Team

Victoria Reyda

Fellow

Victoria is a fellow with Conscious Kitchen, providing administrative and programmatic support for farm-to-school initiatives and organic procurement. Committed to building local, sustainable, and equitable food systems, she brings several years of nonprofit experience working to strengthen food system resilience at the community level. Her experience working on multiple farms, for a student run compost collection service, and running a farmers market has given her a firsthand view of the full journey of food. She holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies from UC Santa Barbara, where her passion for sustainable agriculture and food systems first took root.

Beth Sutton

Senior, Loyola University Chicago

Beth is a rising senior studying Environmental Studies. With a strong passion for sustainability and the intersection of environmental impact and business strategy, she hopes to pursue a career that drives change through responsible corporate practices and environmental innovation. She is especially interested in how organizations can truly adopt environmentally conscious solutions. 

Jalynn Stroman

Junior, Louisiana State University

Jalynn is from Texas, currently attends Louisiana State University, and is majoring in Environmental Science & Research. She loves to make jewelry, read, cook, and spend time outdoors. Jalynn's passion for environmental conservation and restoration is what sparked her interest in this internship.

Heidi Locke Simon | Chair

Former Partner, Bain & Company

Heidi recently retired as a Partner of Bain & Company, a global strategy consulting firm where she worked for 20 years. She was a leader of the firm’s performance improvement capability area and managed Bain’s marketing and client development efforts on the West Coast. Prior to joining Bain in 1993, Heidi worked in investment banking for Goldman, Sachs & Company and spent time in brand management with Colgate-Palmolive Company. Heidi earned an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and received a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Politics and Economics with highest honors from Middlebury College, including course work at the University of Paris. Heidi began volunteering for Turning Green with its first Search for the Cause campaign a decade ago. She has served in numerous roles, including Board Chair for several years.

Chuck Dietrich | Board Member

Partner and Cofounder, The Operator Network (“OpNet”)

Chuck is a Partner and Cofounder of The Operator Network (“OpNet”) a group of C- and SVP-level executives who want to mentor the next generation of entrepreneurs by offering operating advice alongside our personal investment capital. They are high growth technology executives who have founded, scaled and exited world class technology companies.

Chuck has over 20 years of entrepreneurial experience and was perviously the cofounder and CEO of Mobile Data Labs, acquired by Microsoft December, 2015. Mobile Data Labs is the creator of MileIQ, the top grossing finance app across both Google and Apple’s apps stores. Chuck's entrepreneurial past also includes building a retail products company, followed by joining Salesforce.com in its inception and staying for 9 years. In the role of General Manager and Vice President, Chuck built and ran many of Saleforce.com’s channel and partner programs, including system Integrators, marketing partners, product partnerships, and Latin American distribution. Chuck also built and led the company’s mobile strategy and business unit. After Salesforce.com, Chuck was the CEO of SlideRocket, which grew quickly and was acquired by VMware in 2011.

Chuck earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Colorado and an MBA from the University of Utah.

Chuck has been guest lecturer at Harvard, MIT and Northwestern and presents at many technology conferences. He has served on boards of numerous early to mid-stage companies and is involved with the Pledge 1% nonprofit initiative.

Chuck grew up in New Mexico and lives in Northern California with his wife and two children. Chuck is an avid adventurer and lover of the outdoors. In his younger days he spent a lot of time ski mountaineering in the Andes, Alps and Himalaya. When not working, he and his family can be found traveling, skiing, climbing, biking and kite surfing.

Kevin Grossman | Board Member

Brand Manager | SC Johnson Lifestyle Brands

Kevin is a Brand Manager at SC Johnson Lifestyle Brands, overseeing the Method personal care product portfolio. Before joining SC Johnson, Kevin spent seven years at Clif Bar, a multi-bottom line organic food company, where he held various roles ranging from managing retailers and distributors to developing product launch and channel growth strategies. Here, Kevin began to see the many challenges and opportunities facing the K-12 school food system and how organic food companies can help drive change. Kevin also serves as a Strategy Consultant with Conscious Kitchen and holds an MBA from Berkeley-Haas.

Taylor Lee | Board Member

Head of Sales  | Alec's Ice Cream

Alice Waters

Chef, Author, Food Activist, Founder & Owner of Chez Panisse & The Edible Schoolyard Project

Alice has been a champion of local sustainable agriculture for over four decades. In 1995 she founded the Edible Schoolyard Project, which advocates for a free school lunch for all children and a sustainable food curriculum in every public school. She has been Vice President of Slow Food International since 2002. She conceived and helped create the Yale Sustainable Food Project in 2003, and the Rome Sustainable Food Project at the American Academy in Rome in 2007. Her honors include election as a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2007; the Harvard Medical School’s Global Environmental Citizen Award, which she shared with Kofi Annan in 2008; and her induction into the French Legion of Honor in 2010. In 2015 she was awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Obama, proving that eating is a political act, and that the table is a powerful means to social justice and positive change. Her most recent honor was her induction into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 2017. Alice is the author of fifteen books, including New York Times bestsellers The Art of Simple Food I & II, The Edible Schoolyard: A Universal Idea, and, a memoir, Coming to My Senses: The Making of a Counterculture Cook.

Debbie Raphael 

Strategic Advisor

Debbie has spent 30 years in public service leading environmental agencies at the city, county, and state levels. She is a scientist by training and believes in combining the rigor of analytic data with the wisdom of community knowledge to craft policies and programs in service of people and the planet. Debbie was appointed by California’s Governor Jerry Brown, Director of the state’s Department of Toxic Substances Control where she put in place the world-renowned Safer Consumer Products Program. She then spent 8 years under Mayors Edwin Lee and London Breed as Director of the City/County of San Francisco’s Department of the Environment where she led the City’s 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. She is a strategic advisor to academic institutions, businesses large and small, non-profits, philanthropic organizations, and governments around the world. Debbie is well known for her public speaking and her inclusive approach to problem solving.

Currently, Debbie is on the advisory council for the Center for Regenerative Solutions. Their team of experts bring together cities, resource specialists, community-based organizations, scientists, innovators, land managers, and others to accelerate the implementation of regenerative, nature-based solutions that simultaneously improve the social, economic, and environmental resilience of local communities.

Al Courchesne

Organic Farmer | Frog Hollow Farm

Al is the owner of Frog Hollow Farm, a certified organic and regenerative orchard in Brentwood, California, known for its commitment to soil health, biodiversity, and high-quality fruit. Farming since 1976, Al has built a resilient operation grounded in ecological practices and long-term land stewardship. Through his partnership with Conscious Kitchen, he brings a farmer’s perspective to organic farm-to-school sourcing—working across the supply chain to support reliable, values-aligned procurement for school communities. His leadership reflects a belief that nourishing food, environmental responsibility, and strong local economies are deeply interconnected.

Marlen Tapia

Organic Farmer | Mimi’s Organic

Marlen works with her parents and sister to run their family business, Mimi’s Organic Farms, in Salinas, California. The Tapias are the second and third generation of agricultural workers in their family lineage. With Marlen’s family and agricultural history originating in Mexico, growing organic has always been the way. While the market can be more difficult for organic farmers than for conventional farmers. Marlen is passionate about growing organically. She loves eating her strawberries straight off the vine without worrying about chemical residues. Quality is very important to Marlen, so she uses natural remedies to combat pests and mites that can damage the growth of her super-sweet strawberries. Marlen is very proud and grateful for all her parents have done for her and her sister.

Stephen Simon

Founder, Simon Equity Partners

Steve is the founder of Simon Equity Partners, LLC and has been a managing member since January 2007.  From February 1997 to December 2006, he served as president and chief executive officer of Melvin Simon & Associates, Inc., a privately-held real estate and investment company.  Steve serves on the board of directors of the Pacers Basketball Corporation.  He is a director for the Herbert Simon Family Foundation and serves on the boards of the following non-profit organizations; Central Indiana Land Trust, Conscious Alliance and HeadCount. 

 Steve holds a degree in General Studies with a concentration in Public and Environmental Affairs from Indiana University.