems and professional conferences.

Tafadzwa (Taffy) Gwitira (she/her) is a farmer, and chef of Zimbabwean and Tanzanian origins. She is also a Community Building Strategist whose work on transportation advocacy, place-making and social justice education locally and globally has informed FBEN's work since 2019. She was a farmer with Future Harvest Chesapeake Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture, and is a senior fellow of the Environmental Leadership Program.  The oldest of six girls, she speaks five languages and her favorite people are her nieces.  She loves all things family, food and farm-related. Reach out to her at taffygwitira@yahoo.com.

Scott was a 6th grade teacher in Blowing Rock, NC for 11 years, which is where he learned to teach outside and use gardens as contexts for learning. As a teacher educator at Elon University, he is the coordinator of the environmental education minor and teaches courses on environmental education, garden-based learning, and nature awareness. In 2016, he created the forest classroom at Loy Farm so that his students could become fully immersed in the philosophy and practices of forest school. He also has service-learning partnerships with local elementary schools where he and his students help to co-facilitate after school garden clubs. Scott is passionate about everyday environmental education, or the ways that any teacher can integrate environmental issues into their curriculum or use nature and the community as a context for learning on a daily basis. He also researches the ways that prospective and practicing teachers use social media like Twitter and Instagram for professional development and networking.

Melisa Oliva is a former student of the ABCs of Farm-Based Education at Shelburne Farms. She brings her training to life through her role as the marketing, customer service, and wellness manager of Ananda Gardens in Montpelier, VT. She is an Integrative Health Coach, a consultant, an educator, and a chef. She combines these experiences to share with people the importance of farms as sources of lively food and healthy behaviors for a better life. She is a creative force always looking for innovative ways to connect communities with farms and the stewardship of the land. In her role of a FBEN advisor she has the goal of highlighting the importance of adult education on the wellness aspects related to farms such as mindful living, healthy eating, and reconnection to nature.

The newest member to the team, Kali (she/her) joins the Farm-Based Education Network after two years of FoodCorps service in the Springfield Public Schools district. Here at FBEN, she utilizes social media to uplift the voices of our members' work and experiences. She actively strives to create a social media presence that accurately reflects the diversity of programs and heritages within the field of farm-based education. When she is not admiring and promoting the work of our members, she can be found experimenting in her home kitchen, volunteering at community gardens in Western Massachusetts, and engaging in her daily meditation practices.

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Kali holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hampshire College. Her main areas of study were African-American studies, Cultural and Education Studies, and Sustainable Community Development. Her Senior thesis was entitled “Let's Build a Garden: Integrative Food and Garden Enrichment Education in Springfield Public Schools.” Her thesis explored the food system within her home city of Springfield, Massachusetts, and the potential garden-based education holds in creating more equitable and just food systems.